Guided tour of the Grand Palace and the park in the town of Pavlovsk

If you are tired of luxury of the Catherine Palace and pomposity of Peterhof or just from the city rush, Pavlovsk is the best place where you can forget everything and immerse into the world of beauty, harmony, good taste and grace.

Pavlovsk used to be a country summer residence of Emperor Paul I, the son of Catherine the Great, and his wife, Empress Maria Feodorovna. This is a magnificent complex that includes the Pavlovsk Palace and the stunningly beautiful huge landscaped park.

Paul, the only son of Catherine II, is one of the most controversial and tragic characters of our history. He is often called Russian Hamlet, as his fate in a sense echoes the fate of Shakespeare's character. Paul’s relationship with his royal mother was always quite complecated. When he finally had acquired the long-awaited throne after her death at the age of 42, his reign was short and lasted for only 4 years, 4 months and 4 days. He was murdered by plotters in his own bedroom.

His wife, Empress Maria Feodorovna, was one of the most educated women in Russia. She read books in several languages in various fields of science and arts. The Empress also had an extraordinary artistic talent – she drew pictures and painted with oil, played several musical instruments and was a good singer. Mainly owing to her delicate taste, Pavlovsk acquired its inimitable charm and became one of the world’s masterpieces of architecture and landscape design. Paul I and Maria Feodorovna had 10 children, and two of them (Alexander and Nicholas) later became the Russian emperors.

Their creation, their favorite palace became a kind of display of rich inner world, education and fine taste of its owners.

In the interiors of the Pavlovsk Palace, you will not see any luxurious gilding or artsy modeling, which made Elizabethan baroque so famous – the palace classic interiors are elegant and restrained, their perfect proportions and impeccable design create a sense of harmony and reflect the refined taste of its owners.

We are positive that today Pavlovsk really has the richest collection of original artworks of the suburban palaces of St. Petersburg. Thankfully, the director of the museum Anna Zelenina was able to save a great deal of works of art during the Second World War.

Duration of the excursion - 5 hours.

* If you have the opportunity to spend all day outside the city, then we advise you to combine sightseeing in Pavlovsk with a tour to the Catherine Palace. These two famous palaces are situated within a 10-minute ride from each other.