Three Imperial Residences

The Palace and Park of Tsarskoye Selo is a former country residence of the Russian Emperors. Its three parks occupy an area of 600 hectares and have over 100 architectural monuments: from magnificent palaces and grand monuments to intimate pavilions and park sculptures. The center of Tsarskoye Selo is Catherine Palace containing exquisite decorative objects, furniture, Russian and Western-European paintings, unique collections of porcelain, amber, arms and bronze sculptures. The palace is also home to one of the world's most exquisite pieces of architectural and decorative art, the Amber Room, an entire room made of amber panels, mirrors and gold leaf with a fascinating history.

Peterhof was founded by Peter the Great as Russia's answer to Versailles. Peter the Great is famous for the westernization of the country, and the main purpose of this particular residence was to impress foreign guests and to show that Russia was able to compete with Europe in architecture and park design. The Peterhof Upper Gardens and Lower Park are genuine masterpieces of landscape design. They include over 150 fountains and 4 monumental cascades. What differentiates Peterhof fountains from those of Versailles is that the water runs using its natural pressure without any pumps - the idea belonged to Peter the Great and it still works! On the territory of the park you can see the Grand Palace and several pavilions which were turned into museums - Monplaisir, Catherine's Block, Marli, Hermitage and the Bath Block

Built in the late XVIII and early XIX centuries, the palace and park was used as a summer residence for emperor Paul I and his family. The landscape park, one of the largest in Europe, covers an area of 600 hectares. The museum in the palace displays an excellent collection of portraits by Russian artists and a number of Pavlovsk landscape paintings and drawings. Residential rooms of the Empress Maria Fedorovna are enrapturing with their harmonious beauty and are open the public.