Petrograd & Vyborg Sides - St Petersburg - page 281

Neighbourhood Top Five
See the final resting place of the Romanovs, climb the bell tower for stunning
views and enjoy the large range of museums and exhibits scattered around the Peter
and Paul Fortress ( CLICK HERE ).
If the Hermitage left you wanting more, visit the state-of-the-art Hermitage St-
orage Facility ( CLICK HERE ).
Spend a day relaxing on the charming, wooded Kirovsky Islands ( CLICK
HERE ) - perfect for picnicking, boating and sunbathing.
Make a detour to the historic Sampsonievsky Cathedral ( CLICK HERE ) for
one of the city's most beautiful church interiors.
See how the Soviet elite really lived at the markedly unproletarian apartment that
now houses the Kirov Museum ( CLICK HERE ).
Explore: Petrograd & Vyborg Sides
The Petrograd Side, where Peter's city was first founded and from where it grew into
the modern city it is today, is a fascinating place packed with historical sites and stun-
ning Style Moderne architecture. It includes little Zayachy Island, home to the Peter
and Paul Fortress, St Petersburg's most historic complex, as well as the three
Kirovsky Islands - Yelagin, Krestovsky and Kamenny - three charming, wooded
Neva delta islands that function today as the city's biggest park.
The enormous Vyborg Side encompasses all the land on the right bank of the Neva
River, and is a sprawling, industrial area running from Okhta, across the river from
the Alexander Nevsky Monastery all the way out to the Gulf of Finland. Its centre, if
the diffuse area can even be said to have one, is around the Finland Station. The Vy-
borg Side has been consistently in the news recently, due to the controversial plans to
build a 400m-high skyscraper here.