23 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in Saint Petersburg - Atlas Obscura

Unusual Attractions in Saint Petersburg

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Rasputin Museum at Yusupov Palace

Palace where the nearly un-killable Rasputin was murdered.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Kunstkamera (Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography)

The oldest museum in Russia is home to a fascinating collection of nearly two million anthropological artifacts and anatomical curiosities.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Russian Vodka Museum

The past, present, and future of Russia's signature alcohol is remembered in the world's only museum dedicated to the starchy spirit.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Peacock Clock

A 250-year-old timepiece-automaton adorned with golden mechanical birds, which still sing to this day.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Freud's Dream Museum

Dark, eerie exhibits make for a surreal exploration of the subconscious.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Literary Café

Once frequented by heavyweights of the Russian arts scene, this café is stuck in the 1800s.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Nabokov's Butterflies

Specimens collected by the author of "Lolita" and self-taught lepidopterist are exhibited in his childhood home.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Museum of Hygiene

This Russian museum stresses the importance of keeping clean and even holds one of Pavlov's dogs.

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Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Saint Petersburg

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Russian Vodka Museum

The past, present, and future of Russia's signature alcohol is remembered in the world's only museum dedicated to the starchy spirit.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Literary Café

Once frequented by heavyweights of the Russian arts scene, this café is stuck in the 1800s.

Atlas Obscura Trips

Searching for Russia’s Northern Lights

Bear witness to the ethereal glow of the Northern Lights, explore Arctic Russia, and see life in the Polar Circle up close.

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Stories About Saint Petersburg

Russian Empress Elizabeth used cross-dressing to cement her power. She's shown here in a traditionally male guard uniform.

The Weekly Cross-Dressing Balls of 18th-Century Russian Royalty

How empresses used "metamorphosis" to show their male courtiers who’s the boss.

October 4, 2021

Catherine the Great dropped in to visit the "ice mountain" in St. Petersburg, depicted in this detail from an 18th-century painting by Benjamin Paterssen.

Way Before Roller Coasters, Russians Zipped Down Enormous Ice Slides

These artificial mountains were fast, thrilling, and probably very dangerous.

by Jessica Leigh Hester

August 21, 2019

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