19 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

An over 200-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

Museum of Hygiene

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

Saint Petersburg, Russia

F. M. Dostoyevsky Literary Memorial Museum

An ever-growing literary collection housed in the apartment where the Russian author penned his final novel.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

Nabokov's Butterflies

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

See All 19 Things to Do in Saint Petersburg See All 19 Places

Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member.

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.

Community Forums / Eastern Europe / Russia

Top Discussions in the Russia Travel Forum

Post	Replies	Views	Activity
'Compassion'	6 November 17, 2019	1633	November 17, 2019
'The Motherland Calls'	3 November 17, 2019	1506	November 17, 2019
Stalin's Bunker	1 July 16, 2019	1194	July 16, 2019
Kaliningrad Oblast	1 May 20, 2019	1489	May 20, 2019
Tour operator	0 October 30, 2019	664	October 30, 2019

New Post Visit the Forum

Explore Saint Petersburg, Russia

Launch Map

Saint Petersburg Leaderboard

Places Added

Places Edited

Places Visited

Recent Saint Petersburg Activity

AegisAuguery wants to go to Rasputin Museum at Yusupov Palace

evettelesch wants to go to Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery

evettelesch wants to go to Lenin's Hut

evettelesch wants to go to The Wax Museum

evettelesch wants to go to John Lennon Street

Stories About Saint Petersburg

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

Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member.