From Vasileostrovskaya to Sportivnaya

What can you expect?

The route begins at the Vasileostrovskaya metro station on Andreevsky Boulevard - in our opinion, this is the most beautiful pedestrian zone in St. Petersburg. Here is the "New Museum", which presents the work of non-conformist artists of the Soviet period and the best examples of contemporary Russian art.

After leaving the museum, go along Sredny Prospect towards the 2nd and 3rd lines, focusing on the Gothic spire of the Lutheran church of St. Michael. Take the church to the right. In house 20 on the 3rd line, you can visit the Benoit family museum-apartment (if you booked there in advance by phone), and then, crossing the street, look at the ZERNO gallery of modern photography. The gallery is located in house 17 on the 2nd line, and there are interesting photo exhibitions.

At the corner of Bolshoi Prospekt and the 2nd line is the house of the merchant Gromov. It was here that Tanya Savicheva kept her besieged diary, as two memorial plaques remind of - on the facade and in the courtyard.

Also in this house is the only museum of spices in Russia, where you can not only see, but also smell and taste all kinds of spices. After the tour, we recommend that you go to a local coffee shop and drink a cup of coffee or tea, make purchases in the spice shop.

On the opposite side of the avenue you will see the classic building of the Lutheran church of St. Catherine, built in 1771 by the architect Yu.M. Felten. Turn back to Sredny Prospect along the narrow, mysterious, almost medieval street of Repin, where, as they say, ghosts are sometimes found. There is also a bookstore “Own Books” where you can find rare editions - more precisely, reprints of books that are no longer in other stores.

On the corner of Sredny Prospekt and First Line, you have a chance to please your senses again in the unique Perfume Museum. A visit to the museum is by appointment, but once you get on an excursion, you can taste hundreds of aromas, including masterpieces of perfumery art.

On the other side, on the Cadet Line, is another church of St. Catherine. This active Orthodox church was erected in 1811 according to the project of A.A. Mikhailov. Half a century later, a bell tower was added to it, its author is the architect F.I. Nesterov.

Along Sredny Prospekt, you will reach Makarov Embankment. Malaya Neva carries its waters in front of you, on the other side - Tuchkov Buyan, the former hemp warehouse building, erected in the 18th century on the former island.

Turning left, you can grab a bite to eat in the cozy vaulted cellar called Buterbrodskybar. An atmosphere of Petersburg was created in the institution, and the name refers to Brodsky’s lines: “I don’t want to choose a country or a churchyard. On Vasilyevsky Island I’ll come to die ... "

Having eaten up, look into the courtyard of house 14 along the promenade. There, next to the two-story stone wing, a local attraction is a miraculously surviving tiny wooden house, surprisingly inhabited.

Your journey continues towards Tuchkov bridge. See a plain four-story house on the corner with Tuchkov Lane? In the 1910s, Akhmatova and Gumilyov lived here, as evidenced by a memorial plaque at the end of the building. The poets of the Silver Age gathered in their tiny room, the future historian Lev Gumilyov was born here.

Tuchkov bridge and Sportivnaya metro station with its long horizontal escalator (travelator) near the Neva are the final points of your trip. But first you need to have lunch, and we advise you to do it in the gastropub "Brugge", which is famous for Belgian cuisine and a huge number of Belgian beers.