Saint Petersburg/Vasilievsky Island

The Vasilievsky Island is a borough in Saint Petersburg situated between the Bolshaya Neva and the Malaya Neva, two main distributaries of the river. Besides the Vasilievsky Island proper it also includes the Dekabristov Island, separated by the Smolenka river, and smaller islets, but the vast northwestern part of the borough offers almost nothing interesting to see, in contrast with the eastern part, which is very rich in landmarks.

Around 1715-1725 the eastern part of the island was projected to become the city center. This project was abandoned with the death of Peter the Great, and in the 1730s the center shifted to the southern bank of the Neva, but several Petrine Baroque buildings here date from that period and the island has since remained the center of the city's academic life. It is now home to the Academy of Arts, Mining Institute, main campus of Saint Petersburg State University as well as the local branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences with its library and several research institutes and museums. The rectangular grid of streets seen today was originally a grid of canals, filled in after 1767. From the 1730s till mid-19th century the eastern part of the bank of the Malaya Neva hosted the city sea and river port, and, though the port eventually moved away, many buildings still standing there were designed for this purpose. In 1850 the first permanent bridge across the Neva, Blagoveshchensky Bridge, linked the island to the city center. Since then the rest of the borough has been gradually built over. Its westernmost parts, reclaimed from the Gulf of Finland, are still being developed.

By metro
The island is served by two metro stations of Line 3, Vasileostrovskaya in the east and Primorskaya in the west (in the boring Soviet-era quarters). Additionally, it is accessible from Sportivnaya station of Line 5, which has an exit to the eastern tip of the island.

By bus
The island is also served by autobuses, trolleybuses, trams and marshrutkas. By bus, trolleybus or marshrutka you can easily get here from Nevsky Prospekt (and from Moskovsky Rail Terminal).

By foot
The eastern tip of the island is easily within a walking distance from the Hermitage Museum, right across the river through Dvortsovy Bridge.

Get around
Most attractions are within walking distance from each other. A numbered liniya (line) is just one side of a street, so that, for example, the 4th and 5th lines are two sides of the same street. Be careful and don't confuse Bolshoy Prospekt and Maly Prospekt of this island with the streets of the same name on Petrograd Side.

See
Most of the historical landmarks are on the tip of the island and along the Universitetskaya Embankment. A stroll along the embankment also provides good views of the opposite bank with the Winter Palace, Admiralty and St. Isaac's Cathedral.
 * The ensemble of the Spit (Strelka) of the Vasilievsky island was built in the early 19th century between the academic quarters and the port and is dominated by the Stock Exchange building. It offers an impressive view of the Neva river with the Hermitage and the Peter and Paul Cathedral. Other monuments you'll immediately notice on the Strelka, the Rostral Columns, are yet another symbol of the city. Constructed in 1810 to celebrate the victory over the Swedish navy, the columns are each adorned with six rostra (traditionally, the prows of captured ships), symbolizing the might of the Russian Baltic Fleet. At the base of the columns you'll see sculptures representing the great rivers of European Russia, the Volga, Dnieper, Neva, and Volkhov. In addition to their decorative purpose, the columns also served as lighthouses, and to this day the gas flames are lit on holidays.

Along Lieutenant Schmidt Embankment


There are also many notable buildings, streets and museums in the inner part of the island, including:









There are also a couple of museum ships:



Do
Enjoy the beautiful scenery!

Buy
The Academy of Arts and the Naval Museum have very interesting souvenir shops. If you are leaving St.Petersburg by ship and want to do some last minute authentic Russian food and beverage shopping (i.e. you want to bring home a bottle of vodka), there is a Polushka (Полушка) grocery store at the corner of Ulitsa Gavanskaya and Prospekt Sredniy, less than 10 minutes by foot from the harbour. On the other hand, there's a tax free shop in the harbour terminal.

Drink
There are not as many options here as in the Center.

Sleep
Most travellers choose to stay at the Center. But there are a few options available in this district.