St. Petersburg with Kids

It is not difficult to find interesting places and activities for children in St. Petersburg, there are a lot of them here! Beautiful parks, interactive museums, fun excursions, cute monuments will offer you an unforgettable trip to the northern capital of Russia. Let’s take a look at our suggestions.

Peter and Paul fortress

The fortress is an absolute must for everyone visiting Saint Petersburg. And it is a fun place to go with kids.
In addition to a beautiful cathedral, the fortress offers numerous fun things to do. Thus you may throw a coin onto the top of the log where the little hare sculpture stands.  If the coin remains–they say your wish will come true!
You may climb the wall and admire the gorgeous view of the Neva River. The artillery firing at midday is something to witness.
If time permits you may also visit several museums: the science museum, space museum, and the old jail. While walking around the prison your kids will learn what prison was like in the time of the tsars.
In winter they often host ice sculpture festivals on the grounds of Peter and Paul fortress.

Boat tours

A Boat tour along rivers and channels is a great way to see the city. Not all kids are that much interested in hearing the history but they’ll surely like the experience itself. You may find several routes but in most cases, such a tour lasts around 1 hour.

Gardens and fountains of Peterhof

The suburbs of St. Petersburg are famous for their majestic palaces. Peterhof is one of the most beautiful country residences built in the style of the French Versailles. This place will be interesting for both adults and children. Kids will be curious to see the most beautiful fountains, find out how they function, and even run under a jet of water on a hot day.

Walking tour of the city center for children

Our wonderful guide Larisa offers to walk around the center of St. Petersburg and find out the answers to the most curious questions. During the tour, you will walk along Nevsky Prospekt and discover the lovely and iconic monuments, as well as unique mansions and palaces.

Take a look at our St Petersburg with kids walking tour.

Birds’ eye view of St Petersburg

Most children love climbing somewhere, don’t they? The most classic panoramic view of the city is from the top of St Isaac’s cathedral. If you are not scared of climbing 226 steps you may get an amazing view of the city from the Colonnade of the Cathedral

An alternative experience is the rooftop tour. While in many cases this experience sounds rather extreme you may find some safer options with officially licensed tour companies and fenced areas on top.

Cats republic

Cat lovers will have fun visiting a cat cafe in St Petersburg. Here you can have coffee and cakes, get fun souvenirs and play with the most friendly furry creatures.
You pay a small donation which is used by the staff to take care of the animals. All cats in this café are adopted. Visiting the café might appear a very enjoyable experience for the whole family.

 

Troyka ride in Pavlovsk

Why not experience the most classic Russian winter fun? While touring Pavlovsk palace and park you may take a 20-min ride on a Russian sleigh. Troika is a traditional Russian harness driving combination, that uses three horses pulling a sleigh.
The tour is an exciting way to enjoy one of the most beautiful parks of St. Petersburg and feel like tsars of old times!

Grand Maket Rossiya

The exhibition of the museum is the largest model of Russia in the world, from its Far Eastern borders to the coast of the Baltic Sea. Images of various cities and regions are embodied on the surface of the model, and almost all types of human activity are displayed in genre scenes. Your kids will appreciate the dynamics of the composition added by the railway and car traffic, various scenes with moving objects and figures are controlled by the audience!

Petrovskaya Akvatoria

This is a scale model museum, showing how Saint Petersbourg and its suburbs looked like in the 18th century. Some of the models are moving and you can spend hours marveling at thousands of tiny models of people, animals, buildings, and ships.
Unlike Grand Maket,  this museum is in the very city center very close to St Isaac’s cathedral. This museum is a must-see for kids but adults will enjoy it too!

Museum of Railway Transport

The museum opened only in 2017, but it became very popular from the very beginning. It consists of 2 halls and huge open-air exhibition space. Here you will see numerous trains, steam locomotives, and coaches from the beginning of the XX century to our days. Most of the locomotives and cars can be only seen from the outside, but there are ones that may be boarded. Kids will also enjoy a train driving simulator.

The Zoological Museum

This is the only museum in the world where you can see a stuffed adult mammoth with your own eyes. More than thirty thousand varieties of animals and birds are represented in the museum's expositions. The largest exhibit is the skeleton of a blue whale with a length of 27 meters.

The Russian Museum of Ethnography

This museum is dedicated to the everyday life, traditions, and customs of people living in different parts of Russia. Children will see Central Asian carpets and Caucasian ceremonial weapons, attributes of Siberian shamans, and a hall lined with pink Karelian marble. You will immerse yourself in the world of Finns and Sami, the peoples of the Baltic and the Far East.

We believe that your kids might also enjoy many other iconic attractions of St Petersburg. Thus, when we visited the city with our 5-year old son, we also explored the Hermitage, Aurora Cruiser, and Yusupov Palace. However, while planning your trip, it's important not to overload it with museums and find a guide who knows how to interact with the little ones. Take a look at other tours of St Petersburg we offer.