Useful Links

Weather

The temperatures in St Petersburg during the autumn, winter and spring months can vary from below freezing (Celsius) to a pleasant 20 degrees Celsius. The past few winters have been rather mild in St. Petersburg, and historical weather tables are therefore not so reliable. We recommend you consult a weather service before your departure. You can find a number of websites by typing "world weather" in your search engine.

Try http://weather.yahoo.com or http://www.cnn.com/weather/.

Money

Currency: The unit of currency in Russia is the ruble. Russian currency is regulated. You are technically required to change your hard currency (U.S. dollars, euros, etc.) only at official exchange points and to use only rubles as cash, where you will often need to show your passport for identification. There is an automated cash dispensing machine at your hotel, as well as around the city at large. The locals will accept your dollars for tips, taxi rides and souvenirs, but it is technically not allowed, since the legal tender of the country is the ruble.

Exchange Rates: You can find the current exchange rate in the financial sections of newspapers and on the Internet. You can find a number of websites by typing "foreign exchange rates" in your search engine.

Try http://www.xe.com and http://money.cnn.com/markets/currencies.

Hermitage Museum Plan

If you would like to familiarize yourself further with the Museum layout or collections, please see the Museum’s homepage at http://www.hermitagemuseum.org/html_En/00/hm0_5_10.html.

Kempinski Hotel

Located on the corner of the Winter canal and the Moika canal, the five star Kempinski has without a doubt, the best location for our guests. Being almost on the Palace Square, it is within a two minute walk to the back entrance of our museum.

http://www.kempinski-st-petersburg.com/en/home/index.htm

Mariinsky Theater

Another great cultural treasure of St Petersburg is the Mariinsky (formerly the Kirov) Theater. Nureyev, Baryshnikov, Pavlova are but a few of the names that have made this historical theater into the world’s leading. Under the directorship of Maestro Valeri Gergiev, the Mariinsky continues to expose the world’s greatest ballet and opera talents. An opera/ballet performance or concert is included in our programme, and most likely at the Mariinsky. Due to late playbill announcements however, we can only with certainty plan this cultural evening upon our guest’s arrival. (In the case that the playbill at the Mariinsky is not of interest, we have alternate options at the Mikhailovsky Theater and/or at the Philharmony).

http://www.mariinsky.ru

Opera synopses: Aida, Carmen, Der fliegende Hollander/The flying Dutchman, Eugene Onegin, La Boheme, Madame Butterfly, Queen of Spades, Rigoletto, Ruslan and Lyudmila, Tosca, Viaggio a Reims.

Ballet synopses: Don Quixote, Giselle, La Sylphide, Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake, The Fountain of Bakhchisarai, The Nutcracker.

Russia

For an overview of facts and updated information on Russia, you may want to check https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/rs.html