The State Hermitage guided tour

Group
4 hours
Group size up to 15 persons
Mobile ticket
Full refund for cancellations up to 48 hours
Cancel up to 48 hours in advance to receive a full refund
English

The tour usually starts from main staircase and state rooms of the Winter Palace and follow the route of the Zar’s ceremonial procession toward the church. So you can compare changes of style from original baroque, typical to Elisabeth’s court architect Rasstrelly, to classical, which was Catherine’s favorite style. Along the route I speak about every highlight of the collection including history of its creation, acquisition and authentication. We familiarize ourselves with the Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Flemish, British and French sections and I speak about socio-economic progress of each country in conjunction with the development of it’s art during corresponding period of time. Along this route we talk about the history of rooms and their former royal owners.

I give the history of the Hermitage collection as we enter the small Hermitage building. Then we proceed to the next building of the old Hermitage we start from Italian Florentine School which was the birth place of the Renaissance. So I would be able to speak about this period and it’s development from early to high Renaissance under Medici family. We see all of the masterpieces, such us two out of ten existing Madonnas by Leonardo Davinci. After that we see works of art connected with the crisis of Renaissance and the development of mannerism style in Italy for example the only Michelangelo in Russia. As we walk into New Hermitage building we can see representatives of the Bologna academic school of 18th century and their attempt to go back to classical principals. And after that we come back to Winter Palace to see the French section, which is second only to the one in France. After that we can visit and learn the history of the French impressionist’s collection which appeared in Russia before the revolution due to visionary insight of two Russian industrialists who trusted only their own taste while buying Picasso, Matisse, Van Gogh, Gogen and such when nobody was paying any attention to them. And we finish off in the Russian section and see how art and crafts developed in Russia driven, by the willpower of one man who started it all — Peter the Great of course. Optionally we visit old Scythian, Egyptian, Greek or Roman artifacts which are also a big part of Hermitage collection.

Note: Every first Thursday of a month the entrance to the Hermaitage and this tour is free of charge!

1900 ₽
per person
Cancel up to 48 hours in advance to receive a full refund
Online Booking
Price
Regular ticket
1900 ₽
per person
For any payment method you must book a ticket through the booking form below and receive confirmation by e-mail and (or) SMS.
Activity schedule

On request

What places you will see

It all depends on you and can include 4 main complex buldings with the routes going around small or big circles, with or without General Staff building and/or Peter's original palace on any of three floors.

Activity book period
You can book tour up to 36 hours in advance.
Languages in what activity is performed
English
Directions to meet your guide

Outside of the museum

How long your tour will be
4 hrs
Photos
The State Hermitage guided tour - photo 1
The State Hermitage guided tour - photo 2
The State Hermitage guided tour - photo 3
The State Hermitage guided tour - photo 4
The State Hermitage guided tour - photo 5
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Reviews by travellers
4.6 out of 5
7 reviews
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Alynne M.
Everything was excellent! Igor is the perfect guide, we loved our Hermitage tour. He help us buying the tickets and confirmed our appointment days before. Completely recommended.
over 4 years ago
Lpcarmoc
Very informative and interesting. A good mix of history and art. Will recommend it.
almost 6 years ago
Andrew D.
Igor Ribin was our guide in Saint Petersburg and he took us literally everywhere. His knowledge of Saint Petersburg is extensive and he was happy to adapt his tours to our interests. His Hermitage tour is amazing in respect of his detailed knowledge of the art and artifacts in this remarkable museum. You definitely appreciate having a guide. Igor also guided us at the the Hermitage Storage Facility, this is a fabulous off the beaten track must see in Saint Petersburg and the assistance of a professional guide such as Igor will help greatly. We would recommend Igor Ribin as a Saint Petersburg guide, particularly his walking tours and go with his suggestions you will really discover a lot of interesting places. Thanks Igor we had a wonderful time. Helen & Andrew
over 6 years ago
Harma V.
Igor was very knowledgeable. Really, he has information about every room and every piece in the Hermitage. He picked out the most interesting rooms and pieces for us and told about the history of it. The tour we had was very informative. We had a bad start due to the fact that Igor was waiting outside for us, while we were waiting inside as stated on the confirmation. The tour started half an hour later because of this. Next to that, Igor's appearance was not totally as expected; he wore a shirt with stains on it. You can, of course, wear casual clothes but well, this was just not really presentable. Therefor, I give this tour 3 stars.
almost 10 years ago
Aksana L.
Thanks for the nice tour, Igor! It was informative and detailed. I can recommend it for those, who are interested in Russian history...
over 10 years ago
1900 ₽
per person
Cancel up to 48 hours in advance to receive a full refund
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