Fodor's Expert Review Valaam monasteries

A guided tour of Valaam takes about six hours, although with a break for lunch this isn't at all as arduous as it might sound. You can also buy a map of the island (easy to find at any of the many tourist shops here) and strike out on your own. But the tour guides, most of whom live on the island throughout the summer, have an enormous amount of interesting information to impart about Valaam (most, however, don't speak English). The guides also know where the best shady spots to sit and relax are, and while you catch your breath they'll tell you everything about Valaam's history, prehistory, wildlife, geology and geography, religious life, and gradual renaissance as a monastic center. The island's beauty has also inspired the work of many Russian and foreign artists, composers, and writers; the second movement of Tchaikovsky's First Symphony is said to be a musical portrait of the island, and you'll hear it played over loudspeakers as your ferry departs.

Most tours to Valaam spend the first half day on a small selection of the skity, a monastery in seclusion. Only four skity are currently used as places of worship, and some of them are in the archipelago's most remote areas. Closest to where the ferries dock is the Voskresensky (Resurrection) Monastery, consecrated in 1906. In the upper church, you can hear a performance of Russian liturgical music performed by a male quartet. Another monastery within easy walking distance is the Getsemanskii (Gethsemene) Monastyr, consisting of a wooden chapel and church built in a typically Russian style, and monastic cells, which are inaccessible to the public. The squat construction next door is a hostel for pilgrims, some of whom you may see draped in long robes on your walk.

After lunch, buy a ticket for the ferry that will take you to the 14th-century Spaso-Preobrazhensky Valaamskii (Transfiguration of the Savior) Monastyr, the heart of the island's religious life. You can walk the 6 km (4 miles) from the harbor in either direction, but if you choose to walk back from the monastery, make sure you give yourself enough time to catch the ferry back to St. Petersburg (about 1¼ hours should be enough time to walk back). As you reach the monastery, you'll see tourist stands. The walk up the hill past the bric-a-brac, however, is well worth it, as you reach the splendid Valaamskii Monastyr cathedral (under ongoing restoration). The cathedral's lower floor is the Church of St. Sergius and St. German, finished in 1892, and is in the best condition. It's a living place of worship, as you'll see from the reverence of visitors before the large icon depicting Sergey and German kneeling before Christ. The upper Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior, consecrated in 1896, is still in a terrible state, although the cavernous interior, crumbling iconostasis, and remaining frescoes are still impressive in their own right.

Although drinking and smoking are permitted in most areas of the island, you'll be asked to refrain while on the territory of the monasteries. Visitors are also required to observe the dress code on the grounds of the cathedral: women must wear a long skirt and cover their heads (scarves and inelegant black aprons are provided at the entrance for those who need appropriate garb), and men must leave their heads uncovered and wear long trousers—shorts are forbidden.

You might want to poke your head into the rather severe bar on the island, but you're unlikely to want to linger.