Yusupov Palace (Yusupovsky Dvorets)

Yusupov Palace (Yusupovsky Dvorets) Review

On the cold night of December 17, 1916, this elegant yellow palace, which belonged to one of Russia's wealthiest families, the Yusupovs, became the setting for one of history's most melodramatic murders. Prince Yusupov and others loyal to the tsar spent several frustrating and frightening hours trying to kill Grigory Rasputin (1872-1916), who had strongly influenced the tsarina, who in turn influenced the tsar, during the tumultuous years leading up to the Bolshevik Revolution. On display in the palace, which is set on the bank of the Moika River, are the rooms in which Rasputin was (or began to be) killed, as well as a waxworks exhibit of Rasputin and Prince Yusupov (who was forced to flee the country when Rasputin's murder was uncovered). They are visible only on an extended tour given once daily at 1:45 pm. Another tour (scheduled on the hour) takes you through the former reception rooms of the second floor. Both tours are in Russian only. As for the scene where Rasputin was actually poisoned—the palace's underground tunnel—it is ostensibly off-limits, but you may be able to view the tunnel if you can avail yourself of the bathroom facilities on the lower level of the mansion. It's essential that you phone ahead at least a week in advance to arrange an English-language tour. The tour is given only in Russian, Another option is to take an audioguide tour in English, French, German, Italian, Finnish, and Spanish. In that case you'll also need to pay a refundable deposit of 500R for the use of an audio player.

On a lighter note, the showpiece of the palace remains the jewel-like rococo theater, whose stage was once graced by Liszt and Chopin; today, concerts are still presented here, as well as in the palace's august and elegant White-Columns Room (concert tickets usually have to be purchased just before performance time).