Andre

Headed to St. Petersburg for a very long weekend - almost 5 full days. It will be my first trip to Russia.

Am mostly interested in good advice for navigating museums and seeing the best architectural monuments (palaces, churches etc.), dining/nightlife tips not a major priority as I'll have access to "semi-local" expertise (long story ;-) ).

Given the above, what guidebook(s) would you suggest?

Thanks in advance for the tips!

Andre

aeiger

Hi
Both Rough Guide and Insight Guides publish a travel guide for St. Peterburg. For a possibly more extensive list check out www.globecorner.com, they have a fairly complete list of publishers of travel guides. A great source for myself when I'm looking. Enjoy your trip.

thit_cho

For museums and architecture, the DK Eyewitness Guide is the best. In second place, I would put Lonely Planet. I used both on my trip to St. Petersburg.

Andre

Thanks for the replies so far - will go to the bookstore on Saturday, so please keep weigh in!

For now, Eyewitness sounds like the best bet.

Andre

Viajero2

(Sorry Fodor's!) Definitely get the Dorling Kindersley Guide to St. Pete. They are pricier than other guides, but it is the ONLY guide you will need. Incredibly illustrated with walking tours, step-by-step, area by area, you will be amazed of the information this book packs. Buy it and get familiar with the format in advance. This book is outstanding.

Colin

I'm a big fan of the DK Eyewitness guides. We used it a lot whilst in St.Peterburg and Moscow, especially when it came to the museums.

The detailed maps were invaluable.

____________________________________
Russia Travelogue
http://www.colin-julie.com/travel.htm

kja

I found the Baedeker's guide invaluable. Enjoy!

Andre

Ended up buying Lonely Planet - handier format and interesting history section. Found Eyewitness too splashy/busy - just my opinion.

Now, as long as the &%?! Russian embassy returns my passport by Wednesday, I'm off!

Thanks for the input, will try to post a quick report when I get back.

Andre

Marc_David_Miller

I agree with many of the other posters. We give all of our clients the DK/Eyewitness Guide to St. Petersburg (or Moscow, if that is their destination). They are ideal for short trips (5 days and under); the Lonely Planet and Rough Guide generally has more history and covers more territory, but most visitors won't go beyond the center of each city and the more visited suburbs. That said, their deficiency is in nightlife, restaurants and hotels, but you have that covered.

There are some more specialized books which we also recommend (probably 20 on architecture, for instance) if you have an intense interest in one or more subjects.

Enjoy the trip!

gruezi

bookmarking...thank you...

Lusya

Paper books are so last century! If you are a Pocket PC user, there is a travel guide that you can download and use instead of using a book.
Here is where I got it:
http://www.soundtells.com/MobileRefe...dex.htm#travel
I have used one in several cities, including St.Petersburg and Moscow, and it was very convenient, informative & easy to navigate. It has great maps and restaurant recommendations!
I think, it's also available for other platforms, like Smartphone & Blackberry.