St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg -- "The Venice of the North" -- is another destination that we think will likely be in our Top 20, so today's research is to validate that assumption and estimate how much time we'd want to spend there.

Fast Facts

• Population 5.2 million
• Average temperature graph; descriptions of each season
• September - October best time to visit because it's cooler, less humid and tourists are gone, though rain is common
• Money and costs
• Visa is required from USA. See Procedures for US citizens (wikitravel); cost is $160 + processing fee

Culture

• 221 museums
• The Mariinsky is closed in August and most of the ballet troupes are out of the country
• 2000 libraries
• 80 theaters 
• 100 concert organizations
• 45 galleries and exhibition halls
• 80 other cultural establishments

Tourist Tips

• Best time to visit is June during White Nights (end of May through mid-July); can be tough to get accommodations during the last 10 days of June
• Cheaper to fly to Estonia and take the Eurolines bus (8 hours)
• Last Sunday of July is a NAVI day -- modern NAVI ships of Baltic fleet are open for visitors

Sites visited:
Wikipedia
The Telegraph article (reader's tips and travel advice) (2012)
The Guardian article (The insider's cultural guide to St. Petersburg (March, 2015)
Wikitravel
Lonely Planet
Local travel company