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Excursions for children* in St. Petersburg Russia

You are travelling with children – that is great! But this obviously means that the general standard tour program is not for you.

We would like to offer you some tours which are designed specially for children – informative, but at the same time entertaining, where the information, as well as the timing of the tours, will be adopted to the age of your kids.

The special offer "St. Petersburg for Children" consists of three tours:

1. City tour ''Secrets of St. Petersburg''
   We will show your children St. Petersburg, and they are sure to find it interesting and exciting. This tour is very different from an ordinary city tour.
2. Hermitage tour ''Palace of Wonders''
   It is half a tour, half a game. Your children will feel little princes and princesses on a visit to the Russian Tsar.
3. Peterhof ''World of Fountains'' tour/quest
   Peterhof is always the first choice to take your children to. The Gardens of Peterhof are just made for the kids to enjoy themselves! But here instead of a "normal" tour we want to offer you a quest.

City tour "Secrets of St. Petersburg"

The tour consists of two parts which we do either on the same day with a break for lunch or on two different days. It also varies a little for children of different ages.

Part one (2 hours):

• The Spit of the Basil Island – one of the most beautiful places of the city. The complex was built for the needs of the port which used to be on this place in the beginning of the 19^th century. So here we will talk about ships and about our port. We will also learn how to make little origami boats and if weather permits send our paper flotilla to sail.
• The Peter and Paul Fortress – it’s the heart of St. Petersburg, the place where our city was started. Now it is full of legends and myths. We will enter the fortress through a secret hidden passage. Places like it were used to hide treasures. So we will use this chance and look for a hidden treasure. Hopefully we will be able to find one  Older kids will look for an "old" map which will help them to find a way to the fortress guns or to the former political prison. The visit to this prison is optional but very much recommended for kids of 8 and older. They will be able to enter authentic prison cells where Russian revolutionaries were imprisoned. They will also learn a special prison alphabet and secret ways of communication.

Part two (2 hours):

• St. Isaac Cathedral. We will visit the largest Russian Cathedral decorated with marble, semiprecious stones and numerous mosaics. We will learn what mosaic means and how these mosaics were made. Your guide will bring a miniature "mosaic workshop", so the kids will have a chance to feel themselves real mosaic masters and produce their own paper mosaics. For older kids we also suggest climbing up the colonnade (optional) to get a bird’s-eye view of the city.
• Malaya Sadovaya street. It’s a central pedestrian street famous for its minor monuments. Here we will meet well known St. Petersburg cat Elisey by name and his friend Vasilissa and get to know how cats saved our city during World War II. We will also see the fountain "Time" and try to make it work for us.

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Hermitage tour "The Palace of Wonders"

We will play Noble Princes and Fair Princesses.

We will learn court manners and etiquette and tell stories about the life of Russian Tsars and Tsarinas, magnificent receptions and splendid balls. At the same time we will show the children most beautiful rooms of the Hermitage, some exhibits which children always like so much (the Peacock Clock, the Knights Room), as well as several world famous paintings describing them in a way interesting for children.

The tour will take from 1 to 1,5 hours depending your children's age and your wish. This is more than enough for the children and not enough at all for the parents. Therefore as an option we would like to offer you a special opportunity: the children may stay for extra 40-60 minutes in the internet café of the Hermitage supervised by our assistant guide or by one member of your group, whereas the rest of the group will proceed on the "Grown-up" part of the tour.

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Peterhof ''World of Fountains'' tour/quest**

We believe that for kids it could be much more interesting to look for new information themselves and to discover things independently than to learn everything from a guide. That’s why we developed a quest for them instead of a "normal" tour.

At the very beginning of the quest our guide will give some introductory information. Then you will come to the start point where kids will get a map with the route and a few control points marked on it. They are to walk along this route and to find all the control points (almost all of these points are famous fountains or pavilions). At each control point they are to answer a few questions, to do a particular task/tasks and to find one letter from a "secret" word. To answer some of the questions/do some tasks your kids will need to know Russian history on a very basic level (all this info will be given by our guide at the very begging of this quest, on the way to Peterhof or during previous tours) but for majority of the questions they are just to look around, to see things around and to think. At the very end when all control points have been found, all question answered, all tasks done and a "secret word" found – we have no doubts your kids will be able to do it – all of them will get small presents in a style Peter the Great would like.

We are absolutely sure that children will enjoy this quest. We also hope that adults in your party will also appreciate it as it’s not only a game which gives your kids some new info concerning Russian art and culture but a kind of activity which teaches them to think.

** The quest is intended for to children 8-12 y.o.

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In addition we would like to offer:

A visit to a Russian Family – instead of just a lunch in a café you can have tea and Russian Pies in a St. Petersburg Family – to see the everyday life of the citizens. Getting ready for your visit we will take care that the family knows about your children and your diet requirements. And of course we will choose a family with children in it.

A masterclass of Matryoshka doll painting – introduction to Russian folk culture and at the same time a fine entertainment for both children and parents. It can be organized either in a special workshop or during the Visit to a Russian Family.

A visit to the Porcelain factory with a masterclass of porcelain painting – you will not only see the unique process of porcelain making but get a fantastic chance to decorate your own pieces. You can make a service set for the whole family where each member creates his or her own piece. Can you think of anything better to bring home as a remembrance of this trip?

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* Our tours are intended for children from 5 to 12 years old. Of course, tours for kids of 5-6 y.o. and for those who are 10-12 y.o. will differ but the general idea will be the same.

From our clients' reviews: Children friendly tours in St Petersburg Russia ...We visited St Petersburg on a cruise with our 7 year old daughter. We wanted to see the main sights but in a way that a child would also enjoy so. Our 2 days were filled with the sights and history of St Petersburg with activities to keep the 7 year old with a short attention span engaged. At the same time, the adults were kept engaged, learning about the history, architecture and culture of this great city. Maria was a fantastic guide for both child and adults - so knowledgeable and her enthusiasm for her city is infectious. (Shayola, Northern Ireland) St Petersburg Russia with kids ...Sailing paper boats up the river, treasure hunting in the tunnels below Peter &Paul fortress, playing in the trick fountains and Peterhof and painting Matreshka dolls were among the highlights for our daughter and created memories that will last a long time. Thanks to the Best Guides for such a great program for children! (Sh., Ireland) What to do in St Petersburg Russia with children ...We started with Peter and Paul Fortress, a suggestion from Best Guides. Our guide Masha made this fun for my son with a treasure hunt down in the secret passage and making the stories of the prison come to life. My son was also thrilled with our visit to the Museum of Soviet Cold War Arcade Games, where we tried out all the old arcade games. I loved seeing the Church on Spilled Blood, the metro tour, and the Hermitage. (SM88, WA) Things to do in St. Petersburg Russia with kids ...I'm happy that I was lucky to find Best Guides Company ahead of time and order a tour around the city from them. It was a shore tour for tourists with young children - Learn-and-Play. We were able to see all the main sights of St. Petersburg and our guide Maria told about them so that the children were delighted! I think that my children will forever remember this trip. And they will dream of their whole life to come to St. Petersburg again. (Chen Xu, Chicago, Illinois) Children friendly excursion Peterhof, St. Petersburg Russia ...My son and me loved Peterhof, where I loved the beautiful grounds and my son loved getting soaked in the trick fountains. Our guide was prepared with a little science experiment to teach my son how the fountains worked. We have done tours in multiple cities around the world and it makes such a huge difference when a company can provide guides that truly understand what it means to be kid friendly. (SeattleMember88, Seattle, WA) St Petersburg Russia kid friendly tour ...I was visiting with my 10 year old son and knew he would hate 2 days of nothing but palaces and museums so I wanted to find a way to mix some of those things in with things he would like so we could both have an enjoyable experience. Best Guides was terrific with working with my suggestions and coming up with their own to find a perfect compromise that resulted in 2 days that left both me and my son wanting to return. (SeattleMember88, Seattle, WA)