There are still a few warm months left for the year in the North, and no trip to St Petersburg, whether for a weekend or a month, is complete without a day trip to the Peterhof Fountains.
Millions of visitors to Russia take the time to see the Peterhof Fountains every year, and to do so makes for a wonderful day out for the entire family. When Peter the Great designed Peterhof, the fountains were an intrinsic part of the original architectural plans. Since the conception of them, subsequent designers have created ever more grand and ingenious water features, which we enjoy to this day.
Located at the Grand Palace at Peterhof, there are more than one hundred waterfall cascades and fountains, as well as formal gardens, pavilions and statues. The most well known is the Grand Cascade. Here are just a few of the many other fountains onsite that are surrounded by beautiful gardens and parklands…
- The Roman Fountains are double tier fountains dating to 1739. They are located in the Parterre Garden and were rebuilt in marble and granite and relocated to this spot by 1817.
- The Memorable Bench lies just west of the Whale Fountain. It was created as a monument to the younger daughter of Tsar Nicholas I (Grand Duchess Alexandra Nickolayevna) after her death in 1844 at the age of just nineteen. The bench features a bust of the Grand Duchess.
- The Sun Fountain is incorporated into a pool in the Menagerie Garden, and was designed in 1724. It was constructed in the 1770’s and features a complex design of water jets spurting around a central disc and rolling columns of water thanks to a hidden water wheel.
- Children will be delighted by the Trick Fountains, which offer a surprise to unwitting visitors. Peter the Great was inspired to bring them to Russia by the Court of Louis XIV in France, and the ones at Peterhof date to the 1700’s.
- The Pyramid Fountain is amongst Peterhof’s most magnificent water pieces. It dates to 1721 and incorporates over five hundred sprayers with a framed pool and stepped cascade.
- The Lion Cascade is a monument to the reign of Nicholas I, and has bronze lions guarding it. It features a Classical Greek Colonnade with granite columns and marble fountains inside. A secondary fountain (Nymph Aganippe) is erected in its centre.
Peterhof Fountains and Parklands is a wonderful outing to make on a sunny and warm summer’s day. The whole family can get great enjoyment from the beautiful and unique setting of what is known as “The Versailles of the North”. Book your trip to Russia visa-free with Scandi Travel to make this dream day trip a reality.
