The Peter and Paul Fortress is the original Citadel of St. Petersburg. Founded in 1703 by order of Peter the Great and designed and built by Domenico Trezzini between 1707 and 1740, there is a nice collection of attractions within the fortress grounds.

Entering the small island where the fortress grounds are located by way of the Ioannovskiy Bridge and Ivan Gate, you soon encounter the Information Centre where you buy entry tickets. Opening hours for the Information Centre are 10-7pm (closed on Wednesdays).

The Fortress makes for a nice place to spend 1/2 a day or longer. There are several small museums with special exhibitions. One particular museum that we found to be worthwhile is the State Museum of the History of St. Petersburg. This attraction is worth an hour or two of your time. We also liked the Exhibition of the History of the Peter and Paul Fortress.

There are some nice architectural structures worth viewing as well. We must enjoyed seeing St. Peter's Gate on the eastern side of the fortress as well as the Neva Gate which faces the river to the south.

Another highlight that we enjoyed within the fortress was the Peter and Paul Cathedral, a Baroque masterpiece as well as the oldest church in St. Petersburg. This was a beautiful church and the attraction that we remember the most from our time in the fortress.

In the end, we spent over 3 hours at the Peter and Paul Fortress and only visited a handful of the attractions available for entry. This is a good area to spend time in St. Petersburg and a place we would be interested in spending more time to visit during future trips to the city.