Nevsky Avenue (Nevsky Prospekt, in Russian Невский проспект) is the main street of St. Petersburg: 4.5 kilometers that start at Palace Square, next to the Hermitage, and run all the way to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery. Walking it end to end without stopping takes about an hour; but in practice you’ll need half a day, because at every step there’s a cathedral, a palace, a bridge or a bookshop you’ll want to step into.
I’ll walk you along it from one end to the other, in the order you’ll come across everything, with what has changed since 2022 (the Western brands and hotels that left, how to get around now) and the practical details you’ll need. Let’s go.
1. Nevsky Avenue at a glance
The avenue is 4.5 kilometers long and between 25 and 60 meters wide depending on the stretch. It’s the liveliest street in the city: cars, buses and trolleybuses run along it, and it’s always full of people. If you look at the numbering, the even numbers are on the “sunny” side and the odd ones on the “shady” side, as they’ve been called here for ages. It works just as well by day as by night, when the facades light up and cafes and bookshops stay open late.
One heads-up so you’re not caught off guard: until 2022 you’d have seen the same chains on Nevsky as in any European capital. After the Western brands left (Zara, H&M, etc.), many shops changed their signs. The old Zara store, for example, reopened as Maag, the Russian chain that took over its premises, and now sits among Russian brands, cafes and souvenir shops. The atmosphere is still commercial and busy, just under different names.
2. A little bit of history
The avenue’s history is almost the city’s own. Its origins, around 1718, are nearly as old as St. Petersburg, founded in 1703 by Peter the Great. At first it was just the road heading out towards Novgorod, through a swampy, wooded area. After a major fire, in the mid-18th century the mansions of the nobility went from wood to stone. In the early 19th century the Kazan Cathedral was built and banks and shops sprang up; by the middle of that century the station where the trains from Moscow arrive – today’s Moskovsky – was inaugurated.
After the October Revolution of 1917 the avenue was renamed Avenue of the 25th of October (from 1918 to 1944). During World War II it was bombed several times and many buildings were destroyed; a few inscriptions still recall it today. The metro and the big apartment blocks arrived in the 1950s and 1960s. Many of the year’s events still take place here: Victory Day (May 9), the city’s Foundation Day (May 27) or the September 12 procession that comes down from the Kazan Cathedral to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery in honor of the holy prince.
Who gave the avenue its name?
The avenue is named after Alexander Nevsky (Vladimir, 1220 – Gorodets, 1263), prince of Novgorod and Vladimir at a time when Russia was split into principalities under Mongol rule. He made his name young with two victories: he beat the Swedes at the Battle of the Neva in 1240 (which earned him the nickname Nevsky) and the Teutonic Knights on Lake Peipus in 1242. The Orthodox Church canonized him, and his memory was honored both by the tsars (Peter the Great founded a monastery in his name in 1712) and by the Soviets (Stalin created a military order bearing his name in 1942).
On top of that, his life was brought to the screen in 1938 by Sergei Eisenstein, the director’s first sound film. It starred Nikolai Cherkasov and the score was composed by Sergei Prokofiev.
3. Walking along Nevsky Avenue from beginning to end: what to see
On both sides of the avenue you’ll find imposing buildings, bridges steeped in history, solemn squares and monuments, with a mix of styles from the 18th to the 20th century: Baroque, Classicism, eclecticism, Modernism and Constructivism, one after another. I’ll suggest the route that starts at Palace Square (next to the Admiralty), which matches the start of the numbering; you can also do it in reverse. I describe the buildings in the order you meet them as you walk, not by number, since the even and odd sides don’t line up. On the map below you can see the route with every point marked.
3.1. Alexander Column (Palace Square)
The best place to start (or end) is Palace Square, home to the Hermitage. At its center rises the Alexander Column, dedicated to Alexander I and erected between 1830 and 1834 after the Russian victory over Napoleon. It’s made of red granite, stands 47.5 meters tall and weighs about 600 tons. The curious part is that it holds up by its own weight alone: it isn’t fixed to its base.
Once on the avenue, look at number 14: it keeps an inscription from the WWII siege that warned passers-by, “Citizens! During the bombing this side of the street is the most dangerous.” It’s one of the few that survive in the whole city.
3.2. Literary Cafe (No. 18)
The avenue inspired Gogol, Dostoevsky, Gorky and Tolstoy. Gogol even has a short story titled Nevsky Prospekt, where the street is almost a character. The Literary Cafe (at number 18, now a restaurant) occupies the premises of the old Wolff and Beranget confectionery, frequented by those writers. It was here that Pushkin had breakfast on the day of his fatal duel with d’Anthès, in January 1837 – a detail the place itself remembers. It’s still open, with Russian-French cuisine and live music in the evenings.
A musical aside: the Italian singer Franco Battiato dedicated a song to the avenue titled “Prospettiva Nevski”.
3.3. Stroganov Palace (No. 17)
As soon as you cross the Green Bridge over the Moyka River, you reach the Stroganov Palace, the work of the architect Rastrelli in the mid-18th century and one of the finest examples of Russian Baroque. It was built for the wealthiest family in the Russia of its day.
It’s now part of the Russian Museum and can be visited. It was closed for restoration from October 2023 to April 2025, so it has since reopened. It usually opens Wednesday to Monday, 10:00 to 18:00 (closed Tuesdays), and the ticket is around 500 rubles; foreigners pay a bit more. Since prices and hours change, it’s best to check them on the museum’s official site before you go. The main building of the Russian Museum (the Mikhailovsky Palace) is right nearby and is one of the city’s great visits: it gathers over 400,000 works covering the whole history of Russian art, from medieval icons to the 20th century.
3.4. Dutch Reformed Church (No. 20) and Lutheran Church of St. Peter and St. Paul (Nos. 22-24)
Facing the Stroganov Palace stands the old Dutch Reformed Church, built between 1834 and 1839 for the Dutch community, in the Classical style. It was closed during the nationalization of 1927 and the building is now used for institutional, commercial and residential purposes.
Close by is the Lutheran Church of St. Peter and St. Paul (the Petrikirche of the German community), built between 1883 and 1888 and thoroughly restored in 1997.
3.5. Singer House, now the House of Books (No. 28)
The Singer House, built between 1902 and 1904 in the Art Nouveau style, was the headquarters of the famous sewing-machine brand. After the Revolution it passed to publishing houses and has since been home to the House of Books (Dom Knigi), one of the largest bookshops in the city. It’s still open every day (9:00 to 23:00) and worth stepping into even without buying anything: the Art Nouveau interiors are gorgeous. On the second floor there’s a cafe with the best view there is of the Kazan Cathedral, and a small viewpoint over the avenue has been set up at the top.
3.6. The Kazan Cathedral (Kazan Square, 2)
Right across from the Singer House is the Kazan Cathedral, the city’s main cathedral and the seat of the Orthodox bishop. It’s dedicated to the Virgin of Kazan, one of the most revered icons in Russia. Emperor Paul I had it built on the model of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome; it was designed by Andrei Voronikhin between 1801 and 1811, in a Neoclassical style, and stands out for its great colonnade of 96 columns opening onto the avenue. Inside lies Field Marshal Kutuzov, the general who stopped Napoleon. In 1932 the cathedral was closed and turned into the Museum of the History of Religion and Atheism.
Today it’s a working church and admission is free. If you go in, keep your shoulders and knees covered; women usually cover their heads.
3.7. Basilica of St. Catherine of Alexandria (Nos. 32-34)
Roman Catholic, this basilica dates from 1763-1783, with later restorations. It’s the oldest Catholic church in Russia.
3.8. Duma Tower (No. 33)
On the corner of Dumskaya Street stands the Duma Tower, the former seat of the city council. Pentagonal and Classical in style, it was built between 1799 and 1804. Lit up, it’s beautiful at night.
3.9. Grand Hotel Europe (No. 36)
The Grand Hotel Europe opened in 1875 and took on its signature Art Nouveau style in the early 20th century. It’s the oldest luxury hotel in the city, five-star, and its guests have included Tchaikovsky, Debussy, Stravinsky, Gustaf V of Sweden, Elton John and former French president Jacques Chirac. Until 2023 it was run by the Belmond chain (part of France’s LVMH group); after the sanctions, Belmond removed its brand and the hotel passed to local management, while still operating as the Grand Hotel Europe. The main entrance is on Mikhailovskaya Street, next to Arts Square and the Philharmonic.
3.10. Gostiny Dvor (No. 35)
Gostiny Dvor is the city’s oldest shopping arcade and one of the oldest in the world: a huge 18th-century gallery in the Neoclassical style that takes up a whole block. It has its own integrated metro station (Gostiny Dvor, since 1967). Close by, on Dumskaya Street, an underpass lets you cross the avenue.
3.11. St. Catherine’s Armenian Apostolic Church (Nos. 40-42)
This church was built between 1770 and 1772 at the request of the city’s Armenian community. It returned to religious use in 1993.
3.12. The Passage (No. 48)
As the name suggests, it’s a covered shopping passage full of charm, with patisseries, cafes and shops. It opened in 1848, in the city’s heyday, and stands out for its glass roof.
3.13. Eliseyev Emporium (No. 56)
The Eliseyev Emporium is a luxury food hall in an Art Nouveau building from 1902-1903 (the work of architect Baranovsky). It sells caviar, vodka, teas, sweets and other delicacies; the prices are touristy, but the place is worth a look just for the decor and the huge stained-glass window on the facade. Entry is free to take a look around.
On the second floor of the same building is the Nikolai Akimov Comedy Theater. And it’s right at that corner that the lovely Malaya Sadovaya pedestrian street begins, perfect for a break or a coffee on a terrace, with fountains and small hidden sculptures (such as the little cat Elisey perched on a cornice).
3.14. Monument to Catherine the Great (Ostrovsky Square)
Across from the Eliseyev Emporium, on the other side of the avenue, stands the Monument to Catherine the Great, erected in 1873 on one of the city’s most solemn squares. The empress stands on a pedestal ringed by nine bronze figures of notable people of her era.
3.15. National Library of Russia (Ostrovsky Square)
The National Library of Russia also faces Ostrovsky Square. The historic building dates from 1795 and opened to the public in 1814, under the name Imperial Public Library. It’s one of the largest libraries in the world, with tens of millions of documents. Nearby, on Sadovaya Street, another underpass lets you cross the avenue.
3.16. Alexandrinsky Theater (Ostrovsky Square, 6)
The Alexandrinsky Theater was founded in 1756 by Empress Elizabeth, daughter of Peter the Great. The current building dates from 1832 and is the work of the great Carlo Rossi, with a magnificent facade and an interior in a markedly imperial style. It’s also known as the Pushkin Theater.
3.17. Anichkov Palace (No. 39) and Anichkov Bridge
The Anichkov Palace (1741-1754) was born Baroque and was soon turned Neoclassical. It’s where the last tsar, Nicholas II, spent his childhood. Today it houses an educational and cultural center for children and teenagers. The Anichkov Bridge crosses the Fontanka River and is famous for its four statues of horses tamed by man, the work of Pyotr Klodt (1851); during World War II they were buried near the palace to protect them from the bombing.
3.18. Beloselsky-Belozersky Palace (No. 41)
Just past the Anichkov Bridge, at the intersection with the Fontanka, the Beloselsky-Belozersky Palace appears, neo-Baroque with Rococo interiors. It dates back to 1747 and was reworked in the 19th century as a mirror of the Stroganov Palace, with its mauve facade. It now serves as a municipal cultural center with chamber concerts.
3.19. Moskovsky train station (Vosstaniya Square)
The Moskovsky station (1844-1851) is the main one in St. Petersburg and the first thing many travelers see on arrival. It was born with the first railway between the two big Russian cities and was called Nikolayevsky until 1924, in honor of Nicholas I. This is where, for example, the high-speed Sapsan train ends – it links the roughly 700 km between Moscow and St. Petersburg in about 4 hours (the fastest in around 3 hours 40 minutes) – as well as the legendary Red Arrow night train. It connects to the metro at Ploshchad Vosstaniya and Mayakovskaya.
Next to the station, already on Ligovsky Avenue, is Galeria, one of the largest shopping centers in the city, with plenty of shops and restaurants.
3.20. Leningrad Hero City Obelisk (Vosstaniya Square)
Across from the station, on Vosstaniya Square, stands the Leningrad Hero City Obelisk: a 36-meter granite monolith topped with a gold star, installed in 1985 in memory of the city’s resistance during the war. Leningrad was the official name of St. Petersburg from 1924 to 1991. From here the avenue bends slightly to the right and, in about 25 minutes on foot, you reach Alexander Nevsky Square.
3.21. Alexander Nevsky Monument (Alexander Nevsky Square)
On this square stands the equestrian statue of the city’s guardian prince: it weighs about nine tons, stands nearly nine meters tall and was erected in 2002.
3.22. Alexander Nevsky Monastery (Lavra)
The Alexander Nevsky Monastery was the city’s first. Construction began in the 1710s and it’s a fine example of Petrine Baroque. It holds the relics of St. Alexander Nevsky, one of the two patron saints of St. Petersburg (along with Peter the Great). It’s a working monastery and entry to the grounds is free. Its two necropolises, run by the Museum of Urban Sculpture, do charge admission: the 18th-century one and the Masters of Arts necropolis (the old Tikhvin Cemetery), where Dostoevsky, Tchaikovsky, Glinka, Mussorgsky and Rimsky-Korsakov rest.
3.23. Alexander Nevsky Bridge
The Alexander Nevsky Bridge marks the end of the walk (or the beginning, if you do it the other way). Completed in 1965, at 906 meters it was the longest in the city until 2004, when the Great Obukhovsky Bridge overtook it. The design is functional, but at night it has lovely lighting. It’s also one of the drawbridges that open during the famous White Nights of St. Petersburg.
4. Getting around Nevsky Avenue by public transport
If you don’t want to walk the full 4.5 kilometers (it’s long), you have the metro, buses and trolleybuses running its whole length, plus taxis. One important practical note: since 2022, foreign Visa and Mastercard cards don’t work in Russia, so to pay for transport you’ll need cash in rubles, a Podorozhnik transport card or a Russian MIR card.
4.1. Buses, trolleybuses and the tourist bus
After the 2022 transport reform, many route numbers changed. Today the avenue is served by several buses (such as 3, 7, 24, 27 and 191) and trolleybuses (1, 5, 7, 10, 11 and 22). The tram no longer runs on Nevsky. The double-decker tourist bus (City Sightseeing / “City Tour”), hop-on hop-off style, also runs here, with stops on the avenue (Ostrovsky Square, Nevsky 38, Nevsky 49 and Vosstaniya Square), an all-day ticket (around 2,000-2,200 rubles) and a multilingual audioguide.
4.2. The metro
The line that runs the avenue end to end is the green one (Line 3), with three stops along Nevsky:
- Gostiny Dvor: towards the start of the avenue, next to the Kazan Cathedral and the House of Books. Connects to Nevsky Prospekt station on the blue line (Line 2).
- Mayakovskaya: near the Moskovsky station. Connects to Ploshchad Vosstaniya, on the red line (Line 1).
- Ploshchad Aleksandra Nevskogo: at the end of the avenue, next to the Lavra. Also an interchange with the orange line (Line 4).
How long does it take to walk Nevsky Avenue?
Walking it end to end (4.5 km) takes about an hour without stopping. If you stop to see the buildings and step into a few shops or cafes, set aside half a day.
Where is the best place to start the walk?
The easiest is to start at Palace Square, next to the Hermitage, which is number 1 of the avenue, and finish at Alexander Nevsky Square. You can also do it the other way around.
Do foreign cards work in the shops on Nevsky Avenue?
No. Since 2022, Visa and Mastercard cards issued outside Russia don’t work in the country. Bring cash in rubles or a Russian MIR card to pay in shops, cafes and on public transport.
What can you see for free on Nevsky Avenue?
The Kazan Cathedral (a working church), the House of Books in the former Singer House, the Eliseyev Emporium and the grounds of the Alexander Nevsky Monastery are all free to enter. Only the monastery’s necropolises, with the graves of Dostoevsky and Tchaikovsky, charge admission.
