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St Isaac's Cathedral, St Petersburg

St Isaac's Cathedral in St Petersburg: the gold dome above its ring of columns and granite porticoes
Photo: Florstein (Telegram:WikiPhoto.Space), CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The essentials in 10 seconds

Entry
700 ₽, colonnade 700 ₽
Hours
Museum 10:00–18:00, last tickets 17:30, closed Wednesdays; 1 May–30 Sep also 18:00–21:30. Colonnade 10:00–18:00, open daily in summer and evenings; Oct–Apr closed on the third Wednesday
Time on site
A typical visit without queueing. In high season add 15–30 minutes.
1 h
With kids
Fine with kids
Cathedral museum
700 ₽ — the same price for foreign visitors
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Colonnade (43 m viewing deck)
700 ₽ by day, no concessions; stairs only
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Evenings, 1 May–30 Sep
Museum 800 ₽, colonnade 800 ₽; 18:00–21:30, no guided tours
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Children under 7
Free (museum)
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Ages 7–18
300 ₽
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
ISIC card
330 ₽
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Audio guide
300 ₽, several languages
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Museum hours
10:00–18:00, ticket office until 17:30; evening entry until 21:00
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Museum closed
Wednesdays and 1 January (open daily during public holidays)
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Colonnade hours
10:00–18:00; 1 May–30 Sep daily plus 18:00–21:30; 1 Oct–30 Apr closed on the third Wednesday and 1 January
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Payment
Foreign Visa and Mastercard cards don't work in Russia — bring roubles in cash
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Metro
Admiralteyskaya (line 5), ≈ 7 min walk
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Coordinates
59.93405, 30.30595YesGo MapGoogleAppleYandex

Key facts

101.5 mtall to the cross — the largest church in St Petersburg
2 sourcesOfficial St Isaac's Cathedral museum websiteEnglish and Russian Wikipedia
40 yearsto build, 1818–1858, to a design by Auguste de Montferrand
2 sourcesOfficial museum websiteEnglish and Russian Wikipedia
43 mheight of the colonnade, the viewing walkway around the dome
2 sourcesOfficial museum website, prices pageRussian Wikipedia
112monolithic red granite columns on the outside
SourceEnglish and Russian Wikipedia, “Saint Isaac's Cathedral”
114 tthe weight of each of the 48 portico columns, 17 m tall
2 sourcesOfficial museum website, “The building”Russian Wikipedia
St Isaac of Dalmatiathe cathedral's saint — Peter the Great was born on his feast day, 30 May
2 sourcesOfficial museum websiteRussian Wikipedia
4thchurch of St Isaac on this site; three earlier ones stood here from the early 18th century
2 sourcesOfficial museum websiteRussian Wikipedia
25.8 mouter diameter of the main dome
2 sourcesOfficial museum websiteRussian Wikipedia
111.2 × 97.6 mlength and width of the cathedral
2 sourcesOfficial museum websiteEnglish Wikipedia
1931–1986a Foucault pendulum swung beneath the dome
SourceEnglish and Russian Wikipedia

St Isaac's Cathedral tickets and prices

A standard ticket to the cathedral museum is 700 ₽, and the colonnade is a separate 700 ₽ ticket — 1,400 ₽ for both. Foreign visitors pay the same price as locals. Children under 7 get into the museum free, 7–18-year-olds pay 300 ₽ and ISIC holders 330 ₽. There are no discounts at all for the colonnade.

From 1 May to 30 September both open again in the evening, 18:00–21:30, for 800 ₽ each; there are no guided tours then. The audio guide costs 300 ₽ and comes in several languages.

Paying: Visa and Mastercard cards issued abroad have not worked in Russia since March 2022, and the museum's online ticket site takes Russian cards. Bring roubles in cash for the ticket office, or ask your hotel or a local tour operator to book for you.

Opening hours

The museum is open 10:00–18:00 and the ticket office closes at 17:30. It's closed on Wednesdays and 1 January, though it opens every day during public holidays.

From 1 May to 30 September there's an evening session, 18:00–21:30, with last entry at 21:00. The museum is still closed on Wednesday evenings, while the colonnade runs every day and every evening all summer.

From October to April the colonnade keeps 10:00–18:00 and closes on the third Wednesday of each month. The museum warns that hours can change for technical reasons, so check its official website on the day.

Is the colonnade worth climbing?

On a clear day, yes — it's the best 700 ₽ you'll spend in the centre. The walkway circles the dome between 24 granite columns, 43 m up, and gives you the whole historic city in one turn.

Look north for the Neva, the Spit of Vasilyevsky Island and the spire of the Peter and Paul Fortress; east along Nevsky Prospect to the dome of Kazan Cathedral; west to New Holland and the port.

Skip it in rain, fog or strong wind: you won't see much and it gets cold up there fast. In summer, the evening session is the one to go for — during the White Nights the sun sets late over the Gulf of Finland.

How to get to St Isaac's Cathedral

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on footdestinationStreet view

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On foot

More tips

  1. Take the metro to Admiralteyskaya (line 5, purple). Exit onto Malaya Morskaya Street and walk straight on — about 7 minutes to the cathedral.
  2. From Nevsky Prospekt (line 2) or Gostiny Dvor (line 3), walk along Nevsky and turn onto Malaya Morskaya — about 15 minutes.
  3. From Sennaya Ploshchad, Sadovaya or Spasskaya, head north up Voznesensky Prospekt — about 15 minutes.
  4. From Palace Square, walk past the Admiralty along Admiralteysky Prospekt — 10 minutes. From the Bronze Horseman it's 3 minutes.
  5. Driving isn't worth it: parking in the centre is paid and scarce around St Isaac's Square.

Is St Isaac's Cathedral worth visiting?

Yes — if you see only one church interior in St Petersburg, make it this one. The scale is the point: a 101.5 m building with walls of marble, a malachite-and-lapis iconostasis and a dome painted by Karl Bryullov. Add the colonnade and you get the city's best view in the same visit.

It's less worth it if you've already done the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood and only want mosaics, or if it's a grey day and you were mainly coming for the view — then go inside only, or come back when the sky clears.

What to see inside

  • The main dome from below — Karl Bryullov's painting covers about 800 m²; a Foucault pendulum hung here from 1931 to 1986.
  • The iconostasis of white marble with columns of malachite and lapis lazuli.
  • The mosaics — 62 of them, made from more than 12,000 shades of smalt glass; from a distance they look like oil paintings.
  • The stained-glass window of the Resurrection above the altar — unusual in an Orthodox church.
  • Montferrand's bust, assembled from the stones used to finish the cathedral.
  • The portico columns outside — 17 m and 114 tonnes each, raised before the walls went up.
  • The gold dome — fire-gilded with mercury; records say 60 craftsmen died from the fumes.

Who built it and why it's called St Isaac's

French architect Auguste de Montferrand designed the cathedral, and it took 40 years, 1818–1858, to build. It's dedicated to St Isaac of Dalmatia because Peter the Great was born on his feast day, 30 May — and it's the fourth church of St Isaac on this spot. Peter married Catherine in the first one, a modest wooden church, in 1712.

The Soviets turned it into a museum; services came back in 1990 and are now held daily, so today it is a museum and a church at once. A 2017 plan to hand the building over to the Orthodox Church was never carried out.

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St Isaac's vs Spilled Blood vs Kazan Cathedral

St Isaac's Cathedralyou are hereMuseum and church, 43 m colonnade700 ₽, colonnade another 700 ₽Scale, iconostasis, city view1–1.5 h
Savior on Spilled BloodMuseum and church covered in mosaicsPaid museumMosaics inside and out40–60 min
Kazan CathedralWorking cathedral on Nevsky ProspectFreeA quick stop, the curved colonnade outside20–30 min

Short on time? Pick St Isaac's with the colonnade — interior and view in one go. Spilled Blood is for the mosaics; Kazan Cathedral is a free stop on your way down Nevsky.

St Petersburg's churches compared

Every church and monastery in St Petersburg rated by YesGo. Tap a column heading to sort.

Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood7545 min700 ₽, under 7 free25 min walk
Peter and Paul Fortress742 hGrounds free, cathedral 1,000 ₽32 min walk
Kazan Cathedral7230 minFree18 min walk
St Isaac's Cathedralyou are here691 h700 ₽, colonnade 700 ₽—
Kronstadt494 hFree30.1 km
Alexander Nevsky Lavra481 hFree4.8 km

Palace Square to New Holland in half a day

Start on Palace Square, walk to the Bronze Horseman, climb St Isaac's colonnade, follow the Moika to the Yusupov Palace and finish at New Holland. Add them to your route in one tap — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers.

  1. Palace Square30 min · Free
  2. 14 min walk from the previous stopBronze Horseman20 min · Free
  3. 6 min walk from the previous stopSt Isaac's Cathedralyou are here1 h · 700 ₽, colonnade 700 ₽
  4. 11 min walk from the previous stopYusupov Palace on the Moika1 h 30 min · from 950 ₽
  5. 8 min walk from the previous stopNew Holland Island1 h · Free

5 places · about 4 h 59 min with walks · 39 min on foot in total

Go · my route

Nearby — add to your day

Bronze Horseman

St Petersburg, Russia

20 min · Free · 6 min walk

Nevsky Prospekt

St Petersburg, Russia

1 h 30 min · Free · 10 min walk

Yusupov Palace on the Moika

St Petersburg, Russia

1 h 30 min · from 950 ₽ · 11 min walk

Palace Square

St Petersburg, Russia

30 min · Free · 13 min walk

How to do it right

  • One hour: the interior — dome, iconostasis, mosaics. An hour and a half: add the colonnade.
  • Keep the colonnade for a clear day; on a grey one, do the interior only.
  • In summer, the evening colonnade (18:00–21:30) beats the daytime one — fewer people and softer light.
  • Arrive at 10:00 in high season to avoid the midday ticket queue.
  • Combine it with the Bronze Horseman, the Yusupov Palace on the Moika and New Holland — all within 15 minutes on foot.
  • Want the story of the 114-tonne columns and the mercury-gilded dome? Take the 300 ₽ audio guide or a guided tour.

Questions

How much are tickets for St Isaac's Cathedral?

700 ₽ for the museum and a separate 700 ₽ for the colonnade. Summer evening tickets are 800 ₽ each. Children under 7 enter the museum free, and 7–18-year-olds pay 300 ₽.

Is St Isaac's Cathedral closed on Wednesday?

The museum is — every Wednesday and on 1 January. The colonnade is open on Wednesdays, except the third Wednesday of the month from October to April.

What are the opening hours?

10:00–18:00, ticket office until 17:30. From 1 May to 30 September there is also an evening session, 18:00–21:30.

How many steps are there to the colonnade?

Sources differ: about 200 on the spiral staircase alone, 262 counting the open stairs onto the roof. There's no lift for regular visitors.

Is the colonnade worth it?

On a clear day, yes — it's a 360° view of the historic centre from 43 m. In rain or fog, skip it and visit the interior only.

How long do you need at St Isaac's Cathedral?

About an hour inside, an hour and a half with the colonnade.

Which metro station is closest?

Admiralteyskaya on line 5, about a 7-minute walk along Malaya Morskaya Street. Nevsky Prospekt and Gostiny Dvor are about 15 minutes away.

How tall is St Isaac's Cathedral?

101.5 m to the top of the cross. It has the city's highest dome; only the spire of the Peter and Paul Cathedral (122.5 m) rises higher. The colonnade walkway is at 43 m.

Who built St Isaac's Cathedral?

Auguste de Montferrand, a French architect. Construction took 40 years, from 1818 to 1858.

Can I pay by card?

Not with a foreign Visa or Mastercard — they haven't worked in Russia since March 2022. Bring roubles in cash for the ticket office.

Have you been? Was it worth your time?

1 — no, 5 — absolutely

Your vote counts towards the YesGo score.

Sources and fact-check

  • Official website of the St Isaac's Cathedral State Museum: opening hours, prices, the building, 29.10.2026
  • English and Russian Wikipedia: Saint Isaac's Cathedral; Wikidata Q215423
  • Kultura.RF: St Isaac's Cathedral colonnade
  • Visa and Mastercard statements on suspending operations in Russia, March 2022
YesGo editorial team · facts checked 29.10.2026 ·
How we checkedPrices, hours, closures, evening sessions and colonnade rules come from the official museum website on 29.10.2026. The metro walking time is our estimate from the map, and the payment row is marked “verifying”: we know foreign cards don't work in Russia, but couldn't confirm on the official site that the ticket office takes cash. Step counts differ — Russian Wikipedia gives 200, Kultura.RF 262 (211 spiral plus 51 open) — so we say “more than 200”. The 60 gilders who died is the figure in Wikipedia, citing construction records.

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