Sightseeing tour of the main historical and architectural sites of St. Petersburg will introduce you to the first Russian city that was built on a regular, planned basis. Common and unifying characteristics of St. Petersburg — a strict regularity, the stately monumentality and graceful harmony of its architectural ensembles, squares and embankments. It is here in the delta of the Neva River flowing into the Finnish Gulf, the young Russia under the leadership of the Tsar Peter the Great opened a window to Europe and founding the new capital of the Russian state.

A prime example of the spatial skeleton of the central part of St. Petersburg is a trident consisting of streets converging to the Admiralty. In 1710, were laid out two extreme symmetric rays — Nevsky Prospect and Voznesensky Prospekt. Average axle — Gorokhovaya Street — start to be built no later than 1720. The rectangular grid layout of streets and prospects of Vasilievsky Island, as well as radial arc layout of the Admiralty side identified all further evolution of city planning in St. Petersburg. The architecture of St. Petersburg is rich in various urban development styles.

This is the style of the early Baroque (known as Petrine Baroque) the beginning of the 18th century to the inclusion in the design of buildings of monumental and decorative sculpture — the Summer Palace and Menshikov Palace, St. Sampson Cathedral, the Kunstkammer.

Luxuriant baroque style (known as Elizabethan Baroque) mid‑18th century — an ensemble of Smolny monastery and Voskresensky Novodevichy monastery, St. Nicholas Cathedral, the Hermitage.

Early Classicism 1760‑1770 with a strong rhythm of the elements of order and restraint decorations — Marble Palace and the Chesmensky Palace.

Strictly classical architecture in the 1780‑1800 based on the creativity of the architects of the Italian Renaissance — the Tauride Palace.

Architectural style of high classicism 1800‑1830, or empire — the Kazan Cathedral, the General Staff building, the building of the Senate and Synod, the ensemble Alexandrinsky Theatre, Cathedral of the Transfiguration and Holy Trinity Cathedral and of course an outstanding monument of the Empire style — St. Isaac's Cathedral.

Eclectic styles 1830‑1860 and 1870‑1900 include elements of the Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and the forms of ancient Russian and Byzantine architecture — Beloselsky‑Belozersky Palace, the Saviour on the Spilt Blood (Cathedral of the Resurrections).

"Modern" style at the turn of the 19th‑20th century — the building of the Vitebsky Railway Station, Esders and Schedals Trading House, Merchant Eliseev's Trading House and the Book House (former office building the U.S. company Zinger) on Nevsky Prospect.

Constructivist architectural style (severe and laconic style 1920‑1930) which is characterized by functional expediency, the geometrical definition of volumes and acute dynamic compositions — an example of this is the Stachek Square (Strike's Square).