Peterhof Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia

HER LOOK

Dress: From Russia (similar here) | Sneakers: Jack Purcell | Purse: Kate Spade | Sunglasses: Le Specs | Lipstick: Mac-Hot Chocolate

Peterhof is a place that pictures and video do not do it justice!  It is beyond grand in appearance and size. Everything there is just breath taking!  The indoors of the palace are stunning (sadly the no longer let anyone take photos inside) and the grounds were as well spectacular!  It can be referred to as the Russian Versailles, which would be a great description!

Building of the palace started in 1714 and was completed in 1721.  Peter was very passionate about the fountains and landscaping and wanted to expand the palace but after his death (in 1725) the whole project came to a halt.  The palace project was abandoned and later brought back to life by Peter’s daughter Elizabeth in 1740.

We had a tour guide to take us through the palace.  We had head sets so if we were not right next to the guide we could hear what she was saying.  It was super nice to learn about what was going on.  The only negative of having a tour guide was when we were walking around the fountains and gardens we didn’t have the time we wanted to wander around since we needed to get back to the tour bus at a certain time.  If you ever get a chance to visit Peterhof, a tour group is wonderful, but make sure to find out how long you will have to explore the gardens.  You could spend all day there, and there are even little innovative splash gardens kids can play in from back in the day!

The fountains and gardens go on for miles and miles.  There are tons of diffrent styles of fountains and neat water works.  The uniqueness of the fountains was fantastic but the thing that was most amazing to me about the fountains was how they functioned and got their water source from.  All of the foundations work without a pump! The water supply comes from natural springs where the water is stored in reservoirs in the upper gardens.  With the elevation levels it creates pressure to supply water to the fountains.  I am constantly amazed at what people can come up with, and make it happen, and how it still works hundreds of years later!

In May every year, there is a opening ceremony for all the fountains to each be turned on one by one after the winter!  If you are ever planning a trip to Russia…. that MAY be a grand time of the year to go!  Make sure to get your Russia Travel Visa first though 🙂

Thanks for stopping by today!  If you want to see more of Russia, you can see my daily vlogs from the trip here.  Hope you have a great day!

P.S. Did you see the Kate Spade Surprise Sale is just started?! The items are up to 75% off! It is one of my all time favorite places to shop for handbags! I just bought this cute backpack in the pebble white! I wished I had a cute backpack for this Russian Trip so I thought I should get one now for the next adventure 🙂 SALE HERE>