Pavlovsk Palace - Is it Worth Visiting?, St. Petersburg, Russia

Pavlovsk Palace (or Paul’s Palace) isn’t as popular of a tourist destination as Catherine Palace or Peterhoff Palace - but does that mean it’s not worth adding to your St. Petersburg, Russia itinerary? This post will explain!

But first, you’re probably wondering what in the world this place actually is. Here’s a really quick rundown on the story behind Pavlovsk Palace…

This palace was built in the 18th century on orders from Catherine the Great (Russia’s longest-ruling female leader). She had it made for her son, Paul and his second wife, Maria Fyodorovna (who is the brains behind the interior design of the place). This was their summer palace. And this family’s history and relationship with one another is very interesting, to say the least. If you want to learn more on Catherine the Great and company you can check out this article.

It was a royal residence until 1917. After that, it became a museum. It then burned down during WWII… but has now been restored to its former glory.

While the original structure had to be restored, the majority of the furnishings inside the palace are original. This is because many of these things were removed and hidden before WWII started. There’s a great exhibit in the basement of Catherine’s Palace that shows how the museum workers hid these things in walls, in holes they dug in gardens, etc., so the Nazis couldn’t destroy them. I’ll show that in my next blog post. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).