Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg, Russia

The State Hermitage is one of the largest and oldest museums in the world. It was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great and has been open to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display, comprise over three million items, including the largest collection of paintings in the world. The collections occupy a large complex of six historic buildings along Palace Embankment, including the Winter Palace, a former residence of Russian emperors. Apart from them, the Menshikov Palace, Museum of Porcelain, Storage Facility at Staraya Derevnya and the eastern wing of the General Staff Building are also part of the museum. The museum has several exhibition centers abroad. The Hermitage is a federal state property. Since 1990, the director of the museum has been Mikhail Piotrovsky.

Of six buildings of the main museum complex, four, named the Winter Palace, Small Hermitage, Old Hermitage and New Hermitage, are partially open to the public. The other two are the Hermitage Theatre and the Reserve House. The entrance ticket for foreign tourists costs more than the fee paid by citizens of Russia and Belarus. However, entrance is free of charge the first Thursday of every month for all visitors, and free daily for students and children. The museum is closed on Mondays. The entrance for individual visitors is located in the Winter Palace, accessible from the Courtyard.

Hermitage Museum consists of 11 collections from the Egyptian and Classical antiquities to the fine art of Dutch, German, British, French and Russians. There are lot of remarkable masterpieces for example from Leonardo da Vinci, Goya, Rubens and Rembrandt. Also a Neoclassical, Impressionist, and post-Impressionist art is well represented. The collection including works by Renoir, Monet, Van Gogh and Gauguin, is displayed there in the southeastern corner of Winter Palace.

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User Reviews

Charbel Abou Halloun (9 months ago)
One of the biggest museum you'd ever visit. This place requires at least half a day to enjoy. A wide variety of artifacts and paintings are present for the public to enjoy.

Introvert Foodie (11 months ago)
Came as early as 1000H, and we waited til 1100H before acquiring a ticket. It is recommended to have a ticket in advance. The museum is enormous. We only lasted 1 hour inside due to sensory and information overload. ??‍♂️? The toilets are located on the ground floor only.

Sang Sha Sum - The Gain Enabler (11 months ago)
It’s a huge & nice museum but nothing major to rave about. A lot of walking to do. The Egyptian part of the museum is nice. But nothing compared to Louvre and other beautiful global museums

Daria Or (12 months ago)
Perfect for spending a cold winter day indoors, immersed in art and history! The tickets can be purchased online. Need separate tickets for separate buildings though... Or a combined ticket for the whole complex. Excellent service, old ladies sitting on chairs in the corners of various halls are very helpful. Lavatories are very clean, the Hermitage Cafe is a bit pricey, which is normal. The gift shop has a wide variety of products related to the museum and the art. But you need literally 10 years to enjoy each and every one of the art pieces exhibited at the Hermitage, so wear comfortable shoes! ?

Janice Roasa (2 years ago)
This is the very first place we visited when we were in Russia. I saw a mummy here. I remember thinking of a game to play so my son wouldn't be bored. We hunted for the works of the teenage mutant ninja turles (Michael Angelo, Rafael, Leonardo and Donatello (he's in the building across unfortunately). I was already in awe when we found the Raphael... then we saw a Leonardo. It was soooo surreal. I never imagined I'll be seeing a Leonardo in my life time. This trip was really awe inspiring. I feel so blessed having been able to visit.

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