Petrograd Side, Saint Petersburg: neighborhood guide

Petrograd Side is a borough of islands in the northern Neva delta, and the place where Saint Petersburg began. The Peter and Paul Fortress occupies Zayachy Island on its southern edge; the city grew around Troitskaya Square before the centre shifted to the opposite bank in the 18th century. For most of the 1800s the area stayed peripheral, then filled up fast in the 1890s-1910s along Bolshoy Prospekt and Kamennoostrovsky Prospekt. That building wave is still standing: long runs of apartment blocks from the late 19th and early 20th century, mostly intact.

Today it is largely residential, with several smaller universities and the stadiums of FC Zenit. The tallest structure in the city, a 326 m TV tower, stands here. The islands in the northwest, across the Malaya Nevka, are parkland with mansions and sports facilities. Expect courtyards, tram lines, students and families rather than a tourist strip.

Stay if the fortress is a priority and you want to sleep away from the Nevsky Prospekt crowds. The metro puts you in the centre in roughly 10-20 minutes, and hotel and apartment prices sit below the historic core. The streets around Petrogradskaya and Gorkovskaya stations give you the best mix of transport, food and quiet.

Do not stay if you want to step out of your door into bars and restaurants, or if your trip is two days and every hour counts. The centre and Vasilievsky Island put more sights within walking distance. Also check your own government's travel advice before booking anything in Russia; this desk does not plan around it.

Food here is everyday city food rather than destination dining: cafés, bakeries, Georgian and Uzbek places, sushi, pizza and canteen-style lunches along Kamennoostrovsky Prospekt and Bolshoy Prospekt, plus student-priced spots near the universities. The densest cluster is around Petrogradskaya metro and the stretch of Bolshaya Pushkarskaya Street, which also carries the northbound traffic that Bolshoy Prospekt cannot.

For a wider choice, cross to the centre or Vasilievsky Island for the evening. If you are staying a week, plan on cooking some meals: apartments with kitchens are common here, and markets and supermarkets are easy to find. Opening hours and specific venues change; check locally on arrival.

Five metro stations serve the borough: Gorkovskaya, Petrogradskaya, Chkalovskaya, Krestovsky Ostrov and Sportivnaya. Gorkovskaya is the stop for the Peter and Paul Fortress and the Artillery Museum; Petrogradskaya sits on the main shopping and café stretch. From the centre, the ride is short, roughly 10-20 minutes depending on your start point (check).

Buses, trolleybuses, trams and marshrutkas cover the main streets, but these are major commuting routes linking the north of the city to Vasilievsky Island and the centre, so they are crowded and slow at peak hours. Note that Bolshoy Prospekt runs one-way southbound for most of its length; traffic in the other direction uses Bolshaya Pushkarskaya Street. Do not confuse Bolshoy Prospekt and Maly Prospekt here with the streets of the same name on Vasilievsky Island.