Gatchina District: Estates, parklands and nature

Historic estate stories, landscaped parklands and a natural monument on the Oredezh River offer different kinds of experiences in Gatchina District. Suyda, Rozhdestveno and Sivoritsy have specific tour or contact requirements; other sites are distinguished by surviving architectural features, ruins and historic parks. When planning your trip, consider not only your interests but also the relevant conditions for tours and visits.

Estate history and tours

Abram Petrovich Gannibal bought the Suyda estate in 1759. He was the great-grandfather of A. S. Pushkin; after retiring in 1762, he planned and built new manor houses. His landscaping of the estate included a formal garden, a landscape park and an artificial water system. Surviving features include a stable building, the ruins of an orangery and Gannibal’s stone sofa. Advance booking is required for tours of the museum and estate.

At the Rozhdestveno estate, distinguish between the building and the park: the museum-estate building is being restored and cannot be visited during the restoration. A 60-minute overview tour of the park is available by advance booking only. There is also a 90-minute themed tour titled “Nabokov’s Lands in the St. Petersburg Governorate.” The different durations can help you choose an option that fits your schedule. Before your trip, check the restoration status as well as tour availability and fees.

At the Sivoritsy estate, you can visit the museum and other halls in the administrative building after contacting the hospital administration. A tour lasting about two hours can be booked. Confirm current visiting arrangements with the administration in advance.

Natural monument and landscape

The natural monument “Devonian Outcrops on the Oredezh near Belogorka” is located in Gatchina District, Leningrad Oblast. It includes parts of the villages of Belogorka and Novosiverskaya, as well as the settlement of Siversky. Admission to the natural monument is subject to a fee, as are the eco-trails there. If you want to include nature experiences in your trip, take this fee into account when planning.

The landscape park at the Druzhnoselye estate was laid out with a maze of paths and avenues, along with a system of canals and ponds. Also in Druzhnoselye, the Church of St. Stefania stands beside her burial site. It was built to a design by the painter and architect Alexander Bryullov. An English landscape park was created around the church: winding paths lead to a burial site by an artificial pond with a pavilion. Traces of the park’s layout are still visible beneath the grass.

Architecture and surviving traces

The Yeliseyev family’s manor house in Belogorka was built as a palace in the Northern Modern style, replacing the old house. Engineers Vladimir Petrovich Tavlinov and Stepan Fyodorovich Ovsyannikov are credited as its designers; Ovsyannikov was a nephew of A. G. Yeliseyev. The manor house is closed and unsafe to visit independently.

The surviving remains at Zhabino also tell the story of the former estate: they include ruins of the manor house and outbuildings, remnants of the old park and ponds. The so-called Humpback Bridge and the “Gothic Gates” are located on the grounds of the Demidov estate in Taytsy. Together, the sites offer a range of features, from individual structures and park remnants to a historically landscaped setting with water features.

Discover more destinations: Lomonosov District, Vsevolozhsk District, Vsevolozhsk District, Priozersk District, Vsevolozhsky District, Vyborg District, Lomonosov District, Tikhvin District.

For the regional travel overview: Leningrad Oblast.