Gatchina District: Estates, Parks and Nature

Estates and their traces shape various places in the district: Suyda has historic gardens and surviving sections of buildings, while Zhabino has ruins and remnants of a park. Druzhnoselye is associated with a church and several park features; in Taytsy, prominent structures from the Demidov estate remain. The natural monument “Devonian Outcrops on the Oredezh near Belogorka” offers a different kind of landscape.

Visiting arrangements vary considerably. Tours in Suyda require advance booking, and Rozhdestveno’s museum building is closed to visitors during restoration. A fee is charged to visit the natural monument and its eco-trails.

Abram Petrovich Gannibal bought the Suyda estate in 1759. There, he laid out a formal garden and a landscape park and created an artificial water system. After retiring in 1762, he planned and built new manor houses. Gannibal was the great-grandfather of A. S. Pushkin, so Suyda’s history links the development of the estate with a well-known family story.

The surviving features include a stable, the ruins of an orangery and Gannibal’s stone sofa. If you want to visit the museum and estate, you must book in advance: tours of the museum and grounds are available by prior arrangement only.

Remains of another estate complex survive in Zhabino: the ruins of the manor house and outbuildings, parts of the old park and ponds. On the grounds of the Demidov estate in Taytsy are the so-called Humpback Bridge and the “Gothic Gates.” These places differ from Suyda in the kind of visible evidence they offer: here, the focus is on architectural remains and individual named features.

The natural monument “Devonian Outcrops on the Oredezh near Belogorka” is in Gatchina District. It includes parts of the villages of Belogorka and Novosiverskaya, as well as the settlement of Siversky. A fee is charged to visit the natural monument and its eco-trails. If you plan to visit this natural area, take the fee into account when deciding.

The parks, too, tell stories of different landscape designs. The landscape park at the Druzhnoselye estate was laid out with a maze of paths and avenues, as well as canals and ponds. Druzhnoselye is also home to the Church of Saint Stefania, beside her burial place. It was built to a design by the painter and architect Alexander Bryullov.

An English landscape park with winding paths was created around the church. They lead to a burial place beside an artificial pond with a pavilion; traces of the park layout are still visible beneath the grass, even though the grass obscures its outline. A visit to Druzhnoselye therefore brings the park design, the church and its surroundings into focus.

At Rozhdestveno, a visit to the museum and a tour of the park are separate options: the museum-estate building is being restored and cannot be visited during the work. A 60-minute introductory tour of the estate park is offered by prior arrangement only. There is also a 90-minute themed tour entitled “Nabokov’s Estates in the Saint Petersburg Governorate.” Check the tour’s availability and fees before your trip.

At the Sivoritsy estate, the museum and other halls of the administrative building can be visited after contacting the hospital administration. A tour lasting about two hours can be booked. This is a different time commitment from the 60- and 90-minute options in the Rozhdestveno park; contacting the administration is part of planning a visit here.

The Eliseev family manor house in Belogorka is another architectural destination, but it is not a place to explore independently: the building is closed and unsafe to visit on your own. It was built to replace the old house as a palace in the Northern Art Nouveau style. The design is attributed to engineers Vladimir Petrovich Tavlinov and Stepan Fyodorovich Ovsyannikov, a nephew of A. G. Eliseev.

Discover more destinations: Vsevolozhsk District, Luga District, Priozersk District, Lodeynoye Pole District, Kirovsky District, Lomonosov District and Korsakov District.

Can visitors enter the Rozhdestveno museum building?

No. The building is being restored and cannot be visited during the work. A 60-minute introductory tour of the park is available by prior arrangement only; check the availability and fees for the 90-minute themed tour in advance.

Are the eco-trails at the natural monument near Belogorka subject to a fee?

Yes. A fee is charged to visit the natural monument, and this also applies to its eco-trails.

How can I plan a visit to the Sivoritsy estate?

To visit the museum and other halls of the administrative building, contact the hospital administration. A tour lasting about two hours can be booked.

For the broader travel overview: Leningrad Oblast.