Coasting It — A Guide to the Resort Region

Coasting It — A Guide to the Resort Region

Published: September 12, 2012 (Issue # 1726)


ANASTASIA SLOBODSKAYA / SPT

Kite-surfing is a popular pastime on the Gulf of Finland, with the most die-hard surfers continuing to brave the waves right through the autumn months. The Kurort surfers’ station near Sestroretsk offers lessons.

The Kurortny Rayon (literally the “Resort Region”) which stretches along the coast of the Gulf of Finland to the northwest of the city has as much to offer those in search of out-of-town activities in the autumn as it does to sun-seekers in the summer.

Sestroretsk

Sestroretsk is one of the most attractive suburbs of St. Petersburg, located in the south of the Karelian Isthmus, between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Razliv. This small town is perhaps best known for its fresh, ionized sea air, pine woods and sandy beaches stretching out along the Gulf of Finland, and is particularly popular among locals during the summer. The fall, however, also offers some great attractions and activities.

Right on the coast you’ll find the “Dubki” or “Oaks” park with its Dutch garden and hydraulic engineering constructions. At the beginning of the 18th century, one of Peter the Great’s country residences was located here, but now it’s a great recreation area and a delight to take long strolls in.

Here you can also find tennis courts and a horse-racing complex with horses that can be taken on hour-long walks. Horse-riding lessons with professional instructors are also available. Alternatively, you can head for the boat rental station at the heart of the park where you can hire boats, catamarans and pedalos, have a game of table tennis or use the shooting gallery. And finally, the fall is the perfect time to collect acorns under the oak tree that, according to legend, was planted by Peter the Great himself 300 years ago.

Sestroretsk’s museums are worth a visit, not least because they are a little out of the ordinary. There’s a shack where Vladimir Lenin hid out while fleeing from the Provisional Government in the summer of 1917 — the Communists later turned it into a museum complex, placing the shack itself in a vast glass display case.

At the 37th kilometer along the Primorskoye Highway you can also visit the Sestoretsk Boundary exhibition complex, an outdoor museum of military constructions from the Winter War (1939-1940) between the Soviet Union and Finland.

Kurort Kite-Surfing

St. Petersburg and the surrounding region are notorious for their changeable weather. In town it may be windy, but out on the coast it could be ideal for some rest and relaxation. You needn’t despair if it’s windy either — the Gulf of Finland is a great place to try kite-surfing, and there are numerous options for those looking to take lessons.

Kite-surfing began its development in the 1970s and 1980s, with forerunners to the modern parafoi kite being coupled with skates, water-skis and three-wheeled buggies. They’re now used with single boards, similar to surfboards.

You can try your hand at this extreme sport at the Kurort surfing station, the prevailing westerly, north-westerly or south-westerly winds being ideal for novices along this stretch of coastline. Alternatively, you can simply take a walk here and admire the breathtaking views of colorful kites in flight.

Repino

As you proceed along the Primorskoye Highway from Sestroretsk, on the right-hand side, behind a wooden fence, you can make out the glass turrets of the renowned Russian painter Ilya Repin’s country estate, Penaty (the word comes from the Latin penates — the Roman household gods, the protectors of the home and family). Repin’s works are ranked among the highest achievements of Russian realist art, and the artist lived here for 30 years, from 1900 to 1930.

At Penaty, Repin created many canvases that are gems in the world treasure-house of painting: Session of the State Council, Bloody Sunday, Pushkin’s Examination at the Lyceum, as well as celebrated portraits of the writers Lev Tolstoy and Maxim Gorky, the chemist Dmitry Mendeleyev and the opera singer Fyodor Chaliapin.

In 1940, the Penaty estate was turned into a museum, though shortly afterwards it was destroyed by the invading Nazi army. After World War II, comprehensive restoration was carried out, and the estate was reopened for visitors in June of 1962.

The house now comprises a fascinating exhibition focusing on the artist’s key works, the various periods in his career and his biography.

Dining out

From Sestroretsk all the way along the coast to the next large town of Zelenogorsk you’ll find a range of beachfront restaurants featuring a variety of cuisines. None of them are real standouts, with the exception of the Bellevue restaurant at the Scandinavia Country Club and Spa in Sestroretsk itself (16 Ulitsa Parkovaya, Sestroretsk), but those with kids should definitely drop in on Russkaya Rybalka in Repino, if only for the excellent petting zoo and vast wooden slide.

TOBIN AUBER / SPT

The beachfront along the coast of the Gulf of Finland boasts numerous reasonable restaurants, such as Prichal, pictured on the right, in Repino.

Zelenogorsk

The final stop on our suburban voyage. Over half a century ago, this was the territory of Russia’s northern neighbor, Finland. It is now a small, attractive town with numerous parks, tree-lined streets — the root of the town’s name is “zelyony,” which means green — beaches and lakes.

Whilst visiting you can drop in on the Retro Car Museum — it’s not large, but the collection is unique.

The Yalkala Historical and Ethnographic Museum, located just 12 kilometers out of the city, is ideal for those with an interest in local history. Here you can find out about the daily life of the ancient local settlements and the different traditional dwellings of the people who inhabited these lands centuries ago.

Zelenogorsk is also a great place to rent a quad bike and take it for a burn along the beachfront — beginners can get instruction from skilled instructors.

Those walking in Zelenogorsk should also look out for two charming churches, one Lutheran, the other Orthodox, and School No. 445, built in the Stalinist style.


Sestroretsk

How to get there: Commuter train or minibus from the Finland railway station (metro station Ploshchad Lenina).

Minibus № 417 or № 425 from

Chyornaya Rechka metro station.

Park address: 59 Dubkovsky Highway

Website: www.parkdubki.ru/

Kurort Kite-Surfing

How to get there: Commuter train or minibus № 400 from the Finland railway station (metro station Ploshchad Lenina).

Minibus № 417 from Chyornaya Rechka metro station.

Location: Beach next to Sestroretsk railway station

Website: www.kiteliberty.ru

Repino

TOBIN AUBER / SPT

Penaty, the former residence of artist Ilya Repin, is now a museum.

How to get there: Minibus № 400 from Ploshchad Lenina metro station.

Bus № 211 from Chyornaya Rechka metro station, minibus № 305 from Staraya Derevnya metro station, minibus № 680 from Prospekt Prosveshcheniya metro station.

Minibus № 417 from Chyornaya Rechka metro station.

Zelenogorsk

How to get there: Commuter train or minibus № 400 from the Finland railway station (metro station Ploshchad Lenina).

Minibus № 305 from Staraya Derevnya metro station.

Address: Retro Car Museum,

536 Primorskoye Highway, Zelenogorsk.

Open 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.,

closed Monday.

Admission: Adult – 100 rubles,

children under 7 – free

Tel: 315 2857


Ilya Repin’s Memorial Home Penaty

Address: 411 Primorskoye Highway, Repino

Website: www.museum.ru/M267

Open Wednesday to Sunday. From May 15 to Sept. 15, 10.30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

From September 15 to May 15, 10.30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The ticket office closes one hour before the museum closes. Guided tours are obligatory.

Admission: For Russian citizens: Adults – 100 rubles, children – 30 rubles. Foreign tourists: Full price ­– 300 rubles, concessions – 100 rubles.

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