St. Petersburg in April 2026 – is it worth going on vacation? Weather and reviews, air temperature, how to dress, prices in hotels and excursions. What to see in St. Petersburg in early April and closer to May, where to go in the surrounding area – says Eurotraveler.
April is clearly not the most favorite month of the year for travelers. In every sense transitional from winter to springit encourages few people to take long trips outside their hometown or region.
And what other trips, you ask? Would you like to find money and time for a summer vacation?! Or – if possible – on a short tour somewhere in Russia for the May holidays!
This is an established cliché, and there is hardly anything that can be done about it, even in the long term. And is it necessary? Isn’t it easier to think everything over yourself and go to St. Petersburg in April?
Objectively the most interesting for tourists and promising so much city of Russia!
We don’t argue that the climate of the “Northern capital” in mid-spring is poorly predictable and very capricious. But in other years, already at the beginning of April, the weather in St. Petersburg is so radiant that you can hardly believe that winter has just ended.
Yes, numerous fountains of Peterhof are still being prepared for launch. And city and suburban parks during this period traditionally closed to dryto prepare them for the May tourist influx.
But the rest of the iconic sights of St. Petersburg and the surrounding area: the Hermitage and the Russian Museum, beautiful country palaces, Kronstadt and Vyborg, are still available for inspection in April. Navigation starts on the Neva after a winter break, and bridges again start to breed at night.
There are an order of magnitude fewer tourists who want to see all this. In comparison not only with the peak summer months, but even with the New Year holidays!
All of these are strong reasons for going and seeing everything with your own eyes, don’t you think?
Weather in St. Petersburg in April
If not the best, it is very well suited for long walks around the city. Since the length of daylight hours (from 13 at the beginning to almost 16 hours at the end of the month) and the number of fine, mostly sunny days is seriously increasing compared to March.
And the atmosphere warms up to temperatures that will not create problems for citizens who dress sensibly
In the first half of April, the air temperature in St. Petersburg during the day usually does not leave the range of +2-8 degrees Celsius. And at night, in residential areas and suburbs, slight frosts down to -1-3 °C are recorded.
In mid-April, warmer temperatures may arrive in the northern city. Usually small: during the day up to +8-12 °Cin rare years temperatures can rise to +15-17 °C.
You shouldn’t believe that this will last long. For the end of April in St. Petersburg often passes under the sign of just not freezing +5-7 °C.
Could it snow? This is rare, but it happens. However, the snow melts very quickly.
As any city dweller will tell you, such weather in “Northern Palmyra” on the threshold of May is more the norm than nonsense.
Yes, in some years, in the second half of April, almost summer warmth comes to St. Petersburg, and the atmosphere warms up to +18-20 °C. But in most cases it is a short episode that ends quickly.
It is worth remembering that against the backdrop of the surrounding beauty, cold weather can give joyful moments.
Sometimes, for example, Peterhof fountains are launched in test mode at the end of April right during heavy snowfall. And I must say, this is a magical sight!
With all this
There are unusually many sunny days. And the snow that has lain since March is actively melting in early April, exposing lawns in parks.
The trees are budding and the gardens are getting ready to bloom. On the faces of the townspeople, after a long winter, they acquired steel shades, smiles appear again.
The duration of daylight in St. Petersburg on April 1 exceeds 13 hours (just compare with 6 in January!). And by the beginning of May, the duration of daylight hours gets close to 4 p.m.!
The sun rises above the horizon at 6.30-5 am, and goes to bed around 17-19 hours.
Here is what you can see in St. Petersburg in 2 days.
Precipitation
Rain is quite rare. And, what’s especially nice, they wear it clearly spring character.
As if they are in a hurry to wash the city of accumulated winter dirt, to quickly melt the compacted snow crust
So if you are wondering whether it is worth taking raincoats and rubber shoes with you on a trip, then we will answer – only the latter. Or at least boots with fairly thick soles.
Because otherwise, walks through the squares of April St. Petersburg, as well as out-of-town trips, are almost guaranteed to end with wet feet.
Motor tourists should also think about their behavior on the road. After all, if city streets in most cases clear themselves of snow and ice, then
in the morning they are still capable watch for ice.
How to dress
The question legitimately arises: what do people wear in St. Petersburg in April? Citizens who are well aware of the possible vagaries of the weather and therefore cautious?
Usually not in winter, but in autumn-spring clothes. Moreover, St. Petersburg residents often don’t dress appropriately for the weather.
During the winter months, they are so tired of cloudy and cold weather that they seem to be in a hurry for spring, putting on deliberately light jackets.
It’s still not worth giving in to the same impulse, despite the brightly shining sun and the fresh, seemingly festive atmosphere. Because in the middle of spring, Russians suffering from vitamin deficiency perceive coolness especially painfully.
And they just go numb piercing windsblowing from the expanses of the icy Baltic.
So take with you an ample supply of woolen items: all those sweaters and hoodies, scarves and even hats. To successfully withstand the cool weather and at the same time enjoy long walks and boat cruises along rivers and canals.
Prices 2026
Despite the fact that April in St. Petersburg is a clearly off-season month, prices in many hotels and even guest houses they don’t always want to notice it. Therefore, in order to settle in a good place and “not for all the money in the world,” you will have to spend time studying the available inexpensive hotels.
Note that the owners of private apartments adhere slightly more flexible pricing policy. So if you are not necessarily trying to rent an apartment on Nevsky Prospekt and adjacent streets, then you have a chance to save even more!
Renting a one- or two-room and fairly spacious apartment, not at all in the outlying area around the Lesnaya metro station, will cost ~4-5 thousand rubles per day. And a group of up to 3-4 people can live there!
Apartments on the Petrogradskaya side are more expensive – on average from 5-6 thousand per day. And by paying 6-8 kilo rubles per night, you can stay in separate apartments even in the Central or Admiralteysky districts.
Organized excursions will not ruin you – and this is an understatement. Because for a walk in a group of up to 10-15 people you will pay about 700 – 1,000 rubles.
Ordering an individual excursion within the city will cost from 3-4 thousand rubles. It’s also inexpensive, don’t you agree?!
- Inexpensive apartments in St. Petersburg for daily rent
Things to do
It’s unlikely that we will be able to recommend you any special entertainment that is unique to April St. Petersburg. Rather, we’ll simply make a list of activities that are most appropriate at this time of year.
Walking in the city centerhaving already recovered from winter, but not yet at risk of blooming vigorously towards spring, will, of course, top any such list. After all, they will reward anyone with the most vivid impressions and give a powerful energy boost.
We also advise you to pay special attention attention to museumsnot yet crowded with visitors. And plan one or two visits to the famous palaces of St. Petersburg.
In addition to, of course, the Winter and Menshikovsky, which are part of the State Hermitage complex
Even short trips to places near St. Petersburg – for example, on weekends – should be planned with caution. Since in the Leningrad region, not to mention Karelia, in April it is far It doesn’t snow everywhere.
You should also think twice before going to Peterhof or Pushkin, Pavlovsk or Gatchina. After all, if the suburban palaces are in perfect order all year round, then the park alleys are still have not recovered from the spring thaw.
© Eurotraveler
