White Nights Season

St Petersburg sits at about sixty degrees north, so for several weeks either side of the solstice the sun dips only just below the horizon and the sky stays in a long twilight all night - the white nights. The peak is roughly the second week of June through early July. What the city does with it is the point: the drawbridges over the Neva open in the small hours to let shipping through, on a published schedule, and crowds gather on the embankments to watch the Palace Bridge lift at around one in the morning. Concerts, the Stars of the White Nights festival at the Mariinsky, and the Scarlet Sails event for school leavers - fireworks and a tall ship with red sails on the Neva - fill the calendar. The practical catch is that once the bridges are up the two banks are separated until they close again before dawn, which strands people who did not check the timetable.

What you actually see

• The twilight - a sky that never goes fully dark for several weeks.
• The bridge openings - drawbridges lifting on schedule in the small hours.
• Scarlet Sails - the ship with red sails and fireworks for school leavers in June.
• The festival programme - concerts and the Mariinsky's summer season.

When to go

Late May to mid July, peaking in the second half of June. Several days if you want the events.

Honest expectations

The city is at its most expensive and crowded, and hotels book out months ahead. Once the bridges lift you cannot cross until they close, so check the schedule. Sleep is difficult without heavy curtains. Scarlet Sails night closes the centre and public transport struggles.

Nearby

Peterhof, Pushkin and Pavlovsk all run summer programmes at the same time.