St Isaac's Cathedral is two separate purchases. Inside there is a museum with mosaics, malachite and the story of a forty-year construction; outside, at a height of 43 metres, the colonnade observation deck with a view over the whole city centre. Tickets are sold separately, and concessions apply to only one of the two. Below: how much it costs, when it is closed, who should not make the climb and how to avoid queuing twice.
## Two tickets, not one
The main source of arguments at the ticket office: a ticket to the cathedral does not entitle you to go up to the colonnade, and a colonnade ticket does not let you inside. The museum rules state it plainly: a colonnade ticket "is purchased separately from the ticket for visiting St Isaac's Cathedral and does not include a visit to St Isaac's Cathedral" (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru).
The second trap is concessions. School, student and pensioner rates, as well as the free-entry categories, apply only to entry to the cathedral: on the colonnade everyone pays full price (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru). A family of two adults and two schoolchildren will pay half as much for the cathedral, and the price of four adults for the colonnade.
## Prices as of 18 September 2026
| What | Full ticket | Concession: ages 7–18, students, pensioners, women 55+, men 60+ | ISIC card |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cathedral | 700 ₽ | 300 ₽ | 330 ₽ |
| Colonnade (43 m, on foot) | 700 ₽ | no concessions — 700 ₽ | 700 ₽ |
| Cathedral in the evening, 1 May — 30 September | 800 ₽ | no concessions | 800 ₽ |
| Colonnade in the evening, 1 May — 30 September | 800 ₽ | no concessions | 800 ₽ |
| Audio guide, 11 languages | 300 ₽ | 300 ₽ | 300 ₽ |
| Guided tour for a group of up to 15 people | 3,000 ₽ | — | 5,000 ₽ in a foreign language |
All figures — checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru.
Children under seven enter the cathedral free, but pay for the colonnade. Free entry to the cathedral is available to large families, participants of the SVO and their family members, people with category I and II disabilities plus a companion, Siege survivors, and conscripted servicemen. Schoolchildren and students from Russia and Belarus enter free every third Thursday of the month (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru). Concession tickets cannot be bought online — only at the ticket office with documents: with a concession ticket but no document you will not be let through at the checkpoint.
Budget for the day: an adult who visits both the cathedral and the colonnade and takes an audio guide will spend 1,700 ₽ (700 + 700 + 300). Two adults with a schoolchild — 4,100 ₽ without audio guides. In the evening the same cathedral plus colonnade will cost 1,600 ₽ per person.
## Opening hours and closing days
| Site | Hours | Closing day |
|---|---|---|
| Cathedral | 10:00–18:00, ticket offices until 17:30 | Wednesday and 1 January |
| Cathedral, evening programmes (1 May — 30 September) | 18:00–21:30, ticket offices and admission until 21:00, no guided tours | Wednesday |
| Colonnade, 1 May — 30 September | 10:00–18:00 | open daily |
| Colonnade, 1 October — 30 April | 10:00–18:00 | third Wednesday of the month and 1 January |
| Colonnade in the evening (1 May — 30 September) | 18:00–21:30, ticket offices and admission until 21:00 | open daily |
Checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru.
Two things are worth remembering. Wednesday is the cathedral's closing day, but in summer the colonnade is open on Wednesdays, while in winter it closes only on the third Wednesday of the month: on a September Wednesday you can go up, but you cannot get inside. And second: during school holidays, except the summer ones, and on public holidays, except 1 January, the museum is open every day (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru) — during the autumn and New Year holidays Wednesday stops being a closing day.
Evening sessions are the museum's most underrated offer. They run only from 1 May to 30 September, cost 100 ₽ more and come without guided tours, but there are noticeably fewer people and the light is better. Admission ends at 21:00.
## Tickets, ticket offices and queues
Tickets are sold at the ticket offices and terminals by the cathedral and online on the official website — sales go through isaak.ticketnet.ru. There is no need to print an e-ticket: the barcode arrives by email after payment and is scanned at the turnstile from your phone (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru). With the "Pushkin Card" a ticket is bought on the museum's website; with the EKP and EKP "Silver Age" certificates — only at the ticket offices, for visits from 10:00 to 17:30.
The practical approach: buy a full-price adult ticket online and go straight to the turnstiles, and queue at the ticket office only if you have a concession or a certificate. The queue at the ticket office and the queue for the climb up the colonnade staircase are two different waits, and the second one cannot be bypassed with money.
There are fewest people in the first hour after opening and at evening sessions after 19:30. The worst time is 12:00 to 16:00 at weekends. In autumn and winter the flow is quieter, but it gets dark early: in December it makes sense to go up to the colonnade around 15:30, to see the city both at dusk and with the lights on.
Allow this much time: the cathedral without a tour — 40–60 minutes, with an audio guide — up to an hour and a half, the colonnade with the climb, a full circuit of the deck and the descent — an hour. Two and a half hours is enough for both sites.
## The colonnade: 43 metres, a spiral staircase and no lift
Going up and down is on foot only, which is stated both in the price list and in the rules: "due to the need to climb to a height of 43 m up the steps of a spiral staircase, a visit to the observation deck is not recommended for people with disabilities, people with cardiovascular diseases, and elderly people" (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru). There is no lift for ordinary visitors.
There is one exception — visitors in wheelchairs. The museum reports special access for them by prior booking in April–October: a specialised lift and a lifting platform, an administrator's assistance, a separate entrance, ramps and, if needed, a blanket and an audio guide. Conditions and booking are on the museum's "Guided tour services" page. A visit is possible only in the absence of strong wind and heavy rain (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru, colonnade rules).
The climb goes up a narrow spiral staircase; the museum does not state the number of steps. Oncoming traffic on it is managed by staff, so you need stable footwear — the museum asks for comfortable shoes in a separate point of the rules.
If heights scare you. The deck goes right around the drum of the dome: between you and the city there is a stone balustrade at chest height and columns you can hold on to — no glass floor and no open edges as on modern viewing platforms. The staircase is less pleasant than the deck itself: it is spiral, with an open well. It helps to look at the steps in front of you and keep to the inner side of the spiral.
What you can see from the colonnade: the Admiralty with its golden spire and the Neva behind it, Palace Square and the Hermitage, the spire of the Peter and Paul Fortress, the domes of the Savior on the Spilled Blood and Kazan Cathedral, and St Isaac's Square with the monument to Nicholas I right below you.
What you cannot take up: suitcases, bulky bags and backpacks, prams, scooters, bicycles, animals, balloons, food, drinks and ice cream, any dangerous items. Children under 14 are admitted only with an adult companion; on the deck you may not smoke, eat, throw anything down, go beyond the barriers, make noise or sing. Amateur photography is allowed, but without a tripod or additional lighting; professional photography — only with the museum's written approval (checked 18.09.2026, source: cathedral.ru, colonnade rules). The museum has the right to suspend the climb because of weather or technical reasons — in that case tickets are refunded.
