Showing 8 Azerbaijan Flights from Saint Petersburg - Starting at Just ₹34,464

  About Saint Petersburg

Russia's famous port city, Saint Petersburg, is located on the coast of the Baltic Sea. The city raves some of the best tourist attractions for being one of the big cities in all of Russia. The city was part of the imperial capital for two centuries before the baton was passed to Moscow. While it is not the capital anymore, the city continues to remain the cultural hub of Russia.

Best time to visit St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg enjoys cold weather throughout the year. The temperatures even tend to go in the negative as the geographical features are such. During winters, you will actually get to experience negative temperatures that range from -5 degree Celsius to -2 degree Celsius. With such extreme temperatures, winters shut down the city. While some domestic businesses do function, the city mostly shut as traversing within St. Petersburg is quite risky. With frostbites and breathing problems that could crop up due to the extreme cold, many avoid winters to visit St. Petersburg. The days are short during winters, and the temperatures certainly don't spell 'vacation'. Hence, the best thing to do would be to avoid the months of October through mid-April. Some festivals do take place in the city. However, the cold temperatures make it tough to enjoy the fun, vibrant events. The hotel prices do take a dip as the tourism industry sees less action. This is probably the only time when you will get to enjoy the inexpensive hotels in St. Petersburg.

As long as you are open to brave the cold and freezing winters of the city, booking flights and hotels in St. Petersburg during winters will get you multitudes of discounts. Months from June through September see the best of St. Petersburg. Although the temperatures don't really escalate to a pleasant 25 degree Celsius to 30 degree Celsius, the average 20 degree Celsius does uplift the city's spirts. Many festivals take place during these months as the sun is present for 24 hours. The city is literally awake the whole time during the summer months, and it only adds to the beauty of St. Petersburg. Restaurants and bars also extend their working hours as the city is practically awake the whole time. This doesn't mean you will have a smooth trip. The summers experience a massive surge in the hospitality sector as many tourists from around the world flock over to visit St. Petersburg. Booking a hotel in St. Petersburg during their summers is quite challenging and comes with an exorbitant cost. However, as long as you make advance hotel bookings in St. Petersburg, you might be able to avail good discounts.

Places to visit in St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg has a plethora of art galleries and architecture that you will enjoy. You can start exploring by visiting the Hermitage Museum and the Winter Palace. Built in 1764, the structure was originally reserved for private art collections. However, it has come out to be one of the most famed attractions in St. Petersburg. Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood is another such attraction that will pique your interest with its story. Plus, the architecture of the place further makes it an alluring sight. St. Isaac's Cathedral is a beautiful neoclassical structure that has managed to survive a lot of ordeals, including the Nazi shelling and World War II. You should also visit Peter and Paul Fortress. It is actually the place where the city of St. Petersburg was founded, hence holds a lot of historical relevance. Do not miss the Catherine Palace and Park. The fanciful structure, with its Russian-inspired architecture, is something worth exploring. You can learn about the royal heiress too. UNESCO has recognised Peterhof Palace and Garden as a World Heritage Site.

Things to do in St. Petersburg

The city's museum is perfect for you to learn more about Russian history. Do visit the Russian Museum for the same. You can also go to the Fabergé Museum for more cultural enlightenment. Opera and ballet are recognised to be popular art. You can catch a show at the Mariinsky Theatre which has shows of Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker. A walk around Alexander Park is also a good way to spend your time in St. Petersburg. The large expanse of the garden is perfectly designed to bring about a lovely and serene vibe. During the warm seasons, the bars and pubs are open till late in the night. Perhaps you can actually hang out there, maybe chat up with the locals and have a good time downing some vodka. There are boat rides too that are available in the city. You can take it up and soak in the beauty of the city.

Food and Restaurants in St. Petersburg

Much like Moscow, even St. Petersburg has a slew of lovely Russian cuisine along with international flavours. Although you might not be able to find those contemporary Mediterranean dishes, it would still be quite a fancy spread. The Russian cuisine is a testament to their geographical features and lifestyle. To combat the excessively cold winters, they need to keep their body warm. This means to consume as much stews and borschts that one can find. Don't be surprised to get hold of the classic Russian dishes as the city has them aplenty. Food spread including borscht, stroganoff, caviar and cabbage stew, are staple to the city. The good thing about food in St. Petersburg in comparison to the country's capital, Moscow, is that the prices are cheap and affordable. Moscow's restaurants put quite an exorbitant price on the menu for the dishes. However, in St. Petersburg, you wouldn't have to worry about that. The restaurants and food establishments make exquisite dishes and are pocket-friendly. When you're in the city, there are some must-haves that you should add to your list.

Aside from the traditional staple food that you'll find, do not miss the Russian version of crepe and pancakes that comes with caviar stuffing. These snacks are affordable and perfect to be relished under the Russian sun. There are many street vendors that are present in every corner, serving piping hot stews and such comfort food on the go. However, if you wish to upscale your dining experience just a notch, then head to Literary Cafe, located on Nevsky Prospekt. They serve the traditional Russian meal and once played host to celebrities such as Pushkin and Dostoyevsky. If you wish to see some variations in the Russian dishes, Hamlet + Jacks have some interesting meals, including Siberian venison and Baltic herring. Phali Hinkali is also a good place to chow down hearty delicacies which are inspired from Georgian cuisine. The city does have fusion food with an elegant setting. Places such as Palkin, Probka and Bekitzer, to name a few, have some interesting food that will go down well with your system. They are a little pricey, but the vibe is what they sell.

How to reach St. Petersburg (Transportation)

There is no direct way to reach St. Petersburg from India. One will have to face layovers and change flights to reach the Russian city. The flight connectivity to St. Petersburg from India is decent. It could be better, but due to the little demand the city has from India, there are fewer airlines and flights connected to reach St. Petersburg. The most popular route to reach St. Petersburg is through Warsaw in Poland. Warsaw has the best flight connectivity to St. Petersburg. Hence, you will have to go through the European route to reach St. Petersburg. Airlines such as Uzbekistan Airways, LOT Polish Airlines, Air France, KLM Royal Dutch, Aeroflot, Swiss, Lufthansa, Emirates, to name a few, offer dedicated flights to St. Petersburg. Much of the layovers take place in cities such as Warsaw, Frankfurt and Paris. In fact, Paris is another popular international route to St. Petersburg that is favoured as the connectivity from the French capital is immaculate. There are layovers and flight changes that you will have to deal with on your way to St. Petersburg. Not to mention how a transit visa will also be required.

Since a majority of the popular routes to St. Petersburg fall in European cities, a Schengen transit visa is required. However, acquiring a visa would be quite easy. You can get in touch with the embassy for the same. The flight duration is close to 14 hours if you opt for the Paris route to reach St. Petersburg. It is by far the best international route to choose to reach St. Petersburg. However, depending on the airlines and flight ticket costs, the duration also varies. The summers in St. Petersburg are peak season for tourism so there might be a surge in flight tickets to St. Petersburg. Hence, to avoid paying excessively for flight tickets to St. Petersburg, you can make prior flight bookings online. It would be convenient and might also come with some online discounts and deals. You can make your flight and hotel bookings in St. Petersburg together to avail some online deals and discounts. Plus, the peak season would lead to a lack of good hotels, so it is best to make hotel reservations in advance to avoid any problems later.

  About Azerbaijan Airlines

Azerbaijan Airlines also referred to as Azal, is the national flag carrier of the country Azerbaijan. It is also the largest airline in the country. Based out of Baku, the airline is adjacent to Heydar Aliyev International Airport. It operates to destinations, predominantly across the Asian continent, the European continent and Commonwealth of Independent States region. The airline is also an active member of the International Air Transport Association. Founded in 1992, Azerbaijan Airlines was recognised as the first national carrier that came into existence after the country realised its independence. The country of Azerbaijan, in 1990, announced that they were planning on setting up a national airline, which would be independent of Aeroflot, the long-time provider of air transport to a slew of Soviet republics. After construction of a management plan, Azerbaijan Airlines was officially founded in 1992 under the presidency of Vagif Sadykhly. Although initially, the airline was formed as a regional branch to Aeroflot, Azerbaijan Airlines eventually managed to set free from the exclusive domain of Aeroflot.

The first flight to operate under Azerbaijan Airlines was a scheduled route from Baku to Istanbul. The flight operation was conducted in a partnership with Turkish Airlines as well as cargo entity Aviasharg was also founded in cooperation with the United Arab Emirates. Azerbaijan Airlines received a massive fleet from Aeroflot which also included 20 Soviet-manufactured aircraft Tupolev airliners. Further, the airline received a few regional airliners and freighters, light aircraft as well as helicopters. Azerbaijan Airlines also leased a pair of its Boeing 727s, but it originally belonged to Pan Am. The airline formed an extensive partnership with Aviation Leasing Group, who leased Azerbaijan Airlines with the Boeing 727s. Following a much-needed joint venture between Azerbaijan Airlines and Aviation Leasing Group's Buffalo Airways, a transatlantic charter cargo was also created as a joint venture. The venture was also used to help train Azerbaijan Airlines' air crews to meet with Western standards, in the US State of Texas. In 1994, the airline commenced a route to Dubai, which became a key source of Wester goods for Azerbaijan, along with Istanbul.

Soon, Azerbaijan Airlines further started accommodating international routes such as Tel Aviv, China, Tehran, London and Saint Petersburg. By mid-1998 though, a string of regional and domestic routes was suspended due to low-profit margins. The airline also needed to work on repairing three of their Yak-40 aircraft. With exceptions of a handful of major destinations, Azerbaijan Airlines further suspended services to its neighbouring Commonwealth of Independent States countries. As Azerbaijan Airlines incurred some debts, they avoided adding flight schedules to destinations that didn't yield profit. The country's border dispute with Armenia over Nagorno - Karabakh further led to a delay of financing for the two new Boeing 757s that the airline had ordered from the US Ex-Im Bank. Eventually, by the fall of 2000, Azerbaijan Airlines received its first Boeing 757s. The perks of adding these Boeing aircraft to its fleet benefitted Azerbaijan Airlines tremendously as it brought forth a range of comfort and efficiency, especially for long-haul flights to international routes. This also helped Azerbaijan put forth an image of the country being ahead of the game.

In 2001, Azerbaijan Airlines introduced a new international route of Paris - Baku which took place in collaboration with Air France. Although predominantly an Islamic country, the repercussions of the 9/11 terrorists' attack on the United States led to a drastic reduction in air traffic. Despite the challenges of less air traffic, Azerbaijan Airlines managed to earn a profit in 2001 and made progress in paying off the debts incurred.

Fleet size of Azerbaijan Airlines

The current operational fleet of Azerbaijan Airlines has 22 aircraft. They follow a mixed fleet which comprises Airbus, Boeing and some VIP flights too. Presently, there are three Airbus A319-100, six Airbus A320-200, two Airbus A340-500, two Boeing 757-200, two Boeing 767-300ER and two Boeing 787-8. Out of these, the airline is also expecting orders of ten Irkut MC-21-300 and five Boeing 787-8. It also offers a rich VIP fleet that comprises Airbus ACJ319, Airbus ACJ320, Airbus A340-600, Boeing 767-300ER and Boeing 777-200LR. These are also part of the fleet. In the past, Azerbaijan Airlines operated a number of diverse aircraft, including the Russian-manufactured aircraft such as Tupolev Tu-134 and Tupolev Tu-154M. Along with these, the airline also had ATR 42-500, ATR 72-200, Canadair CL-44, Embraer 170 and Ilyushin IL-76.

Baggage Allowance

Azerbaijan Airlines' baggage allowance policy differs from the cabin class and ticket type of passenger. Passengers who are travelling from Azerbaijan Airlines and are part of the VIP club can carry a weight that could go up to 32 kg the most. The passenger can catch an additional three pieces of checked baggage. Business-class passengers can carry the same weight as that of First Class, but the only difference being the number of baggage pieces, which is two. The comfort club class of Azerbaijan Airlines also has a baggage allowance of 32 kg of which the passenger is allowed two bags as checked luggage. The economy class only allows passengers to carry only one piece of baggage and weight, which should not exceed 23 kg. In case passengers carry extra luggage or weight, they can make the purchase for extra baggage at the airport's check-in counter. Tariff for the extra baggage has been mentioned on the airline's official website. A dimension for the baggage size is set by the airline, which is 158 cm. Passengers are not allowed to carry more than the said number, according to Azerbaijan Airlines. Failure to meet this would require the passenger to send the baggage via cargo.

In-flight services

Azerbaijan Airlines' aircraft come with excellent new facilities that even the airline realises now. The seating is exquisite and made of leather. The comfortable chairs aren't the only thing that makes the experience of travelling with Azerbaijan Airlines exquisite. The airline also has some immaculate in-flight services. These range from provisions of personalised entertainment systems that have been installed on every seat, the in-flight meal service that is complementary depending on the duration of the flight. The staff is also quite happy and friendly with the passengers onboard.

Popular routes and top cities for Azerbaijan Airlines

Azerbaijan Airlines is known to connect to a handful of domestic route cities along with a slew of international route cities that are predominantly spread across Europe, Asia, the USA and the CIS. Some of its domestic route operations include destinations such as Baku, Ganja, Nakhchivan, Qabala and Zaqatala. In terms of international route destinations, Azerbaijan Airlines has yet again proved to be an asset as it has some immaculate connections with destinations that are not mostly covered by big cities and big airlines. These cities include Kabul, Vienna, Minsk, Split, Prague, Paris, Berlin, Athens, Delhi, Ardabil, Tabriz, Tel Aviv, Mashhad, Milan, Kuwait City, Bishkek, Tivat, Karachi, Astrakhan, Moscow, Orenburg, Perm, Samara, Volgograd, Dammam, Jeddah, Riyadh, Barcelona, Geneva, Adana, Ankara, Bodrum, Istanbul, Izmir, Ashgabat, Kyiv, Lviv, Dubai, London and New York City. The airline has a few codeshare agreements too, with airlines namely Air Arabia, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, SCAT Airlines, Air France, Belavia, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines, airBaltic, Etihad Airways, S7 Airlines and Ukraine International Airlines.

Why travel by Azerbaijan Airlines?

Azerbaijan Airlines is a fairly new airline and is yet to make a massive mark on passengers or even the aviation industry. The airline is majorly recognised for being a national flag carrier which has considerably decent domestic routes and international routes to connect better with other destinations. Even though the airline started regional routes to certain destinations that would otherwise be difficult to reach, they suspended the operations.

However, with a view to expanding and getting better at their connectivity and passenger service, the airline has been doing a lot of work. Azerbaijan Airlines has recently started expanding its fleet to accommodate the latest and newer version of aircraft that meets with the necessities and comfort of the passengers. Along with this, they have also catered to enhancing the in-flight services with better provisions that would attract passengers or prospective customers. Although there is no dedicated lounge facility for which Azerbaijan Airlines can give access. However, their enhanced fleet can offer a good service.

Not to mention how they have now enabled online web check-ins, booking an Azerbaijan Airlines flight ticket online without any hassle, knowing updates on the flight status and other such perks. The revamped website of Azerbaijan Airlines also has flight schedules that would make it easier for travellers to plan a proper trip. It always comes handy to know what flight is leaving the airport and at what time. On booking a flight with Azerbaijan Airlines, the airline would also share details of the baggage allowance as many people often find it difficult to understand airport policies. With such enhanced offers present with Azerbaijan Airlines, passengers can consider this as an airline that would best suit your travel needs.