Art Hotel Rachmaninov

The spirit of pre-Revolutionary Petersburg is kept alive at the Rachmaninov, a boutique hotel and childhood home of native son Sergei Rachmaninov, located in an old townhouse a few steps from Kazan Cathedral and the city's main thoroughfare Nevsky Prospekt. The walls of the hotel rooms and public spaces have been decorated by local artists, inspired by the great man's music, providing a unique and quirky contrast to the late-19th-century furnishings. A couple of gallery spaces present regular exhibitions of local artists, including photographers.
• Kazanskaya ulitsa, 5, 3rd floor, + 7 812 571 9778, hotelrachmaninov.com, doubles from RUB 3,600-12,000 (£72-£238), children under 12 free 1 Oct-30 April, for the rest of the year children under five are free

Pushka Inn

The Pushka Inn (a play on words – pushka means cannon, and the poet Pushkin used to live in the house next door) is a small and friendly boutique hotel on the Moika river, in one of the most picturesque areas of the city, just a few hundred metres from many of the most important museums and sites. The historic mansion exterior belies the contemporary feel of the rooms, that are luxurious but not fussy. The hotel also has a welcoming restaurant and offers additional services such as visa support and airport transfer.
• 14 Moika River Embankment, +7 812 312 0913, pushka-inn.com, doubles from £109-£143

Letny Sad (summer garden) at the Russian Museum

A "summer garden" might seem a strange place to visit in the winter months, but not when it's the newly reopened Letny Sad, occupying a small 12-hectare island on the south bank of the Neva river. Plans for the city's oldest park date back to 1704, just a year after the founding of the city itself, as Peter the Great was keen to find a suitable location for his modest summer residence. Featured by Pushkin in Eugene Onegin, and the subject of an eponymous poem by Anna Akhmatova, the garden has long been a favourite retreat for city residents. Locals continue to discuss the merits of the recent restoration, but judge for yourself – walk among the 18th-century marble statues and tree-lined alleys before the fountains are turned off for the winter.

The gardens are managed by the nearby Russian Museum, and can be accessed either from the ornate wrought-iron gates running along the Dvortsovaya embankment of the Neva, or from the entrance on ulitsa Pestelya, close to whether the Moika and Fontanka rivers meet.
• rusmuseum.ru/eng/info, free entrance, closed Tuesdays

Imperial Porcelain Factory

For many years St Petersburg was one of Europe's great centres for the production of porcelain. The Imperial Porcelain Factory, founded in 1744, was just one of a number of manufacturers in the city producing bespoke high-quality crockery, ornaments and decorative pieces for the fabulously wealthy aristocrats and merchants who lived here. Renamed the Lomonosov factory by the Soviets, the company has now reverted to its original name and set up a number of franchise locations across the city selling exquisite gifts and dinner sets in pre-Revolutionary, Soviet-themed and contemporary artistic designs.
• Prospekt Obukhovskoy oborony, 151, +7 812 326 1744, ipm.ru (Russian-language only), factory tours can be arranged in advance at the main manufacturing site, £15pp for a group of five

Erarta Contemporary Art Museum and Gallery

Not many people think of visiting St Petersburg for its contemporary art scene, but that is changing fast with a number of extraordinary new venues springing up around the city. The Hermitage is opening a contemporary art wing in 2014, but in the meantime be sure to check out the Erarta on Vasilievsky ostrov (Basil's Island) on the north bank of the Neva.  It's the country's largest non-governmental collection of contemporary art.
• 29th Liniya, 2 Vasilievksy ostrov, + 7 812 324 08 09, erarta.ru/eng, £6, various discounts available. Open 10am-10pm, closed Tuesdays

SPB Opera

It's the Mariinsky (formerly Kirov) that everyone comes to St Petersburg to see, but there are a number of other local ballet and opera companies presenting regular performances in some spectacular settings. Chief among these is the St Petersburg Chamber Opera Company, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. Founder and director Yury Alexandrov is also head of the city's prestigious Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory. The company's home theatre is the eclectic Baron von Derviz mansion on Gallernaya ultisa, with just 170 seats in its auditorium and some fascinating architectural features to explore in the interval, such as a grotto, Moorish and Maple drawing rooms. Performances are also held at the chamber theatre in the Hermitage. December's repertoire includes classics such as Verdi's La Traviata and Rigoletto, Britten's Rape of Lucretia, and Puccini (La bohème).
• Baron von Derviz mansion, Gallernaya ulitsa, 33, + 7 812 312 3982 (box office), spbopera.ru, tickets from £12

Zhelyabova 25 Pyshechnaya 'doughnut cafe'

For an almost forgotten taste of Soviet Leningrad among all the glamorous new restaurants and cafes, look no further than the famous doughnut shop once known by its address "Zhelyabova 25", still at the same location but renamed Bolshaya Konushennaya. This small two-roomed cafe has been serving greasy and filling doughnuts (known locally as pyshky) to the proletariat for almost half a century, and is a real taste of nostalgia for the millions of Soviet-era visitors who flocked here in droves. Although there have been some superficial improvements to the décor, the high tables have been retained, the same crockery is used, the atmosphere is utilitarian Soviet, the prices are still very modest, but most importantly the recipes for crunchy doughnuts sprinkled with icing sugar and accompanied by milky coffee are the same.
• Bolshaya konushennaya ulitsa, 25, + 7 812 314 0868, no website, open daily from 9am-8pm, 20p for a pyshky, 30p for milky coffee or tea with sugar

SupVino restaurant

Blink and you miss it, but this tiny restaurant on Kazanskaya ulitsa is that rare thing – warm and welcoming on a cold winter's day, cool and dark on a hot summer's day. With just 20 stools across five high tables and a bar, the large mirrors on either wall and window on to the street make it feel bigger than it is. Mercifully it's non-smoking, given the dimensions. As the name suggests, soup and wine are the specialities here, but you can also get other light dishes. Some interesting original recipes: mango and ice-cream soup, anyone?
• Kazanskaya ulitsa 24, + 7 812 312 7690, supvino.ru (Russian only), soups from £2.20-£5.60

The Hat jazz bar

In a city which boasts a long-standing affection for jazz (including a Jazz Filarmonia and several smaller clubs), you have to be pretty confident to open a new jazz bar. But that's just what local jazz ensemble Billy's Band have done. A large wrap-around bar, a few tables around the edges, an above-bar mezzanine area and large windows looking on to the street, and a small stage, where every night a small combo – usually piano, bass, trumpet, drums – performs some swinging sets based on classic American 20th-century standards. Fun and unpretentious.
• Ulitsa Belinskogo, 9, + 7 812 615 1136, no website

Griboedov club

If you're looking for nightlife with a more contemporary flavour, check out this club, named after the famous Russian playwright who lived in the city. It's located in a bunker-like building and has been open since 1996 when local funk-rock band 2 Samolyota ("2 Planes") founded it as a live music venue. Over the years the venue has expanded, adding a quiet bar area with billiards. The club now calls itself an "underground culture and leisure centre", but the regular live performances, down-to-earth surroundings and democratic prices make it one of the most lively nightspots in the centre.
• Voronezhskaya ulitsa, 2A, a five-minute walk from Ligovsky prospekt metro station, +7 812 764 4355, griboedovclub.ru/en

• Tim Stanley is a contributor to city-pick St Petersburg, Oxygen Books oxygenbooks.co.uk, £9.99 and director of mydestination.com/stpetersburg