Pulkovo Airport is the first in Russia to launch panoramic online pictures through the terminal buildings under the project Google Street View “Special Collections.” Thanks to the free service passengers can take a virtual walk through the halls of the St. Petersburg airport, study the services available at the departure and arrival areas, and plan their route in the terminal in advance.

To open the digital tour you’ll need to find Pulkovo Airport on Google Maps and press on the Pegman in the right bottom corner. Thus, the traveler turns up in the check-in hall. By scrolling the picture and following the arrows, one can navigate inside the airport and follow the route of a standard passenger or select the necessary floor and move directly to the point of interest within the terminal.

Inside the virtual tour, one can walk through the arrival and departure halls, domestic and international departure areas, take a look at the business and VIP airport lounges, choose a place for a snack or a cup of coffee before take-off and find the way to the departure gates. The service may also be helpful to those who are interested in the airport architecture: the panoramas allow to take a close look at the layout, façade and unusual “warped” roof of the airport designed by the British Bureau Grimshaw Architects.

The virtual walk through Pulkovo has yet another unique feature. Anyone can easily “board” an airplane. For this purpose when preparing the panoramas additional photos were taken aboard Boeing 737-800 Next Generation of Rossiya Airlines, the primary carrier of the St. Petersburg airport. This airplane was selected on purpose as it is equipped with the latest cabin design Boeing Sky Interior, which has a state-of-the-art interior with smooth walls and window opening contours.

In order to create the tour the Google team took photos in Pulkovo using a special trolley, equipped with a set of rotating cameras for panoramic imagery taking. This trolley passes easily through doors and moves around objects. The equipment was initially used for photographing in museums, and was used in other public places later on.

Pulkovo Airport is Russia’s fourth busiest airport . During the first 7 months of 2017 the St. Petersburg gateway serviced 9 million people, which is 25% higher than over the same period the year before. The terminal complex covers 170,000 m2. There are over 60 stores, cafés and restaurants in the terminal.