Neva River in the context of "Yury of Moscow"

The trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks was a medieval trade route that connected Scandinavia, Kievan Rus' and the Eastern Roman Empire. The route allowed merchants along its length to establish a direct prosperous trade with the Empire, and prompted some of them to settle in the territories of present-day Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. The majority of the route comprised a long-distance waterway, including the Baltic Sea, several rivers flowing into the Baltic Sea, and rivers of the Dnieper river system, with portages on the drainage divides. An alternative route was along the Dniester river with stops on the western shore of Black Sea. These more specific sub-routes are sometimes referred to as the Dnieper trade route and Dniester trade route, respectively.

The route began in Scandinavian trading centers such as Birka, Hedeby, and Gotland, the eastern route crossed the Baltic Sea, entered the Gulf of Finland, and followed the Neva River into Lake Ladoga. Then it followed the Volkhov River upstream past the towns of Staraya Ladoga and Novgorod (where it met the Volga trade route and which became a major trade centre), crossed Lake Ilmen, and continued up the Lovat River, the Kunya River and possibly the Serezha River [ru]. From there, a portage led to the Toropa River [ru] and downstream to the Western Dvina River. From the Western Dvina, the ships went upstream along the Kasplya River and were portaged again to the Katynka River (near Katyn), a tributary of the Dnieper. It seems probable that once the route was established, the goods were unloaded onto land transport to cross the portage and reloaded onto other waiting ships on the Dnieper. Along the Dnieper, the route crossed several major rapids and passed through Kiev. After entering the Black Sea, it followed its west coast to Constantinople.

Nyenschantz (Swedish: Nyenskans, lit. 'new sconce'; Russian: Ниеншанц, romanized: Niyenshants; Finnish: Nevanlinna) was a Swedish fortress at the confluence of the Neva River and Okhta River, the site of present-day Saint Petersburg, Russia. Nyenschantz was built in 1611 to establish Swedish rule in Ingria, which had been annexed from the Tsardom of Russia during the Time of Troubles. The town of Nyen, which formed around Nyenschantz, became a wealthy trading center and a capital of Swedish Ingria during the 17th century. In 1702, Nyenschantz and Nyen were conquered by Russia during the Great Northern War, and the new Russian capital of Saint Petersburg was established here by Peter the Great the following year.

59°56′28″N 30°18′45″E / 59.941232°N 30.312629°E / 59.941232; 30.312629

The Palace Embankment or Palace Quay (Russian: Дворцовая набережная, romanized: Dvortsovaya naberezhnaya) is a street along the Neva River in Central Saint Petersburg, Russia, which contains the complex of the Hermitage Museum buildings (including the Winter Palace), the Hermitage Theatre, the New Michael Palace, the Saltykov Mansion and the Summer Garden.

The Hermitage Theatre (Russian: Эрмитажный Театр, romanized: Èrmitážnyj Teátr, IPA: [ɪrmʲɪˈtaʐnɨj tʲɪˈat(ə)r]) in Saint Petersburg, Russia is one of five Hermitage buildings lining the Palace Embankment of the Neva River.

The Hermitage Theatre was the second theatre of the Winter Palace. It replaced the Russian Imperial Theater, which operated from 1764 until 1783. The Hermitage Theatre was built between 1783 and 1787 at the behest of Catherine the Great to a Palladian design by Giacomo Quarenghi. The crumbling Third Winter Palace of Peter the Great was demolished to make room for the new structure, although its old foundations are still visible in the ground floor. Quarenghi's designs for the theatre were engraved and published in 1787, earning him a European reputation.

Trinity Bridge (Russian: Тро́ицкий мост, Troitskiy Most) is a bascule bridge across the Neva in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It connects Kamennoostrovsky Prospect with Suvorov Square. It was the third permanent bridge across the Neva, built between 1897 and 1903 by the French firm Société de Construction des Batignolles. It is 582 meters (1,909 ft) long and 23.6 meters (77 ft) wide.

The bridge takes its name from the Old Trinity Cathedral which used to stand at its northern end. In the 20th century, it was known as Equality Bridge (Russian: мост Ра́венства, 1918–1934) and Kirovsky Bridge (Russian: Ки́ровский мост, 1934–1999)

The Neva Bay (Russian: Невская губа, romanized: Nevskaya guba), also known as the Gulf of Kronstadt, is the easternmost part of the Gulf of Finland between Kotlin Island and the Neva River estuary where Saint Petersburg city centre is located. It has a surface area of 329 km (127 sq mi). The entire bay has been separated from the Gulf of Finland by the 25 km long Saint Petersburg Dam. The area of water separated by the dam is 380 km (150 sq mi). The entire coastline is designated part of St. Petersburg rather than of Leningrad Oblast. (six parts per thousand), the gulf freezes over for three to five months in winter. It receives the Neva and Narva rivers and the Saimaa Canal.

The bay is also informally known as "the Marquis' Puddle" after Jean Baptiste, marquis de Traversay, the Russian naval minister who regarded the shallow waters of the bay as an ideal place for holding naval exercises. The Saint Petersburg Dam separates the bay from the Baltic Sea.

Shlisselburg (Russian: Шлиссельбу́рг, IPA: [ʂlʲɪsʲɪlʲˈburk]; German: Schlüsselburg; Finnish: Pähkinälinna; Swedish: Nöteborg), formerly Oreshek (Орешек) (1323–1611) and Petrokrepost (Петрокрепость) (1944–1992), is a town in Kirovsky District, Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located at the head of the Neva River on Lake Ladoga, 35 kilometers (22 mi) east of St. Petersburg. Population: 13,170 (2010 census); 12,401 (2002 census); 12,589 (1989 Soviet census).

The Shlisselburg Fortress and the town center are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.