Foreign guests shared their impressions of the Scarlet Sails Alumni Celebration

Foreign guests from Serbia, China, South Ossetia, Kyrgyzstan and Cuba spoke about their emotions from the alumni holiday "Scarlet Sails — 2026" in St. Petersburg. For them, the large-scale show on the Palace Square and in the Neva River became an event that will remain in their memory forever.

Among those who watched the celebration was Sara Maletich from Serbia. On the day of her 19th birthday, the girl found herself in the center of bright events and admitted that she had never expected so many congratulations and such attention on her holiday. She was deeply touched by the special atmosphere of the celebration, the concert part and the sincere warmth with which the audience greeted the participants of the celebration.

"I came because I've always been waiting for my birthday in Russia. It's so beautiful here. <...> It's an incredible feeling that so many people in this country wish me a happy birthday," Sarah shared.

No less vivid emotions were experienced by a guest from China, Wang Yulin (he introduced himself as Kolya). He noted that he liked almost everything at the festival, but the Neva River struck him the most. According to the young man, the combination of the evening city, the water surface and the fireworks created a unique mood.

Vadim Kelekhsaev, a graduate from South Ossetia, called his participation in the Scarlet Sails an event that cannot be forgotten. He honestly admitted that he feels ambivalent: the sadness of saying goodbye to his school years is intertwined with the anticipation of new opportunities and an independent path.

Begayim Bogatyreva from Bishkek was in St. Petersburg for the first time.‑She did not even imagine that she would be lucky enough to get on the Scarlet Sails. Previously, she had only watched the holiday on social media, but the reality exceeded all expectations.

"Today I saw an incredible ship," Bogatyreva said.

She was particularly impressed by the fireworks and the majestic passage of the brig Rossiya under scarlet sails.

Osline de la Caridad Matos Hernandez from Cuba also experienced strong and unusual emotions. She said that she experienced feelings that evening that she had not known before, and considers what happened to be a truly bright event.

The Scarlet Sails holiday was revived in 2005 after a long-term hiatus on the initiative of ROSSIYA Joint Stock Bank, the Government of St. Petersburg and Channel Five.

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The graduation celebration ended in St. Petersburg on the night of June 28 with a colorful fireworks display. The concert on the Palace Square was held against the backdrop of the large-scale scenery of the "City of Dreamers". A scenic area was built especially for the event, including a train station, a shipyard, a 30-meter lighthouse structure and over 1,000 square meters of multimedia screens.

During the performance of singer Alex Lim, a high-speed train took the stage. With its visual appearance, the model refers to the "White Gyrfalcon", a promising passenger electric train that will connect Moscow and St. Petersburg in the future after the launch of the high—speed railway.

For the first time, the Scarlet Sails graduation party was held in 1968 in Leningrad. That year, more than 25,000 young people gathered on the Neva embankment to watch the ceremonial passage of the yacht Metalist under scarlet sails. Until 1979, the fairytale show in the Northern Capital was held annually, but then the tradition was interrupted.