Peterghof is an immensely luxurious royal estate, lying on the shore of the Gulf of Finland (Baltic Sea), a combination of several palaces and parks, the "capital of Russian fountains" and "the Russian Versailles". The estate was founded by Peter the Great and shortly after 1710 the tzar had a beautiful park with several palaces built. The focal point of both the Lower Park and the Upper Garden is the magnificent Grand Palace (Bolshoi Dvorets) with the Grand Cascade (Bolshoi Kaskad) in front of it. The original palace was built for Peter the Great in 1714-25 and in 1745-55 was remodeled to its present baroque glory by Bartolomeo Rastrelli. The Grand Cascade, which goes downhill from the palace towards the Baltic Sea, is one of the largest fountain ensembles not only in Peterghof, but in the whole world. From the Grand Cascade's largest fountain, the Samson, a channel goes through the park to the pier, where hydrofoils and boats from St. Petersburg arrive. Peterghof is original name of the estate and the town Peterghof is the German for "Peter's yard", "Peter's home". Note, that between 1944 and the early 90s the town was called Petrodvorets, and some guide books might still list it under that name. In the summer time an exciting way to reach Peterghof is by hydrofoil, which will take you from the Winter Palace pier to Peterhof in just 50 minutes.