St.Petersburg & Moscow & Trans-Siberian Tour

Arrival. Transfer to the hotel. Accommodation.

Breakfast. Morning starts with a visit to the Hermitage museum, Russia’s best gallery of world art, one of the most prominent art museums in the world and definitely the main tourist attraction of St. Petersburg. The principal building of the Hermitage Museum is the Winter Palace, the residence of the Russian Czars. Today, the Hermitage boasts over 2.7 million exhibits and displays a diverse range of art and artifacts from all over the world and from throughout history. The Hermitage collection includes works by Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael and Titian, a unique collection of Rembrandts and Rubens. Lunch.

City sightseeing tour. The historical capital of the Russian Empire invites you to admire its splendid views: the Arts Square with 3 museums and 4 theatres along its perimeter, the Palace Square offering an impressive view of the Baroque Winter Palace; the historical Strelka (Cape) of the Vasilevsky Island; the famous Nevsky Avenue considered the “heart” of the city. We will also visit the Peter and Paul Fortress that is actually considered the place of birth of St. Petersburg. This tour will give you an insight into the history of the city and the Romanovs’ royal dynasty. Free time.

Breakfast. Morning starts with a visit to Peterhof. It is perhaps the St. Petersburg’s most famous and spectacular Imperial estate. Nestled on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, the palace was built by Peter the Great initially as a resting place on the way to the Imperial naval base at Kronshtadt. But the Czar was quick to recognize the attractiveness of the area and masterminded a vast estate intended to rival the famous gardens of Versailles. The Grand Palace, filled with fascinating and elaborate interiors, sits on top of a high seashore ridge overlooking the vast Lower Park. The enormous park is adorned with statues and pavilions; it boasts the world’s largest system of fountains, earning it the title of the “Russian Versailles”.

Breakfast. Transfer to the train station for the highspeed train to Moscow. Arrival in Moscow. Transfer to the hotel. Accommodation. Dinner.

Breakfast. City sightseeing tour of Moscow. During this tour you will have an excellent opportunity to learn the history of the Russian capital and see the most impressive sights of great historic and cultural value. Red Square, one of the most spacious squares of the world, famous for Lenin’s Mausoleum and Saint Basil’s Cathedral, and dominated by the grand Kremlin Kremlin red-brick walls. You will have a chance to see the magnificent tower buildings symbolizing the Soviet Moscow, and also the Cathedral of Christ the Savior that was demolished and then reconstructed as a symbol of the Russian faith. After we will visit the Moscow Subway (Metro) which covers almost the entire territory of the Russian capital. It is one of the world’s most heavily used metro systems. It is well known for the ornate design of many of its stations, which contain beautiful examples of socialist realism art. Lunch. Free time.

Breakfast. In the morning, we will visit the Moscow Kremlin. It is the symbol of Moscow and of the entire Russia. This stronghold is the historical, spiritual and political heart of Moscow and the city’s most famous landmark and tourist attraction. Most of the city had been inside the Kremlin walls until the 16th century. It has been rebuilt several times in the past – it was originally wooden – so, its brick walls and towers that we can see today were built in the 15th century. Today the Kremlin is the official residence of the Russian President. Lunch. Free time.

Breakfast. In the morning, we will visit Sergiyev Posad. Located 70 km north from Moscow, the historic ensemble of Sergiyev Posad is of great interest for tourists and pilgrims, as it is replete with a range of excellently preserved monuments of the Russian culture, dating back to the 15-17th centuries. The Trinity Lavra of St.Sergius founded in 1337 is famous all over the world and often referred to as the “Russian Vatican”. Lunch. Return to Moscow.

Breakfast. Transfer to the railway station (the train No024M, 23:08-10:45 or similar). Overnight on board. 

Arrival to Kazan – the ancient capital of the Tartars, located on the banks of the Volga River, the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan. During the excursion, you will visit the most interesting and ancient sights of Kazan: Old-Tatar Sloboda, the Kaban Lake with its picturesque views, merchant houses, and the old mosque of the 18th century. You will hear legends and stories of Tatar people, walk along the old Kazan and visit the monastery, where the miraculous Kazan Icon of the Mother of God is kept. Lunch in one of the city restaurants with a culinary workshop “Secrets of Tatar Cuisine”.

Walking excursion to the Kazan Kremlin will not leave anyone indifferent. The Kazan Kremlin is a World Heritage Site; its walls unite two religions: Moslem (legendary Kuhl Sharif Mosque) and Orthodox (Annunciation Cathedral). You will touch the walls of Suyumbike falling tower. Transfer to the hotel and accommodation. Overnight in hotel. 

Breakfast. Excursion to the island city of Sviyazhsk (with lunch). On the way to the island you will see the Temple of All Religions. The history of the city began on May 24, in 1551, when Ivan the Terrible decided to build a wooden fortress on the island, which took only four weeks. Sviyazhsk became a base supporting Russian troops in the war against the Kazan Khanate. The island houses unique historical and cultural monuments, such as Assumption Monastery of the Blessed Virgin, Sviyazhsky Cathedral, John the Baptist Monastery which has the Trinity Church on its territory – the only remaining building from wooden Sviyazhsk. Through centuries, Sviyazhsk has been remaining a Russian Orthodox shrine. Transfer to the train station. Train to Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg (the train is No378 23:59-16:06 or similar). Overnight on board.

Arrival to Yekaterinburg. It’s a city of great importance of the Russian Federation, located on the east side of the Ural Mountains, which serve as a natural border. It was named after the wife of Tsar Peter the Great, Yekaterina, who later became Empress Catherine I. Yekaterinburg became an industrial center of the country. After the Russian revolution in 1917, the last Russian Tsar Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra and their children were executed by the Bolsheviks in the Ipatiev House in the city. Lunch in a local restaurant. Transfer to the hotel and accommodation. Overnight in hotel.

Breakfast. Check out from the hotel. We’ll continue our tour of the city with the visit to the Geological Museum with its amazing collection of the meteorites; “Ganina Yama” – the place where the bodies of the members of the last Russian royal family were thrown after the assassination; the Boris Yeltsin Presidential Center and the panoramic view from the Vysotsky building. Lunch. Free time to buy some snacks and drinks for the train trip. Transfer to the train station. Train to Novosibirsk (the train is No118/92/70, 21:13-21:08 or similar). Jorney time around 21 hrs. Overnight on board.

Arrival to Novosibirsk. It’s the third biggest city of Russia, after Moscow and St. Petersburg, with 1,625,631 citizens. It’s located on the south-west of the Siberian Federal District on the banks of the Ob River. It has the largest train station of the Trans-Siberian railway route. The name of the city means “the new city of Siberia”. Between 1893 and 1925 it was known as Novonikolaevsk named after the Tsar Nicholas II. Nowadays Novosibirsk is known as the mayor scientific center of Russia.

Transfer to the hotel and accommodation. Free time. Overnight in hotel.

Breakfast.  Check -out of hotel.  Visit to  the Akademgorodok (academic village). Located 30 km south of the city center, it is the educational and scientific centre of Siberia, with an impressive amount of research and education facilities. Visit of the Museum of railway equipment. Lunch. We’ll continue with the panoramic tour during which you will see the Red Street, the Lenin Square, the largest opera and ballet theater in Russia (surpassing even Moscow’s famous Bolshoi Theater), the St. Nicholas chapel which served as a symbolic center of the Russian Empire, St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral which is considered one of the finest examples of the architecture of the Russian Orthodox Church and also the largest library in Siberia. A visit to the central market is also planned. Free time.

Transfer to the train station for the night train to Krasnoyarsk (the train is №082, 19:43 – 07:21// №070, 21:48-10:50 or similar). Overnight on board.

Arrival to Krasnoyarsk and visit to the Nature Reserve “Stolby”. You will enjoy the panoramic views and guides’ stories about the Natural Reserve, which is a point of pride of Krasnoyarsk. Picnic lunch in the Reserve or in the restaurant. In the afternoon, we’ll continue driving by the forest road and reach the observation point called “Tsar Fish”. Afterwards, you will make a stop on the quay in Divnogorsk and near the Krasnoyarsk hydroelectric power station, which is the second largest hydro power station in Russia. In the evening, return to the hotel and accommodation. Overnight in hotel.

Breakfast. You will take the morning city tour of Krasnoyarsk, including Mira square with a stunning view of Yenissey River, monument to Andrew Dubenskoy, Karaulnaya hill from where you can see the whole city spreading in front of your eyes. You will also visit the Paraskeva Pyatnitsa Chapel and walk along the old streets, before we transfer you to the train station for onward train heading to Irkutsk (the planned train is No070, 12:36-08:24 or similar). Overnight on board.

Arrival in Irkutsk. During the city sightseeing tour you’ll be taken to see the historical center, the monument to the discoverers of Siberia, the church of the Apparition of the Virgin, the main street of Irkutsk, the monument to the Tsar Alexander III. Then you will have a walk along the quay of the Angara River. Lunch at the local restaurant. After lunch, you will visit the tourist district of wooden houses. Transfer to the hotel, accommodation and free evening. Overnight in hotel.

Breakfast. Tour to the village Listvyanka which is located on the shore of Lake Baikal about 70 km from Irkutsk. On our way we’ll visit the open-air museum of wooden architecture. Arrival to Listvyanka and lunch (including Baikal fish). During the sightseeing tour through the village you’ll visit the Chaman-stone, the place where the Angara River is born; you’ll take the chairlift to the viewpoint; visit the Museum of Lake Baikal and the souvenir and fish markets. Return to Irkutsk and accommodation. Overnight in hotel.

Breakfast. Transfer to the airport.