day 1 Welcome to Russia!
Our driver meets you at the airport (or railway station). Watch out for your name on a signboard the driver will hold. Don’t worry if your flight is coming late: we are monitoring the actual schedule of each customer and you can be sure we are aware of the delays, and your driver is waiting for you patiently.
After you arrive at your hotel, we can either give you time to have a rest and deal with jet-lag or take you to your first tour where you will see Moscow in its night-lighted beauty.
day 2 Panoramic tour of Moscow and the Kremlin
Together with the guide, who is most likely to become a great company for you for the next couple of days, and the driver, responsible for your comfortable transportation during the tour, you are going to see Moscow, learn about its history and make photo-stops. You will see the beautiful Red Square, the landmark of Moscow and Russia; watch the picturesque panorama from the Sparrow Hills; enjoy the view of the magnificent MSU building, walk down the elegant Nikolskaya street and shop around GUM — posh and exquisite oldest shopping center of Moscow.
Our guide will show you the best places to have lunch. Tell them about your preference and you will be taken to a sweet cosy cafeteria or a high-end restaurant. We do not normally include meal prices in the individual package so that you could have a wider choice of places and meals that you can pay for on the spot.
After lunch, get ready to immerse into the earliest Russian history. The Moscow Kremlin tour is about heritage, art, culture, and religion — and, of course, the pleasure of your eyes. Our packages include the visit of the territory of Kremlin and two cathedrals of three. You can also choose the extras: a visit to the Diamond Fund, Armory, or Saint Basil’s Cathedral, located on the Red Square just a few minutes walk.
Usually, our second day ends after the Kremlin tour and we take you back to your hotel.
day 3 Get closer to Russian art: The Tretyakov Gallery
Be ready to wake up early today if you book the optional tour to Moscow metro and the Old Arbat: Why should you choose it? The essential part of the travel is to feel the vibe of the life of locals and traveling by metro followed by the stroll down the favorite pedestrian street of the Muscovites. This is a fully walking tour, so make sure you can walk on long distances; it will take approximately three hours. The metro tour will start at the station closest to your accommodation place — near the station or at your hotel if it is located within walking distance from a station. You will see the impressive stations designed like the palaces: Ploschad Revolutsii, Komsomolskaya, Novoslobodskaya, Teatralnaya, and the others. This tour is only available in the morning according to the excursion committee of the metro regulations, so don’t oversleep! The next point is the beautiful pedestrian street Old Arbat. Here you can have lunch, take beautiful pictures and do some shopping, or just walk down the busy street, so loved by youth and tourists.
The main tour of the day is about art and you will definitely enjoy it: there is hardly a person who cannot find a catching thing for them in the famous Tretyakov Gallery, the greatest collection of Russian fine art. There you will see the most significant pieces of art, known by every Russian from a schooler to an expert. The classic tour includes the visit to the division of classical art, but if you also want to get acquainted with modern style paintings, don’t forget to book an extra tour to another building of the Tretyakov Gallery.
day 4 Open the window to Europe: transfer to St Petersburg
Have a hearty breakfast before you start: today you are going to travel 750 kilometers to visit another brilliant Russian city. We offer you to try the unique experience with Russian Railways and take an overnight brand train with sleeping berths; you can choose between 4-berths and 2-berths compartments; hot meals and bed linen for your comfortable overnight journey are included!
Before the train, you have plenty of time, so why not take another extra tour of Pushkin museum, with its enormous collection of sculptures, paintings, art, and other items of different epochs.
In the afternoon, you are collected from the hotel and dropped off at the railway station. During your trip between Moscow and Saint Petersburg, you are not having a guide, but the friendly staff will help you with any questions.
day 5 Arrival to Saint Petersburg and the city tour
In the early morning, your train arrives at the main railway station of Saint Petersburg. Your guide is already here, waiting for you with a signboard. People in the city are in a hurry to their jobs and you can take your time, enjoying the views of this true tzar city. The city tour, organized upon arrival before you check it, will show you the main square of the city — Palace square, Vasilievsky island with its rostral columns, and aesthetical architectural monuments of the 18th century. Everyone will find enjoyment during the tour: history lovers will learn more about the Russian culture, art enthusiasts — find out the unique architectural objects, and the Instagram addicts will definitely enrich their accounts with the new stunning pictures with city views.
After the tour, you check-in to your hotel and have spare time for the rest of the day.
day 6 World-famous museum: Visit the Hermitage
Get ready to walk a lot today! It’s time to explore the gem of Saint Petersburg and its main lair of the world art objects: the Hermitage. The guided tour allows you to skip the enormous lines and see as much as possible in a three hours tour. It would take many years to explore each item of the Hermitage, so the tour is focused on the most famous paintings and sculptures: Rembrandt’s Danaya, Gainsborough’s Woman in Blue, Matisse’s Dance, The Peacock Clock, and the others.
day 7 Tour of Pushkin: Catherine Palace and Park
This is the most desired part of the tour for many visitors: today you have an opportunity to visit the legendary Amber room in the Catherine Palace, located 25 km away from Saint Petersburg. With the help of the driver, your guide takes you to the town of Pushkin and shows the impressive summer residence of Russian emperors. The Amber Room is a gem: it is a chamber, fully decorated with amber and gold; it is the unexceptionable reconstruction of the missed genuine Amber room. If there is no chance to get in the Catherine Palace (sometimes there are too many requests), it is replaced with the amber workshop, where you have a chance to work on your own piece of amber and have a glass of sparkling champagne as the cherry on a pie. In addition, the trip includes walking around Catherine park, a piece of landscape design art.
day 8 Goodbye Russia! Departure transfer
Today the journey comes to its end; if you want to have the most of your last day, book the tour of Peterhof, if time allows. It is usually called a Russian Versaille for its fountains layout and complex of sculptures; the Great Palace visit is also included in the tour. The whole assembly holds the spirit of the Tsars epoque and is a great place for walking, taking pictures, and learning more about the emperors' time of Russia and Saint Petersburg.
After the tour, you are delivered directly to the airport for your return flight, or to the hotel — if you need a transfer later.
