Great Russian Discovery: Golden Ring (Russian Province), Moscow & St. Petersburg (CB-06)

Arrival in Moscow. Our driver will meet you in the arrival sector with a Go Russia sign board. Transfer to the hotel.

Our representative will meet you at the hotel lobby. Transfer to Sergiev Posad.

A guided tour of Sergiev Posad – the heart of Russian orthodox religion, the home of Russia’s Patriarch. The town located in the suburbs of Moscow grew up in the 15th century around one of the greatest Russian monasteries - the Holy Trinity – St. Serbius Lavra (Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra) established by St. Sergius of Radonezh. The town also claims to be the birthplace of the Russian nesting doll, or matryoshka.

After a guided tour of the St. Sergius Monastery and its beautiful churches you will be able to purchase Russian handicrafts - matryoshka dolls and lacquered boxes on a small bazaar.

On our way to Sergiev Posad we will enjoy the charming Russian countryside as the highway runs through huge birch forests, hills, as well as past beautifully decorated country homes.

Transfer to Suzdal.

Guided visit to the old Kremlin, the Spass-Evfimievsky Monastery and the Cathedral of Transformation and other unique objects of culture and religion.

After lunch in a local restaurant we will travel to Vladimir.

We will visit Vladimir, former capital of ancient Russia. Guided sightseeing tour, visit to the Cathedral of St. Demetrius, Assumption Cathedral, the Golden Gates.

Transfer back to Moscow.

A guided walking tour around major cultural and historical points in Moscow. You will see one of the famous “Seven Sisters” skyscrapers built during Stalin's last years and initially thought as elite housing. We will visit Lubyanka Square – the world-famous KGB centre of the Soviet epoch, Teatralnaya Square next to Bolshoi Theatre. Then we will continue our walk through the small central streets and lanes where every building has its own unique and interesting story. Most of them currently represent Russian theatres, hotels, museums or state institutions. We will also visit Tverskaya Street – the main and the busiest street in Moscow – with lots of shops, restaurants and unique combination of old, Stalin and modern architecture. We will finish our tour on the pedestrian Old Arbat Street, famous for its souvenirs and street dancers and artists. After the guided tour you will have some free time to browse among the shops selling merchandise and enjoy various Arbat cafes or restaurants.

Guided tour of Moscow Underground – explore one of the masterpieces of the Soviet era created in the Socialist Realism style. Moscow Metro with its stations decorated with marble, mosaics, stained glass panels and bronze sculptures looks like a vast art museum. It was one of the proudest achievements of the Soviet era and it’s still is beating many other European underground system with its extremely reliable services.

We will visit the Red Square arguably one of the most famous squares in the world. It’s got its name from the Russian word for "red", which many centuries ago meant "beautiful". Each building here is a legend: you will see brightly-domed St. Basil's cathedral, the world - renowned Lenin Mausoleum, expansive facade of the GUM department store, Kazan Cathedral and Kremlin towers. During the Soviet period the Red Square used to be associated with images of stone-faced communist party leaders standing in the cold atop Lenin's Mausoleum and watching military parades. Today, Red Square is a popular tourist attraction and it is often used for rock and pop concerts including high-profile participants like Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd and others.

You will discover the interior of the Kremlin - the former residence of the Tsars and now the residence of the Russian president. You will also visit the Kremlin’s beautiful orthodox cathedrals. The Cathedral Square still retains the aura of early Tsarist Russia, where the spirits of Ivan the Terrible, Boris Godunov, and the early Romanovs loom large. You can also visit the Armoury to see a unique collection of ancient state regalia: the ceremonial vestments and coronation dress of the Tsars, gold and silverware by Russian craftsmen, and ceremonial weapons and arms (optional excursion at your request).

The fist mentioning of Armoury recorded in 1508 and it started to function as the storehouse for the Kremlin weaponry. However, within a few decades the structure had gained the added function of a workshop and a repository for all sorts of treasures of the Imperial court. In 1813 the Armoury building became an exhibition hall and a museum. The collection of the Armoury is overwhelming. It contains such exhibits as the chalice of Yuri Dolgorukiy, the helm and armour of Boris Godunov, collection of over fifty Faberge eggs, golden and silver works of applied art by Russian, European and Oriental masters, invaluable weapons and other works made of precious metals and stones.

Transfer to the railway station. Our driver will meet you with a Go Russia sign board at the lobby of the hotel.

Overnight train travel to Novgorod the Great. Clean linen, including sheets, towels, blankets and pillows, are provided for each berth. The compartments also have personal reading lights, a big window and a small table. There is ample storage space for luggage within the compartment. Two bathrooms in every carriage contain a sink with running hot / cold water and a toilet. Cabins can be locked from the inside, and attendants keep a very close eye on what is happening in their carriage. As a result, trains are one of the safest means of travel within Russia.

Arrival in Novgorod early in the morning. The journey time is approximately eight and a half hours.

Arrival in Novgorod the Great. Our driver will meet you with a Go Russia sign board on the platform. Transfer to the hotel.

Novgorod the Great (Velikiy Novgorod in Russian) is one of the oldest towns in Russia, founded in the 9th century. It is situated at the source of the River Volkhov and Lake Ilmen not far from St. Petersburg. Its history is inextricably linked to all key stages of the Russian state development. Twice in the middle of the 9th century and the end of the 15th century, the town stood at the cradle of the Russian statehood. Novgorod the Great is the birthplace of Russian democratic and republican traditions, and an important spiritual stronghold of orthodox Russia.

We will visit the Novgorod Kremlin (traditionally known as the Detinets) - a masterpiece of the medieval architecture which also contains the oldest palace in Russia dating back to 1433 – the Chamber of the Facets, which served as the main meeting hall of the Russian archbishops; the oldest Russian bell tower from mid 15th century, and the oldest Russian clock tower. The Kremlin also features a royal palace and a bronze monument to the Millennium of Russia, representing the most important figures from the country's history.

Guided tour around Yaroslav's Courtyard, named after the Grand Prince of Novgorod and Kiev - Yaroslav the Wise, who managed to unite the two principalities for some time under his rule in the 11th century. Yaroslav ordered that his palace be built on the right bank of the Volkhov River, opposite the Kremlin. Shortly after the construction of the palace had finished, a vast shopping and trading area - the Trade Mart - was developed nearby. Hence the name of this part of the town, 'Trading Side' the busiest place in Novgorod for centuries. Yaroslav’s Courtyard included Gothic and German Courts where rich merchants from across Russia and the cities of the Hanseatic League lived while staying in Novgorod. In the Middle Ages, Novgorod was a major trading partner of the Hansa. Nowadays the term 'Yaroslav’s Courtyard' is used to refer to the area around the Trade Mart, the Church of St. Nicholas, the Church of St. Procopius, and the Church of the Myrrh-bearing Women.

The Yuriev (St. George's) Monastery is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site named Historic Monuments of Novgorod the Great and its Surroundings. It is one of Russia's oldest monasteries founded in 1030 by Prince Yaroslav the Wise whose Christian name was George. The monastry is situated on the left bank of the Volkhov River near where it flows out of Lake Ilmen, only three miles away from Novgorod.

We will visit Vitoslavlitsy Museum of Wooden Architecture situated along the Volkhov river and Myachino Lake, close to the Yuriev Monastery where you will find over 20 wooden buildings dating back from XIV – XIX century which were brought here from various parts of the Novgorod region, among them wooden churches, dwelling houses and mills.

Transfer to the railway station. Our driver will meet you with a Go Russia sign board at the lobby of the hotel.

Local train to Novgorod the Great.

It is impossible not to fall in love with St. Petersburg, one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and after you visit it, you can understand why. The most European of all Russian towns and cities, St. Petersburg is the second largest city in Russia. Unlike the busy capital Moscow, it is however calm and unhurried, just as a real museum-city should be.

Start your discovery of St. Petersburg with a guided bus city tour that will take you around the stunning “Venice of the North”; you will see the Peter and Paul Fortress, St. Isaac's Cathedral and the Church of Christ’s Resurrection (The Saviour of the Blood). You will also see the famous cruiser Aurora; the legendary ship whose canon gave the signal, on the order of Lenin, for the beginning of the Great Social Revolution more than 90 years ago. 

A guided tour of the Hermitage, former residence of the Russian Tzars (famous Winter Palace) and one of best museums of the world. This stunning palace, an architectural masterpiece in itself, contains a collection over 3,000,000 works of art re presenting the development of world culture and art from the Stone Age to the 20th century. The collection includes works of Leonardo Da Vinci, Titian, Raphael, French impressionists, sculptures and treasures icons, coins and Tsar’s jewellery. The Hermitage is an unforgettable place to visit.

Guided visit to one of the major architectural treasures of the Royal St. Petersburg - settlement of Tsarskoe Selo (Pushkin) located 25km south of the city. This small town has two gigantic palaces, set amidst huge and beautiful parkland: the glorious Catherine Palace, a Baroque masterpiece by the Italian architecture Bartolomeo Rastrelli, and the Alexander Palace, where the last tsar family dwelt. We will visit the Catherine’s Palace with the Amber Room. It features splendid interiors, designed by eminent architects Rastrelli, Cameron, Stasov and Monighetti.

Transfer to the airport. Our driver will meet you with a Go Russia sign board at the hotel lobby.