russian revolution - 9 days

Day 1: St Petersburg Welcome to St Pete’s and the start of your holiday! Meet and greet arrival transfer from St Petersburg Pulkovo Airport, transfer to hotel and check-in. Tonight, our tip-filled Welcome Meeting takes place. The remainder of the evening at leisure. Your tour leader will recommend some local bars and restaurants for you to try out. Overnight - St Petersburg. Day 2: Hermitage St Petersburg – breakfast. A city tour gives us a run-down of St Pete’s key areas. We will drive along the famed Nevsky Prospekt, the museum and university districts and a stop will be made at the Church on Spilled Blood and The Bronze Horseman. Later, we enjoy a guided visit at the Hermitage - which houses one of the biggest and best art collections on earth. The rest of the day is free for you to enjoy. Most of the city sights are dotted along and just off the main thoroughfare - Nevsky Prospekt.

Want more Russia     Go the max in St Petersburg and sign up for our pukka pass! Join the revolution evolution or head for outer space at the Star City Cosmonaut Centre! For more information, please click here.

It’s an easy city to find your bearings and get around. St Petersburg has a spirited restaurant, bar and jazz club scene, plus some of Russia’s best beers – a perfect night out. Overnight - St Petersburg.

Day 3: Optional Pukka Pass
St Petersburg - breakfast. A free day to explore on your own, alternatively fill your day with sightseeing by purchasing our pukka pass. The pass offers guided sightseeing, entrance fees, lunch and transport to some of St Pete’s most hard to get to sights. Visits will be made to Peter and Paul Fortress on the Petrogradskaya Side, St Isaac’s Cathedral - one of the world’s largest cathedrals, the Summer Gardens at Peterhof (in summer) or Catherine or Pavlovsk Palace (in winter) and lunch. Peter and Paul Fortress was built on the orders of Peter the Great. At one time a gruesome prison, within the compound is SS Peter and Paul Cathedral - housing the tombs of the Romanov monarchs. Peterhof, on the Gulf of Finland, is Russia’s ‘Versailles’ and popular in summer. The gold fountains are simply stunning. Overnight - St Petersburg.

Day 4 - Time to explore
St Petersburg – Vladimir – breakfast. Today gives the opportunity to shop for souvenirs, maybe some wooden dolls or russian memorabilia found at the canal side market near the striking Church on Spilled Blood. Or take a hike along Nevsky or opt for our revolution evolution! bolt-on. The choice is yours! Tonight, we travel to by overnight sleeper train to Vladimir. Overnight - train.

Day 5: Vladimir
Vladimir – breakfast. Comrades, welcome to Vladimir! Hotel check in, time to freshen up then out we go to explore beautiful Suzdal. The little rural settlement of Suzdal is packed with stunning buildings and churches. We’ll explore the town mostly on foot, visiting the 11th century Kremlin, some impressive cathedrals and a wood– carving museum. Later, we’ll have a steamy experience at a Russian banya (sauna), guaranteed to bring on the laughs. We’ll then tuck into a vodka and a Russian lunch. Back in Vladimir, the city that gave way to Moscow as Russia’s capital, we will explore the town, which was founded in 1108. Here, we’ll see a couple of cathedrals and the famous Golden Gate. Later tonight, dinner at the hotel.
Lunch, dinner and overnight – Vladimir.

Day 6: Moscow
Vladimir – Moscow – breakfast. This morning, we bid farewell to Vladimir for our drive to Moscow - the capital that spawned dozens of spy novels! Arriving early in the afternoon, we will ride on the capital’s efficient Metro to Red Square. From here, we’ll take in the jewels of Russia’s capital on a guided walk in the Kitay-Gorod and Lubyanka area, taking in sights such as the epitome of Russian power – the Kremlin (guided tour on day 8), Lenin’s Mausoleum and the ritzy GUM department store. At the south end of the square, feast your eyes on the wildly coloured, turban domed St Basil’s Cathedral, an enduring Russian symbol, commissioned by Ivan IV ( also known as Ivan the terrible) in 1555. Overnight - Moscow.

Day 7: Moscow your way
Moscow – breakfast. A free day to do Moscow your way. There are plenty of galleries and museums. In the evening, why not try one of the late night bars or nightclubs; Moscow's nightlife is hedonistic. Alternatively, join us for the day on an optional adventure to the Star City Cosmonaut Training Centre, by undertaking our star city bolt-on. Experience the low-down on the Russian space program. Overnight – Moscow .

Day 8: Red Square
Moscow – breakfast. Today, we head into Red Square where, if open, we can pay our respects for free to Lenin, the grandfather of Communism, who has lain in state within his eerie mausoleum since his death in 1924. There are continual calls for his internment. In the meantime, he still represents a ‘worldly’ and dignified piece of Soviet history. We continue inside the Kremlin - Russia’s bastion of political might, where we enjoy a guided walk through the grounds, seeing numerous government buildings, gold-domed cathedrals and the tsar bell.

This afternoon we offer a visit to the legendary KGB (now known as the FSB or Federal Security Service). Once one of the largest and most feared secret intelligence organisations in the world. Said to have as many floors underground as it does above, it was the last stop for thousands of dissenters before dreaded Siberia and the gulags. Today, it’s possible to enter the clandestine world of this amazing organisation exhibiting Cold War memorabilia with deadly weaponry such as a torch that fires high velocity bullets, a lethal dart pen, glasses with suicide poison hidden in the frames plus previously top - secret evidence of espionage in the form of documents and photos. Led by an existing or ex KGB member (with guide translation), this tour may only be booked in advance and, even with an advance booking the FSB may cancel our tour or close the facility without warning. Check out our KGB bolt-on for further details. Alternatively, explore Moscow your own way. Hop aboard the Metro and explore Moscow's opulent underground stations, clad with revolutionary mosaics and glitzy chandeliers or stop by Izmailovsky flea market - a sprawling collective of stalls selling everything from Soviet Red Army memorabilia to bootleg CDs, fluffy hats and Matryoshka dolls. Overnight - Moscow .

Day 9: Moscow
Our tour ends after breakfast and hotel check out at 12 noon.