Day 1: Arrival to Beijing
Today you arrive to the magnificent Chinese capital Beijing and have a transfer to your hotel for check-in. You can spend the rest of the day, relaxing or exploring the city on your own.
Please, note: you can continue your journey further to Beijing and spend 4 days exploring this Chinese gem. Contact your travel specialist for details.
Day 2: Train to Ulan Bator
After check-out from the hotel, you have a transfer to the train station.
Day 3: Arrival in Ulan Bator & Free Day
Welcome to the gorgeous capital of Mongolia - Ulan Bator! Your driver meets you at train station and transfers you to your centrally located hotel for check-in.
The rest of the day is free so you can relax in your cozy room, dine in one of the nearby restaurants or start exploring the city center on your own.
Day 4: Visiting the Gandan Monastery
Following breakfast you check out from your hotel, meet your guide and explore the legendary Mongolian Buddhist Gandan Monastery in Ulan Bator.
Day 4: Gorkhi-Terelji National Park Tour & Meeting a Nomadic Family
In the afternoon you arrive to the camp and enjoy traditional lunch.
Later you take the tour of the picturesque Gorkhi-Terelji National Park and visit its most popular attractions, including the famous Turtle Rock and the Aryabal Temple located on a steep hill. At the entrance to the temple’s grounds there is a long walking path leading to the set of 108 steep stairs that symbolize the elephant’s elongated trunk. You can rise up to the temple and enjoy the magnificent view of surrounding valleys.
In the afternoon you visit a nomadic family to learn more about their culture, authentic lifestyle and traditions. Later you enjoy dinner at the camp. You spend this night in a traditional Mongolian yurt.
Additional meals: lunch, dinner
Day 5: Tour on the Way to Ulan Bator
Following breakfast at the ger camp, you meet your guide and depart from ger camp.
Day 5: Folk Show
In the evening you attend an amazing Mongolian folk show at the National Academic Drama Theatre (transfers are included). After the show the rest of the evening is free.
Note: Folk show in Ulan Bator is available from the middle of May to the beginning of October.
Day 6: Ulan Bator Sightseeing Tour
After breakfast you check out from the hotel and go on an exciting walking city tour around the most interesting attractions of Ulan Bator.
During the tour you visit the National Museum of Mongolia, one of the leading museums in the whole country and the one which is responsible for preserving Mongolian cultural heritage. You also stroll along the main streets of the city, see the Parlament house and walk through the central Sukhbaatar Square formerly known as Genghis Khan Square.
After the tour you return to the hotel for your baggage, and your driver takes you to the train station.
Day 7: Arrival
Today you arrive in Irkutsk. Upon arrival, you are transferred right to the Lake Baikal shore.
Day 7: Arrival
You arrive to the Lake Baikal shore and check in to your hotel. The rest of the evening is free to have rest after your trip.
Day 8: Listvyanka Village Tour & Baikal Museum
Following breakfast you enjoy a guided tour around Listvyanka Village. During the tour, you visit the Baikal Limnological Museum and Aquarium that houses an interesting display of the unique flora and fauna of the lake.
Then you take a chair-lift to the nearby viewpoint to take some magnificent panoramic pictures of Baikal, view the Chersky Rock and visit the 19th century wooden St. Nicolas Church and spend some time at a local fish market where you see a great variety of fish and different ways of cooking it.
After the tour, you return to your hotel and have the rest of the day free.
Please, note: chair-lift is not available on Monday
Day 9: Trip to Taltsy Village & Transfer to Irkutsk
After breakfast, you check out from your hotel and say "Good-bye" to Lake Baikal! You then take a day trip to the open-air museum of wooden architecture located in Taltsy Village.
This reconstructed Siberian village consists of many buildings that were threatened with flooding when the Irkutsk Dam was constructed on the Angara River. All the buildings at the Taltsy museum were rescued from the rising waters and brought here to serve as models of Irkutsk regional architecture.
After the tour, your driver takes you to Irkutsk.
Day 9: Arrival
Upon arrival, you check in to your centrally-located hotel and have the rest of the evening free.
Day 10: Irkutsk City Tour
Following breakfast, you check out, meet your guide and driver and have a tour around the most remarkable city's attractions.
You first walk along Angara River embankment - the most popular meeting place among the locals - to an eternal flame and the monument to explorer Yakov Pohabov, the founder of the city. You proceed to the only Catholic Cathedral in Irkutsk, the beautiful Polish Roman Church, located in the historical part of Irkutsk.
You are then driven to one of the main monasteries in Siberia - Sign Monastery is also known as the Znamensky Monastery. You also explore the Kazan Church, which with its Byzantine-style decorations looks like a fairy tower, and Block 130, the historical zone with many colorful wooden houses and buildings constructed in the 17th century.
After the tour, your driver transfers you to the station.
Day 13: Arrival to Moscow
You arrive to the vibrant capital of Russia in the afternoon and are driven to the hotel for check-in. The rest of the day is at your leisure.
Day 14: Exploring the Kremlin, Armoury Chamber & the Heart of Moscow
Following breakfast, you meet your guide in the hotel lobby and walk to the Kremlin territory where you have a chance to explore the gems hidden behind the Kremlin walls such as the Cathedral Square and the Assumption and Annunciation cathedrals.
Then you visit the famous Armoury Chamber that houses a unique collection of crown jewels, stunning coronation finery, hand-forged armor and weapons, royal carriages and sleighs, and world-famous Fabergé eggs.
After a short break for coffee you take a walk through the beautiful Red Square, go inside the colorful St. Basil's Cathedral and explore the famous GUM department store.
After the tour you walk back to your hotel and have the rest of the day free.
Day 15: Tretyakov Gallery, Subway Ride & Panoramic Tour
Following breakfast, you meet your guide and driver and enjoy a tour of the world-famous treasure trove of the Russian fine art, the Tretyakov Gallery, where you have amazing time viewing the gems of its collection, including the famous masterpieces of Ivan Aivazovsky, Mikhail Vrubel, and Viktor Vasnetsov.
After the tour of the Tretyakov Gallery you have a quick subway ride to explore the most beautiful stations of Moscow Subway, which is known to be one of the most beautiful and efficient metro systems in the world. Then you see the spectacular Cathedral of Christ the Savior and learn the story of its destruction and reconstruction.
Today you also have a chance to enjoy one of the best city views at Sparrow Hills and see the grand building of Moscow State University, the highest of seven Stalinist skyscrapers of Moscow.
After the tour you are transferred to your hotel and have the rest of the day free.
Day 16: Departure
Following breakfast you check out from your hotel, and your driver transfers you to the airport. We wish you a safe flight and hope to work on your future trips!
Optional post-tour extension available: continue your journey further to the legendary Venice of the North and the brilliant Northern capital of Russia - St. Petersburg. Contact your travel specialist for details.
Not included:international flights, multiple arrival/departure transfers, other meals not mentioned in the program, optional tours and services, all personal expenses.
Note:
1. Hotels availability is subject to change. In case current hotels are booked out we will provide alternative hotels of an equal value for you.
2. We include 1 vehicle for your arrival and departure transfers. If multiple vehicles are required additional transfer costs will apply.
3. Due to specific travel arrangements and train departure times depending on the schedules of Russian and Mongolian Railways, the itinerary may be subject to change.
4. For the 1st class package: if we are not able to get 1st class train tickets, a whole 2nd class compartment (4 berths for 2 people's use) will be booked instead.
Stress-free Booking Book your journey without stress and at convenient pace. You can pay a deposit of 20% to book any tour in any major currency; the final balance will be due 90 days before start date. In event if you decide to change or postpone your trip, you can transfer your deposit to any other packages we offer. Cruise bookings and special offers may be subject to different booking terms.
Trip Assurance If you need our assistance during your trip, you can call our support line available from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. (CET) on weekdays and weekends.