Experience the legendary Trans-Siberian Railway on board a private charter train. Grand Trans-Siberian offers a choice of four accommodation categories from Economy to Deluxe as well as a restaurant, a bar and a conference area for lectures.
“S Priezdom! Welcome to Vladivostok!” Your tour guide will welcome you at the airport and accompany you to the hotel. There will be time to relax before this evening’s dinner.
Vladivostok is situated on what is called Golden Horn Bay by the Sea of Japan. A city sightseeing tour acquaints you with this sea port. Vladivostok is also a major military port and was a “closed city” during Soviet times. Included today an excursion to Russky Island which is home to the world’s longest cable-stayed bridge, with a 1104 m long central span. This evening transfer to the station for the start of your 9,288 km journey to Moscow. Welcome dinner served on-board this evening.
Early morning arrival in Khabarovsk, the second largest city of the Russian Far East. This afternoon enjoy a boat cruise on the mighty Amur River.
This morning the train departs Khabarovsk and is following the Shilka and Amur Rivers, which are located close to the Chinese border. A relaxed day on-board with lots of time to watch the scenery or join one of the on-board lectures.
Full day on-board the train. While enjoying the scenery of Russia’s Far East, you are invited to join several lectures being held by your tour escort. You will get a deep insight into history, geography, culture and daily life in Russia. You also have the opportunity to learn some basics of the Russian language.
After Ulan-Ude the line follows for several hours the southern shore of Lake Baikal. Between Sludyanka and Irkutsk it crosses a mountain range and offers beautiful views on Lake Baikal which is a Unesco World Heritage site. Evening arrival in Irkutsk.
Today you visit one of the highlights of the tour, Lake Baikal. This is the largest and deepest fresh water lake in the world and stretches up to 26 miles from east to west and more than 370 miles from north to south with a depth of 1,620 meters. A one hour coach drive brings you to Listvyanka, a small village, situated on the shore of Lake Baikal. A walking tour through the village shows you typical Siberian village life. The legend says after bathing in Lake Baikal your life will become longer. Local legend claims that you can get five extra years added by paddling up to your knees and up to twenty years if you manage to go swimming! Then a Siberian lunch is provided where you can taste the famous Omul fish, the indigenous fish of the lake. Return to Irkutsk and a chance to relax after a busy day.
Today’s excursion you will visit some of the cities quarters still consisting of wooden houses. The cultural highlight of the tour is a private classical concert held at the home of former Duke Volkonsky. A private classical concert that you would never expect in such a remote place. This evening the train departs for Krasnoyarsk.
Arrival to Krasnoyarsk, formerly a “closed city” during Soviet times. The city is located along the Yenissei River which is the greatest river system flowing to the Arctic Ocean. Today’s sightseeing tour takes you to viewpoints offering marvellous views over the city. As you are not staying overnight in Krasnoyarsk, day rooms for showers are provided at a centrally located hotel for clients of standard plus and standard economy categories. (Guests of Deluxe categories have their shower facilites en-suite).
Morning arrival in Novosibirsk, with 1.5 million inhabitants this is Russia’s third largest city and the biggest in Siberia, Novosibirsk is regarded as the centre of Siberia. It was founded in 1893 as the future site of the Trans- Siberian railway bridge crossing the Siberian River Ob. Today’s city tour provides the opportunity to see some remarkable orthodox churches which survived the Soviet period. The Trans -Siberian open Air Railway Museum situated on the outskirts of the city shows the most remarkable steam locomotives and historic passenger cars, which represent the development of the Trans- Siberian Railway.
Travelling through the steppes of Western Siberia towards the Ural Mountains. Early afternoon arrival in Ekaterinburg, which was named in honour of Tsar Peter`s wife Catherine (Yekaterina) in the year 1723. By the 20th century it became one of the most important financial, industrial and cultural centres of Russia. Today’s sightseeing tour shows historical sites in memory of the last Russian Tsar, Nicholas ll and his family including the “Cathedral on the spilled Blood” which was constructed where the Tsar and his family were executed by the Bolsheviks in 1918. You will visit also Ganina Yama, the mine shaft where they were thrown after the execution. This is one of Russia’s new holy places where you will visit the seven chapels, one in memory of each member of the last royal family.
A full day travelling through the Ural Mountains, which divide Asia and Europe. Watching the scenery pass by the window of your compartment, you will find lots of photo opportunities.
After almost 9,300 km of traveling from Vladivostok, crossing from Asia into Europe the train arrives into Moscow early afternoon. Today’s city sightseeing includes the magnificent Red Square and the grounds of the world famous Kremlin. Other highlights of today’s excursion include the Bolshoi Theatre and Sparrow Hills. The Moscow you will see today will make you forget the old stories of Russia being grey and dark. Moscow is now a vibrant city, comparable to Paris or Rome and full of life.
This unique and unforgettable experience comes to an end and you start your return journey home. Transfers to the airport are provide by our service team to connect with your flight departing Moscow.
This trip is very different in style and content to our Classic Trans-Siberian journeys. It is a group departure and has all the day trips and excursions included; therefore the only optional extras to consider are if you would like to begin your journey in St. Petersburg?
Standard Economy (4-person min)
£ N/A
Standard Plus Class
£7902 pp
Silver Deluxe Class
£13131 pp
Gold Deluxe Class
£15614 pp
Book Now!
Standard Economy (4-person min)
£3781 pp
Standard Plus Class
£5273 pp
Silver Deluxe Class
£9035 pp
Gold Deluxe Class
£10689 ppBook Now!
2017 – 15 Days |
I just wanted to say thanks for organizing the Trans-Siberian Rail Trip trip for me. I just arrived in Moscow and have been having a great time. Everything went incredibly smoothly. I appreciate your help planning everything. I ran into another of your clients along the way, they said the same thing.
Now, time to explore!
Regards,
Quinton
Quinton Wall
Hello Russia Experience,We are now in Shanghai. We had the most amazing time on the Trans-Siberian, what a great experience. The level of service and professionalism we had form yourselves continued through the whole trip. In particular the teams in Yekaterinburg and Ulaanbaatar were absolutely brilliant. I can’t believe the three weeks are over however we have memories to last forever. I would have loved to spend more time in Mongolia, so we might come back again for another adventure.I will recommend you to all our friends and I write a travel blog and have given you a good mention.Thank you so much,Chris and Jane.
Christopher Freeman & Jane Henbest
Dear JackieJust wanted to say a big thank you to everyone. I had an absolutely amazing time. Everything went to plan, all the picks ups were on time and the guides were fantastic. A wonderful experience!Judith Downes
Judith Downes
Just a quick note to say we’ve arrived home safely and had an absolutely fantastic time, the whole trip ran like a dream, the transfers and guides were superb, it was a great experience.
Thank you so much for your recommendations, the Golden Apple and the Khan resort (especially!!) were both brilliant.
Best wishes,
Damien & Sali Walsh
Mr & Mrs Walsh
Now that we have finished our journey across Asia, we wanted to email to thank you and your colleagues for the excellent arrangements which went without a hitch. It was a most wonderful and inspiring journey which was made the more enjoyable by knowing that we would be met and guided when it was crucial, but left also left to our own devices to explore places when it was prudent to do so.
In each place, your agents were most helpful, but we especially wanted to single out your Mongolian partners who went out of their way to make us welcome and explain to us a great deal about the country and its customs.
So, all in all, a great trip which we would recommend without hesitation: just the right blend of adventure and comfort! Thank you to all concerned.
With best wishes,
Robert & Louise
Robert & Louise
Arakere,Nagaraj Keshavamurthy
Here are some personal highlights from our trip.
I was struck by the dearth of caucasians in China and Mongolia. Some days the only non-orientals were ourselves! Great to be immersed in another culture like that.
In every big city Stephan and I did an urban run. What a great way to see a city at the street level and the people and all the energy as we ran anywhere from 3 kilometers to 10 kilometers at a go. You can imagine what it was like to run along Tianamen Square or around the Kremlin.
One extra exciting run was at Ekaterineburg. The train had a 29 minute stop and the location of the Ipatiav House where the Romanov’s were murdered was 1.5 kilometers from the train station. We had to book it off the train, through the station, onto the main boulevard and down to the huge cathedral now on that a site. Take a few pictures and hustle back with a minute to spare before the train took off!
The friends we made in wagon 6 on our trek across Siberia. There were many Brits, Canadians, and Aussies. Because we were all on the Trans-Sib/Mongolian, everyone had a sense of adventure. We were among kindred spirits. We shared stories, adventures, food, and vodka. And lots of conversation about about the Brexit vote and the results of Euro 16 football matches.
Quality time for father and son with hours together in our compartment to talk, read, share and grow closer. Stephan speaks ChInese so he was a huge asset in China as well.
A happy home away from home-coming as Sarah and Johan met us in Moscow. Good food and museums. My favorite museum is the Tretyakov and it was such a treat to view the works of Repin, Perov, Shishkin, and Lamonsov.
The Mongolian steppes. The vistas were incredible and the time spent there, as well as sleeping in a ger was so memorable.
Thank you again for your service and care for our trip. We loved it and I am so grateful for your professional wisdom and handling of the details. You are the best and can highly recommend you to all.
Blessings abound,
Joel
The Quie Family
The Havards travelled April 2016
Not sure if you meant it when you said you wanted some feedback but here goes. I’m on the penultimate day as we arrive in Vladivostok tomorrow. I must say I have thoroughly enjoyed it. Nothing like what I expected but it has been a great experience and although I wouldn’t repeat it I would certainly redo it. Siberia was much less sparse than I expected and the towns were much more modern than I had expected. It’s very much a tourist trip for tourists so I could imagine some people being disappointed if they were expecting purely a culture or a geographical trip. The organisation is outstanding,service is excellent, food is very good and the facilities far above what I could have imagined. The trip itself is a curious mixture of culture,cuisine,cities,concerts,folklore,geography, history ( lectures from a professor of Russian history), entertainment,adventure and I’m sure I forgot something.
Really wonderful. Thanks for your help in giving me this experience,
Sincerely John
John (travelled Golden Eagle Imperial Class)
Howard and Alison Brett
Nicholas Mayman & Wendy Wise
Wanted to say a huge thank you for all the help you guys gave me with the trip and the visas! and the patience you had with all my questions!!!!
I had the best time and met some awesome people ???? you guys are the best and I would definitely recommend using your company to friends and anyone that asks really!
The guides I had were all amazing and the accommodation was pretty sweet too!!
Thanks so much!
Jenna Thompson
Jenna Thompson
Since the end of the train trip we have been in Moscow for five days and are currently finishing up a visit to beautiful St Petersburg. Tomorrow we head to Copenhagen as we continue our three month journey.
Thanks again for all that you did on our behalf.
Geoffrey Slaff
Geoffrey Slaff
All services – transits, hotels, on-train facilities and guides were punctual and efficient.
We had no problems in meeting/being met by taxi drivers. Hotels were expecting us as paid-for guests.
Guides were pleasant, knowledgeable and had good English. On-train we were surprised at being offered all we wanted. Indeed, the whole package was sound and recommendable.
We were pleasantly surprised with unexpected on-train facilities. Apparently, the 1st class, two-berth, on-train service includes one cooked meal daily and complementary daily supply of tea, coffee and chocolate. Boiling water for beverages is available all day and night in each car. Bedding – linen sleeping bag and two pillows – is free. On the older railway stock, on train 8, don’t expect to wash anything except hands and your plastic crockery and cutlery. Toilet paper is always availably, though not always paper towels, and the waste bins are emptied regularly.
At Irtkusk the local office manager is like no other manager. His appearance is that of a 1960s hippy – long hair tied into a pony-tail, short trousers, back-pack – but he is delightfully lucid, speaks excellent English, is clearly well-connected, is light hearted and very effective. The world needs more of his equal.
The fresh water and very clear Lake Baikal is a treasure: It’s 636 km long, about 1650 m deep and has many species found nowhere else. No wonder it has internationally recognised status for scientific interest. The Baikal museum and aquarium is truly worth a visit.
Thanks for organising a most enjoyable and interesting tour.
Yours aye,
Ian Fraser
Ian Fraser
Our home stay hostess, Olga, was a delight. Loved the visits to villages.
Now to read and reread Russian novels! Mongolia nomad stay was more challenging than we expected but in retrospect was a good experience. Family and guide were great.
Marilyn Thomas
Marilyn Thomas
Kind regards
Paul Pennington
Paul Pennington
Dermot Carlin
We have had an amazing time. Everything was so well organised, we always felt looked after without feeling stifled or rushed about as you might on a fully managed/guided tour. We had plenty of time to do our own thing and the trips were always in very small groups (if not only the three of us!). The local guides at each location were fantastic. All really helpful and knowledgeable and ready to do that little bit extra (special thanks to the amazing Ulziimaa in Ulaanbataar!). As you may have guessed at an early stage I can be a bit of a nervous traveller but you reassured us at every step and everything was so well planned and organised, we really had nothing to worry about at all. I appreciate hugely the fact that every email and question I had was responded to and answered within minutes/hours, even when we were in China. I will (and already have done) unreservedly recommend you and your company to anyone considering travelling through Russia, Mongolia and China.
A truly amazing experience…thank you.
Alanna, Ralph and Nathan
Karen & Jacques Grivel
Thanks for all your troubles and for a wonderful experience.
Best regards,
Carlos Ossenbach Sauter
Carols Ossenbach Sauter
Kind regards,
Lynda Warren
Jessica & Nanae Warren-Hart
Bernadette & Joseph Skinner
City Walks; These added a whole new dimension to the tours as the guides were first rate and very well informed. We also found that they were happy to talk of present and past regimes which served to add colour to the situation and they were also well versed in the local customs. Without the guides the experience would not have been quite so rewarding.
Options; Not to be missed. Picnic at Lake Baikal and the trip to the Great Wall. Excellent guides and very well organised .
As promised we were always met as arranged . The drivers went out of their way to ensure that we were on time for our trains and they also made sure that we were safely on board before leaving. We were also lucky in meeting three others on the “experience” in Moscow who we were with until Beijing and so we had others to turn to when we were confused. ( Often at my age )
All in all it was a fantastic experience and one that I would not have wanted to miss at any cost. You have made two old men very happy.
My one and only complaint about the trip is that I have absolutely nothing about which to complain.
My thanks to you and all involved.
Brian Marchant & Brian Quance
We thoroughly enjoyed the hike round Lake Baikal (although the distances were a lot further than in the itinerary!!!!), and the walking guide Anton was both knowledgeable and chilled out, a great balance!
Mongolia was also an excellent experience, with the family stay being the highlight! Our guide Naki had endless information and was forever cheerful! A big thank you to him too!
The whole experience for us both was a very positive one and we will be sure to recommend your company to family and friends!!
Once again, thank you to all the drivers, guides and yourself for an excellent service!
Amanda and Duncan
Amanda Moran & Duncan Balderson
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