Welcome to Enchanting Journeys

Welcome to majestic Russia. After you exit in the Arrival Hall at Terminal? - Moscow Domodedovo International Airport, subsequent to Customs & Immigration, you will be met by The Journeys representative who will ensure your comfort & transfer you to the hotel, help you settle in and provide you with some useful tips for exploring the area as well as discuss the program for the next few days.

During any season, any hour of day, Moscow thrills visitors with its artistry, history and majesty. Located on the Moskva River in western Russia, is the nation’s cosmopolitan capital. In its historic core is the Kremlin, a fortified complex that’s home to the president and tsarist treasures in the Armoury. Outside its walls is Red Square, the country’s symbolic center and site of Lenin’s Mausoleum, State Historical Museum and St. Basil’s Cathedral, known for its colorful, patterned, onion-shaped domes.

The very founding site of the city (and arguably, the country), the Kremlin & Red Square are still at the heart of Moscow - historically, geographically and spiritually. Feel the weight of this significance as you wander within the walls of the ancient fortress, marvel at the mind-boggling magnificence of St Basil's Cathedral, and pay your respects to the revered leader of a now-defunct state. Moscow will move you. She'll tantalise your senses, soothe your spirit, and boggle your mind; and it all starts right here.

The remains of the Soviet state are scattered all around the city. Monuments remember fallen heroes and victorious battles, while Museums attempt to analyse and synthesise the past. See Lenin and Stalin - off their pedestals at the whimsical Art Muzeon. Step into the Socialist Realist fantasy at VDNKh. Descend into the depths of the Soviet system at Bunker-42 Cold War Museum. And remember the millions who suffered at the Gulag History Museum. Nowadays, many fun or clever retro clubs and cafes give their guests a taste of the Soviet experience. You can even try your hand at Soviet-era arcade games (beyond Tetris).

People like to talk about 'the city that never sleeps,' but they should talk about Moscow. You don’t have to be a high-heeled glamour girl or a deep-pocketed man about town to enjoy the capital by night. Moscow has a club or a cafe for everyone, from nostalgia-rich retro to rocked-out indie, from contemporary-cool art cafes to let-loose dance clubs. And no matter where you spend the evening, all are invited to gather in the wee hours to watch the sunrise over Moscow’s golden domes and silver skyscrapers.

Check-in at the hotel.

Morning, you will be picked up at 09,00 am to embark a 6 hour sightseeing tour of the city, visiting a selection of carefully-chosen highlights of the city, from the remarkable buildings featuring some of the most stunning architecture to be found anywhere.

You will start on the guided walk through some of the spectacular underground metro stations in Moscow, known as the ‘Palaces of the People’ when they were first built. You will be amazed at the beautiful sculptures, bronzes, mosaics & crystal chandeliers.

Later, travelling by coach, you will see some of the famous landmarks & places to which you may return at your leisure. You will drive by Red Square, the Kremlin, Sparrow Hills, Bolshoi Theatre, Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, Victory Park, Novodevichy Convent, the White House and the famous Moscow streets.

UNESCO listed Red Square began life as a slum, a shanty town of wooden huts clustered beneath the Kremlin walls that housed a collection of peddlers, criminals & drunks whose status left them outside the official boundaries of the medieval city. It was cleared on the orders of Ivan III at the end of the 1400's, but remained the province of the mob, the site of public executions, and rabble rousing, until much later.

The Square's name has nothing to do with communism or with the color of many of its buildings. In fact it derives from the word 'krasnyi', which once meant 'beautiful', and has only come to mean 'red' in contemporary Russian. The name became official in the middle of the 17^th century - previously it had been Trinity Square, due to the Trinity Cathedral, the predecessor of St. Basil's. Popularly, it was also known as 'Fire Square', reflecting the number of times medieval Moscow burned. During the Mongol & Tartar invasions, it was the site of fierce fighting, and right up until the end of the 17^th century cannon stood ready to defend the square.

Red Square came into its own in the 20^th century, when it was most famous as the site of official military parades demonstrating to the world the might of the Soviet armed forces. Two of these will be remembered forever. The first was the parade of 7 November 1941, when columns of young cadets marched through the square & straight on to the frontline, which by that point was less than 50 km from Moscow. The second was the victory parade on 24 June 1945, when two hundred Nazi standards were thrown in front of the mausoleum & trampled by mounted Soviet commanders in celebration. The year 2000 saw the return of troops to Red Square, with a parade to mark the 50^th anniversary of the end of World War Two.

Since Perestroika, however, the emphasis has moved away from official pomp, and Red Square has been used increasingly for rock concerts, big classical music performances & a whole range of large-scale events from fashion shows to festivals of circus art. Moscow met the millennium here with a huge firework display & street party. Today it is hard to think of a place that is more beloved of Muscovites & visitors to the city.

On Red Square, which became a showcase for military parades from 1919 onwards, is the famous Lenin’s Mausoleum, the resting place of Vladimir Lenin.

Continue on to visit the Museum of Contemporary Russian History - State museum for social, political, economic & cultural history of Russia over the past 150 years, located in a former nobleman’s mansion, with an extensive collection that documents the country’s political development over the last 150 years

Complete with stones lions, the opulent 1780s mansion housing the Museum was the former premises of the Moscow English Club - a venue favoured by Anglophile gentlemen and natives Brits in tsarist times, this grand dame was formerly known as the Revolution Museum of Revolution.

There is a whole century of the most turbulent, convoluted, well documented history to be seen & absorbed. Now that history has moved on, so has the museum, covering all aspects of Russia's recent history. The retro exhibit traces Soviet history from the 1905 & 1917 revolutions up to the 1980s. The highlight is the extensive collection of propaganda posters, in addition to all the Bolshevik paraphernalia. English texts are sporadically situated in the rooms to make more of the experience. Look for the picture of the giant Palace of Soviets that Stalin was going to build on the site of the blown-up - and now rebuilt - Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Don't linger too much in the Revolutionary phase or you will be too tired by the time the Space Race starts, and Perestroika & the great music section dedicated to Russia's answer to the Beatles.

Return to the hotel by 06.00 pm.

Morning around 09:00 am, you will be met by the Tour-guide and embark on a 6 hour sightseeing tour of the city.

First stop will be the magnificent Kremlin. Within the territory you’ll visit the fascinating Armoury Museum, with a spectacular collection of costumes, silver and arms amongst a vast treasure trove of exhibits. 

The UNESCO listed Moscow Kremlin, usually referred to as the Kremlin, is a fortified complex at the heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River to the south, Saint Basil's Cathedral & Red Square to the east, and the Alexander Garden to the west. First mentioned in the Hypatian Chronicle in 1147 as a fortification erected on the left bank of the Moskva river by Yuri Dolgoruki, Prince of Suzdal, the Kremlin developed and grew with settlements & suburbs which were further surrounded by new fortifications - Kitaigorodsky Wall, Bely Gorod, Zemlyanoy Gorod & others.

Inextricably linked to all the most important historical & political events in Russia since the 13^th century, the Kremlin (built between the 14^th & 17^th centuries by outstanding Russian & foreign architects) was the residence of the Great Prince & also a religious centre - the center of temporal & spiritual life of the state.

It contains an ensemble of monuments of outstanding quality including the uniquely Russian Terem Palace, the royal residence. The most significant churches of the Moscow Kremlin are situated on the Cathedral Square; they are the Cathedral of the Dormition, Church of the Archangel, Church of the Annunciation & the bell tower of Ivan Veliki. Almost all of them were designed by invited Italian architects, which is clearly seen in their architectural style. The five-domed Assumption Cathedral (1475 -479) was built by an Italian architect Aristotele Fiorvanti. Its interior is decorated with frescos & a five-tier iconostasis (15^th - 17^th century). The cathedral became the major Russian Orthodox Church; a wedding & coronation place for great princes, tsars & emperors as well as the shrine for metropolitans & patriarchs.  .

After the 1917 Revolution, the Kremlin regained its rightful place as the seat of the Russian government, and the legacy of the Communist era is still visible in the large red stars that top many of the defensive towers, and in the vast, modern State Kremlin Palace, originally the Palace of Congresses. 

The surrounding streets of Kitay Gorod are crammed with churches & old architecture.

Within the Kremlin, you will visit the fascinating Armoury Museum, to see the spectacular collection of costumes, silver & arms amongst a vast treasure trove of exhibits. Ivan's descendents further developed and adapted the Kremlin complex and, even when Peter the Great moved the capital to St Petersburg, Russia's rulers continued to leave their mark on the medieval town. Peter himself built the Kremlin Arsenal, originally planned as a military museum & now occupied by a barracks.

As important Russia's landmark as the Kremlin Cathedrals, Red Square and the Hermitage is the Kremlin Armoury Museum. It seems this national pride as if on purpose confuses people with its name & make them think it is all about arms & amour. The former Treasury and one of the world’s top five Royal Treasure Houses - that is the exclusive collection protected by the title Kremlin Armoury.

The Kremlin Armoury or Armoury Chamber is one of the oldest museums of Moscow, established in 1851. The name "Armoury Chamber" is officially used by the historical-cultural museum of the Moscow Kremlin.

Discover the splendid Russian Gold & Silverware collection, covering an extensive period from the 12^th to early 20^th century occupies a special place in the world art & impresses with its splendor & delicacy.  Some of its most magnificent exhibits include: Faberge Eggs - the biggest collection of the world famous Imperial Faberge Eggs. The Eggs “Moscow Kremlin”, “the Clock” and “the Trans-Siberian Express” as well as 7 other Eggs gather crowds by their showcase no matter what the day or time.

Some of the other exhibits are Golden Gospel (1571) made in the Kremlin workshops, lavishly decorated with gold, gems, chasing & enamel while its blue sapphires amaze by their size ; the 17^th century Oklad (icon-setting) of the country's most venerated Icon of Our Lady of Vladimir (1657). All studded with diamonds & pearls and adorned with two 100-carat Colombian emeralds, it will be one of the highlights of your Kremlin visit.

The State Regalia is one of the most important part of the Collection. It includes the marvelous individual crowns (or rather luxurious caps) decorated with sable fur, of the Russian Tsars & the most important one - the Monomakh’s Cap used for the coronations for two centuries. Their artwork is impeccable& the massive diamonds, emeralds, rubies & sapphires, adorning the crowns, is an evidence of the former wealth of the Russian Royal court.

The Armoury Chamber also has one of the world’s best collections of carriages, if not the best! There are brilliant examples of royal carriages executed by such talented masters as John Buckendal, Francois Boucher & Johann Hoppenhaupt. The collection is impressive in size, as only Empress Elisabeth on her own had possessed 5 personal carriages! What also must be noted is the 18^th century Winter Sledge - another authentic Russian exhibit that gets a lot of attention from overseas travellers.

Then, there are Russian-made 18^th & 19^th centuries’ coronation dresses - with golden & silver embroidery, lace, gems and pearls - represent an important part of the Collection. Here you can see the coronation dresses of Empresses Catherine I, Anna and Elizabeth, Catherine the Great and Maria as well as the dress of Alexandra, the last Empress of Russia. A splendid and delicate masquerade ball costume of Emperor Nicolas II is one of a kind exhibited in the Kremlin Armory Museum.

The Russian Royal Treasure House is proud of its Collection of Ambassadorial gifts from all parts of the world. England, Holland, Sweden, Poland, Germany - to name a few. Since tableware was the most popular state gift of the past centuries, there are numerous silver dishes, chalices & goblets of various size and shape. Among them are German amusement goblets “Bell” & “Ship”, “Smoking Mountains”, and two adorable silver vessels in the shape of snow leopards from England! Ostrich eggs, ivory, coconut and rare minerals - who would imagine a state present made of such extraordinary materials? The Armoury Museum Moscow has a separate showcase of these truly impressive items.

Two rooms on the 2^nd floor, are given to the Russian & Western European Arms & Armor. The Round Room was initially meant to house the State Regalia, hence its rich decoration. The Soviet time that replaced Royal Russia highlighted the key points in a different way. The current display of the exhibits was not changed since then (the middle of the 1980s). Russian firearms - there are about 300 pieces of the Russian firearms in the collection. Lavishly decorated with ivory, silver, gold & gems they mark a high level of craftsmanship of the time. Check out the European Armor. Polished & sparkling German & French armor deserves a special attention. So familiar to visitors from countries with long traditions of joust tournaments, they are exotic indeed for the eyes of a Russian. Such tournaments were never popular in Russia. That is why these medieval "outfits" were received as gifts and used for fun by the Royalty & wealthy families. A good example of it is a child’s suit of armor, made for young Peter the Great.

The Kremlin Museum is also proud to exhibit a splendid collection of the arms from Eastern countries - Turkey and Persia. Richly decorated with rubies, emeralds & turquoises guilt helmets, gauntlets, shields, and daggers captivate with their impeccable craftsmanship & splendor.  

We also visit the Museum of Moscow Railway situated next to Paveletsky Rail Terminal in Moscow

It is predominantly an outdoor museum exhibiting old types of trains. The collection of exhibits has been expanded & it now also houses many artifacts concerning the Moscow Railway and the history of Russian Railways from the beginnings of the railways in Russia to the present day. The collection includes models, displays, documents, photographs, uniforms & items of railway equipment

The museum was formerly the Museum of Lenin’s funeral train. It still houses exhibits relating to Vladimir Lenin's Funeral train including the only surviving Russian locomotive class U steam locomotive U-127 (Russian Y-127) & Lenin’s funeral van No 1691. The smaller exhibits have all gone leaving the perfectly preserved 4-6-0 oil burning locomotive in place with the wagon that conveyed Lenin’s body from the dacha where he died to Moscow. It is all painted in Soviet red & adorned with plaques & a legend proclaiming its place in history. It is incredibly well preserved considering it has not moved since 1948 and has been maintained in immaculate condition. They say it can be used in a state of emergency.

In total there are over 60 exhibits including 12 steam engines, 10 diesel locomotives, seven electric trains and three wagons.  Many of the museum's exhibits are often used in films & television programmes

From here, we will move to see the examples of Revolutionary art, when we visit the New Tretyakov Gallery on Krymsky Val. 

The State Tretyakov Gallery is an art gallery in Moscow, Russia, the foremost depository of Russian fine art in the world.

The premier venue for 20^th century Russian art, better known as the New Tretyakov, has much more than the typical socialist realist images of muscle-bound men wielding scythes & busty women milking cows (although there’s that, too). The exhibits showcase avant-garde artists such as Malevich, Kandinsky, Chagall, Goncharova & Popova.

In the same building as the Tretyakov, TsDKh, or Central House of Artists, is a huge exhibit space used for contemporary-art shows. A number of galleries are also housed here on a permanent basis.

The Gallery's history starts in 1856 when the Moscow merchant Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov acquired works by Russian artists of his day with the aim of creating a collection, which might later grow into a museum of national art. In 1892, Tretyakov presented his already famous collection of approximately 2,000 works (1,362 paintings, 526 drawings & 9 sculptures) to the Russian nation.

The façade of the gallery building built in 1902 - 04 to the south from the Moscow Kremlin, was designed by the painter Viktor Vasnetsov in a peculiar Russian fairy-tale style. During the 20^th century, the Gallery expanded to several neighboring buildings, including the 17^th century Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi.

The collection now contains more than 130,000 exhibits, ranging from Theotokos of Vladimir & Andrei Rublev's Trinity to the monumental Composition VII by Wassily Kandinsky & the Black Square by Kazimir Malevich. In 1977 the Gallery kept a significant part of the George Costakis collection.

Return to the hotel around 05:00 pm.

Morning, Check-out & meet the Tour-guide at 9.00 am & proceed for a 6 hour visit to Art Muzeon, located opposite Gorky Park.

Muzeon Park of Arts outside the Krymsky Val building in Moscow shared by the modern art division of Tretyakov Gallery & Central House of Artists, is a unique open air museum of sculpture. This is the final resting place for the many Soviet statues evicted from Russia’s parks and squares following the collapse of Communism.

Founded in 1992, the Park has been accumulating monuments for over 20 years & today its collection comprises more than 1000 sculptures.  The soviet monuments built from 1930 to 1950s did not only serve for propaganda purposes, but also to enhance the view of the city. For example, the statue of Dzerzhinsky by Evgeny Vuchetich & the statue of Gorky designed by Ilya Shadr and built by Vera Mukhina’s cooperative association were monumental leitmotivs at the two central Moscow squares for a long time. 

Also present in the MUZEON collection are many significant artifacts of the socialist realism era, numerous busts of socialist labor heroes & essential for every soviet establishment - traditional portraits of USSR leaders. Highlights include the huge steel sculpture of the Soviet world, innumerable giant Lenins, monuments to the Red Army & a de-nosed Stalin. One of the museum’s goals has always been the conservation of these unique monuments, which have been treated differently as the political course of the country changed.

One may question the artistic importance of these sculptures & other significant works of art, but their historical importance lies beyond any doubt: They are artifacts of an era and are essential to the analysis of it.

On the other hand, the Muzeon also displays the works of avant-garde sculptors, which were not exposed under the soviet regime, because they did not fit in the official art form of that time. Therefore under the soviet regime they were kept at the workshops, away from the general public. Amongst these works are rare masterpieces by contemporary artists Evgeny Chubarov, Alexey Grigoriev, Leonis Rabins. Vladimir Lemport, Sergey Merkurov, Vera Mukhina & other famous sculptors.

Apart from these historical pieces, the “Muzeon” actively exhibits contemporary sculptors, extending the boundaries of the collection and enriching it with “plein air” painting, thematic photo expositions, contemporary art objects & video art materials.

For the last few years Muzeon turned into one of the most dynamically developing cultural & educational spaces around Moscow. Summer theatre, pavilion school & children’s centre are also working here. In 2013 the renovated pedestrian Krymskaya embankment became the part of the park and also turned into one of the most popular city spots providing unusual exhibition space, platform for rare movies shows, theatre performances & original musical festivals, centre for education and a massive creative workshop.

In time, you will be transferred to Leningradsky Rail Station for your journey to St Petersburg on the high speed Sapsan train.   

On arrival at St. Petersburg Moscovsky Station, you will be welcomed by a Journeys Rep who will ensure your comfort & transfer you to the hotel.

Once a desolate swamp, Russia's imperial capital is today a dazzling metropolis whose sheer grandeur never fails to amaze. There is something about St Petersburg that gets under your skin.

Built from nothing by westward looking Peter the Great, St Petersburg was from its inception to be a display of imperial Russia’s growing status in the world. Fine-tuned by Peter’s successors, who employed a host of European architects to add fabulous palaces & cathedrals to the city’s layout, St Petersburg grew to be the Romanovs’ showcase capital and Russia’s first great, modern city, a status it has retained despite the capital moving back to Moscow following the revolution. Despite all that history has thrown at it, St Petersburg still feels every bit the imperial capital, a city largely frozen in time.

St Petersburg is an almost unrivalled treasure trove of art & culture. You can spend days in the Hermitage, seeing everything from Egyptian mummies to Picassos, while the Russian Museum, spread over four sumptuous palaces, is perhaps the best collection of Russian art in the world. Add to this world-class ballet & opera at the Mariinsky Theatre, classical concerts at the Shostakovich Philharmonia and a slew of big-name music festivals over the summer months, and you won’t be stuck for cultural nourishment. If contemporary art is more your thing, there’s also the fantastic Erarta Museum, showcasing the best in modern Russian art, and a small but buzzing gallery scene.

Whether you’re cruising the elegant canals, crossing one of the 342 bridges in the city, or just watching them being raised over the mighty Neva River at night to allow ships to pass through, you’re never far from water in St Petersburg, which has earned the city unsurprising comparisons to Venice. The similarities don’t stop there, though: any wander in the historic centre will reveal canals lined by Italianate mansions and broken up by striking plazas adorned with baroque and neoclassical palaces.

The city’s White Nights are legendary: those long summer evenings when the northern sun barely dips below the horizon. Revelry begins in May, when spring finally comes to the city and parks are filled with flowering trees, and peaks in mid-June, when the sky doesn’t get dark, festivals pack out concert halls and the entire city seems to be partying over the brief but glorious summer. But don’t worry - even when the skies are grey and the ground covered in snow, St Petersburg’s rich culture still dazzles and delights

Check-in at the hotel.

Morning at 10:00 am, you will be met by the Tour-guide & embark on a 8 hour panoramic orientation tour of the city.

You will see all the major sights of this beautiful city.

Visit Peter & Paul Fortress - a fort which guards the city of St Petersburg, located on the island, facing the Hermitage and dominating River Neva.

The Fortress is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, founded by Peter the Great in 1703 & built to Domenico Trezzini's designs from 1706 to 1740 as a fortification during the Russian-Swedish war. Although, it was never used as a fortress & its bastions were turned into political prison cells where a son of Peter the Great, Prince Alexei - a famous pretender to the throne, Princess Tarakanova, writer Radischev, Decembrists & revolutionaries were held as prisoners.

See the Cathedral where the Romanovs are buried. The former prison & various exhibitions at this large defensive fortress on Zayachy Island is the kernel from which St Petersburg grew into the city it is today.

History buffs will love it and everyone will swoon at the panoramic views from atop the fortress walls, at the foot of which lies a sandy riverside beach, a prime spot for sunbathing.

Pass along Nevsky Prospect, St. Isaac’s cathedral & Church of the Spilled Blood.

Continue on to see the Cruiser Aurora which had a walk-on part in the Communist Revolution on the night of October 25, 1917, its crew fired a blank round from the forward gun at the Winter Palace (then the residence of the Provisional Government), giving the signal to the rebellious workers, soldiers & sailors of the city for the start of the assault on the Palace. That moment triggered a dramatic episode in Russia’s history & was the start of over 70 years of Communist leadership.

Moored on the Bolshaya Nevka, Aurora is a 1900 Russian protected cruiser, restored & painted in pretty colours, currently preserved as a museum ship that swarms with kids on weekends. Aurora was one of three Pallada-class cruisers, built in Saint Petersburg for service in the Pacific. The Aurora saw action in the Russo-Japanese War and was sunk by German bombs in WWII. Inside you can view the crew's quarters as well as communist propaganda & a collection of friendship banners from around the world.

From here, proceed to Finlandsky Railway Station.

Finland Station was built in 1870as the eastern terminus of the Finland-Saint Petersburg railroad. The Station became famous for having been where Vladimir Lenin returned to Russia from exile in Switzerland on 3 April 1917 ahead of the October Revolution.  He arrived on the steam locomotive #293 which is now installed as a permanent exhibit at one of the platforms on the station.  The event is commemorated by the statue of Lenin (made by S. A. Evseev) placed in the Square in front of the station. Lenin is shown on the top of an armored car, which he used as a tribune.

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The Finland Station was the only Leningrad rail terminus that remained in use during the Siege of Leningrad in 1941 - 43. The “Road of Life” project began here as the first train with a food for Leningrad, arrived at the Station in February 1943.

Last stop will be the Smolny, built as an Institute for Noble Maidens.

The Smolny is a Palladian edifice in St Petersburg that has played a major part in the history of Russia. The building was commissioned by the Society for Education of Noble Maidens & constructed in 1806 - 08 to house the Smolny Institute for Noble Maidens, established at the urging of Ivan Betskoy & in accordance with a decree of Catherine II (the Great) in 1764, borrowing its name from the nearby Smolny Convent.

The establishment of Russia's first educational establishment for women under the personal patronage of the Russian Empress Catherine II, was a significant step in making education available for females in Russia: “The provision of formal education for women began only in 1764 & 1765 when Catherine II established first the Institute for girls of the nobility in St. Petersburg and then the Novodevichii Institute for the Daughters of Commoners.

The Smolny continued to function until just before the 1917 revolution. A nice garden & iron-work grille around the institute date from the early 19^th century.

In 1917, the building was chosen by Vladimir Lenin as Bolshevik headquarters during the October Revolution. It was his residence for several months, until the national government was moved to the Moscow Kremlin in March 1918. After that, the Smolny became the headquarters of the local Communist Party apparat, effectively the city hall. In 1927, a monument to Lenin was erected in front of the building, designed by the sculptor Vasily Kozlov and the architects Vladimir Shchuko & Vladimir Gelfreikh.

After 1991, the Smolny was used as the seat of the city mayor (governor after 1996) and city administration. Vladimir Putin worked there from 1991 to 1997 in the administration of Anatoly Sobchak. Today, this historic building is the official residence of the Governor of St. Petersburg & also houses a museum dedicated to Lenin.

The Museum includes the historical rooms, where the main revolutionary events took place in 1917, among them the famous Assembly Hall, where the victory of the October revolution was proclaimed in 1917; Lenin's office & living rooms. The visitors can also see the exhibition of "Smolny institute for the Girls of Noble Birth" the atmosphere of the institute was restored / replicated in 1994.

Return to the hotel by 02:00 pm. Or you may stay in the city for further exploration and make your own way back to the hotel.

Morning at 09:00 am, you will be met by the Tour-guide again & embark on an 8 hour tour of the city.

Morning at 09:00 am, meet the Tour-guide again and embark on a unique 8 hour experience synonymous with St. Petersburg - a visit of the iconic Hermitage Museum in the Winter Palace - originally created to house the magnificent collection of art of Catherine the Great.

One of the largest museums in the world, the Hermitage fully lives up to its sterling reputation. You can be absorbed by its treasures for days and still come out wanting more. The enormous collection including masterpieces of Leonardo Da Vinci, Rembrandt & Rubens (over three million items, only a fraction of which are on display in around 360 rooms) almost amounts to a comprehensive history of Western European art. Catherine the Great, one of the greatest art collectors of all time, began the collection in 1764. Nicholas I also greatly enriched it & opened the galleries to the public for the first time in 1852.

It was the post-revolutionary period that saw the collection increase threefold, as many valuable private collections were seized by the state, including those of the Stroganovs, Sheremetyevs & Yusupovs. In 1948 it incorporated the renowned collections of post-Impressionist & Impressionist paintings of Moscow industrialists Sergei Shchukin & Ivan Morozov.

As much as you see in the museum, there is about 20 times more in its vaults, part of which you can visit at the Hermitage Storage Facility. It was here that Bolsheviks arrested the Provisional Government in the Small Dining Room of the private apartment, which you will visit. Also see the new General Staff building, home to the French impressionist collection.

Spend time there & then move on to the next stop - Museum of Political History, founded in 1919, reflecting political, economic & social life of Russian society from 19^th - 21^st centuries.

The elegant Style Moderne Kshesinskaya Palace (1904) is a highly appropriate location for this excellent museum - one of the city's best - covering Russian politics in scrupulous detail up to contemporary times.

The palace was previously the home of Mathilda Kshesinskaya - society prima ballerina & one-time lover of Nicholas II in his pre-tsar days. Warned she was in imminent danger, Kshesinskaya herself fled for France on 27 February 1917, where she later married Grand Duke Andrey Vladimirovich, cousin of Nicholas II & continued to dance until the age of 64, setting up a ballet school that taught several future stars including Dame Margot Fonteyn. 

In just a few months in 1917, however, the mansion changed from a centre of the St. Petersburg’s demi-monde to a hotbed of revolutionary activity.

It was seized by the Bolsheviks & became their headquarters & centre of their revolutionary activities. Lenin made a historic speech from one of the balconies after his arrival in the city. It was later passed through a number of organizations, before eventually becoming the Museum of the Revolution in 1957.

At the beginning of the 1990's, the museum was renamed the Museum of Political History, and the displays were radically reworked to reveal much of the secret history of the Soviet Union, with a new ethos aimed at dispassionately telling the truth about even the most recent history.

The Museum's collection embraces a broad time spectrum, from the reign of Catherine the Great (the second half of the 18^th century) to the political climate in contemporary Russia. Among nearly 500,000 exhibits on display here, there is a rich collection of original documents including a signed decree from Napoleon and the correspondence of Mikhail Gorbachev.

You could spend hours exploring this museum. Don't miss the portrait of Nicholas II, which shows the bayonet cuts made by soldiers during his night of capture on October 26, 1917. Photos show some of the horrors of the Soviet days, including 1933 street scenes in Ukraine, with the streets sprinkled with those who had died of starvation - owing to Stalin's policies. The Lenin memorial room is unchanged since Soviet days, with an almost religious atmosphere. You can visit Lenin’s one-time office where he worked between the February & October Revolutions.

The exposition "Soviet Epoch between Utopia & Reality" is dedicated to daily life of people in USSR in times of Stalin, Khrushchev & Brezhnev. You can see a typical kitchen of communal flat, a cabinet of bureaucrat of 1940 - 50s, can hear about attitude to religion and art in Soviet society, about prisoners of GULAG and dissident movement.

Our temporary exhibitions together with memorial rooms: "Lenin's Study" and the Room of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of Bolshevik Party can give you a new vision of the events of 1917

The permanent Exhibition is based on the original collection, which contained artefacts gathered by key players in the Revolution, including their own personal effects, documents, posters, pamphlets & banners. Of particular interest are the belongings of politicians, statesmen, scientists and military leaders, among them the 19^th century liberal Sergei Witte, Nicholas II, Lenin, Gorbachev & Yuri Gagarin.

Return to the hotel by late afternoon. Or you may stay in the Museum for further exploration and make your own way back to the hotel.

Morning at 08:00 am, meet the Tour-guide again & depart for a 4 hour excursion to visit one of St Petersburg’s most prized Palaces in the town of Pushkin (formerly called Tsarskoye Selo) just south of the city.

Pushkin is home to one Russia’s grandest royal estates - the Catherine Palace, built in the 1700s as a residence for Catherine I and once called the Palace of Tsarskoe Selo.

Stroll around in the blue & white baroque palace, sometimes dubbed the Pushkin Palace. Originally modest, the palace was remodelled by Catherine’s daughter, Empress Elizabeth, in the mid-1700s, who turned it into the extravagant baroque residence of today.

Marvel at the rococo state rooms and halls embellished with stucco, frescoes and marble, and visit the showpiece - the extraordinary Amber Room.  Covered in amber panels that replicate the originals looted by the Nazis in World War II and subsequently lost, this spectacular room is a vision of shimmering amber work, gold leaf and mirrors. The original room was dubbed the ‘8^th Wonder of the World’, and today’s replica was made using 13,000 pounds (6,000 kilograms) of amber. 

The display of the Catherine Palace Museum covers the almost 300-year history of this outstanding edifice and presents the work of architects involved in its construction& decoration in the 18^th & 19^th centuries and also with the achievements of the restorers who returned the palace to life after the Second World War. Of the 58 halls destroyed during the war years, 32 have been recreated.

After your tour, stroll around Catherine Park, the gardens that surround the residence. Walk along the tree-lined avenues and admire the picturesque buildings that speckle the lawns.

Not far from the Catherine’s Palace there is the Lyceum where the great poet Alexander Pushkin studied. 

Return to the hotel by afternoon.

Finally, it is time to say good-bye.

Check-out of the hotel by 12:00 noon (if the departure time is later in the evening, we will request the hotel to allow the use of the hotel facilities & leave the luggage at the Bell Desk if you have the time to walk out). 

In time, you will be met by a Journeys Rep, who will ensure your comfort & transfer you to Terminal? - St. Petersburg Pulkovo International Airport, for your onward journey.  B

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