TRANSSIB, SILK ROAD, TIBET, CHINA

Transsiberian tours by regular Transsiberian trains

Westbound

Beijing - Ulaan-Baatar - Irkutsk - Novosibirsk - Yekaterinburg - Moscow 
 

Duration: 17 days.
Local time everywhere.

As you can see below, we don't have special dates the tour to start. The dates can be on your possibility and wish, just see the days of train departures but the majority of them are daily. In any case, we'll do our best to find a train to let you leave this or that town according your plans.

Day 1. Beijing, China
You  arrive in Beijing, China by international flights. Arrival transfer. Accommodation at the 3-star hotel. Free time. 
Lunch & Dinner (optional).

Day 2. Beijing, China
City tour with a visit to the Forbidden City, Tian’anmen Square, Temple of Heaven. Lunch in the city.  
Dinner in the city or at the hotel (optional).

Day 3.  Beijing
Breakfast at the hotel. Tour to the Great Wall & Ming Tombs. Lunch in the city. Free time.
Dinner (optional).

Day 4. Beijing
Morning transfer to the train station. Departure at 07.40 by train# 23 to UlaanBaatar (on Tuesday only).  

Day 5.  Ulaan-Baatar, Mongolia 
We arrive in Ulaan-Baatar at 13.15 by train# 23. Ulaan-Baatar is the capital of Mongolia, country in the Northern Asia just between China and Russia, the 'Land of Blue Sky'. The land where human remains dating back nearly 500,000 years were uncovered in the Gobi Desert and other regions of Mongolia. Arrival transfer to the 4-star hotel. After check-in we'll go for a lunch in the city.  Then you'll get known geography, flora and fauna, paleontology and anthropology of Mongolia at the Natural History Museum. You'll have an opportunity to see numerous objects from all over Mongolia, including precious stones, stuffed and embalmed animals, birds and fish. You'll find the awesome meteorites, impressive two complete skeletons of dinosaurs found in the Mongolian Gobi Desert. The museum is rich in dioramas. During the city tour you'll see the way of East & West meeting in Mongolia where the promise of technology and modern values collides with the traditional culture: you can see young people talking on their phones nest to old men in traditional dress flipping their prayer breads, talking to the Gods; apartment buildings being close to gers in the outskirts of the city. Then you have time for shopping in the center. Back to the hotel and free time.
Dinner at the hotel (optional).

Day 6. Ulaan-Baatar, Terelj National Park
After breakfast we are going to the largest and most important monastery in Mongolia, one of the impressive sights of Ulaan-Baatar, Gandan Monastery. Major religious ceremonies and festivities take place here, including tsam dance, a kind of theater performance. You visit Bogd Khan Winter Palace. It used to be a winter residence of the last Bogd Khaan of Mongolia, the eighth Jebtzun Damba (Lord of Refuge), colorful and controversial character. Trip to the Terelj National Park will let you get acquainted with the way of life of nomad people. Mongolians are nomadic herders. Most Mongolians continue to live in gers, large, white felt tents that can be moved easily. You have lunch there and go back to the city for the dinner with the folk show.

Day 7 . Ulaan-Baatar
Free time in the morning. Check-out. Lunch in the city and transfer to the train station. Departure at 13.50 by train# 05 to Irkutsk (on Friday & Tuesday only).  

But if you still have time and possibility you can extend your staying in Mongolia and drive to Karakorum, the former capital of vast Mongolian Empire built by Genghis Khan in 1220, with overnights in ger-camp (meals - full board) with English-speaking guide escort, visit nomad family, horse riding. Or if it's a summer time you can go to the Gobi Desert by car or by flight, vast zone of desert and semi-desert covering almost 30% of territory of Mongolia, to visit the Gurvansaikhan National Park, unlike other national parks in the Gobi Desert, containing mountains, dinosaur fossils, extraordinary sand dunes, rock formations and a valley that has ice for most of the year. You can visit the Yolyn Am Valley (Vulture's Mouth), originally established to conserve the bird life of the region. But now it's famous for its dramatic and very unusual scenery -it is a valley in the middle of the Gobi Desert with gorge full of meters-sick ice all year round. In winter ice is up to 10m high and continues down the gorge for another 10 km. It remains frozen for most of the year, except late August. 

Day 8. Irkutsk (+ 5 hours to the Moscow time)
We arrive in Irkutsk at 15.28. Irkutsk is the capital of Irkutsk Region, one of the biggest and most interesting regions in Russia, the whole world in Eastern Siberia which is not far from the famous Lake Baikal. Irkutsk stands at the crossroads of the trade routes between East and West.  After checking-in we'll go for the city tour. You'll see the oldest point of the city, the place where Irkutsk began and the modern part of the city with its unforgettable architecture and atmosphere. 

You probably heard of the Decembrists, the Russian noble men -revolutionaries who instigated and uprising against autocracy and serfdom in St. Petersburg in December 1825 (their names are derived from the name of month of uprising). Some of them were hanged, the rest were imprisoned and exiled to Siberia. The Decembrists spent thirty-odd years in Siberia, first doing penal servitude in prison and then in exile in remote areas of the severe region. Many of the Decembrists' wives voluntarily followed their husbands into exile. They had to leave not only their former way of lives in St. Petersburg but they had to leave their children also. And you'll get known about it during the visit Decembrists' Museum.  Later some of the Decembrists' families were given permission to move to the town towards the end of their term of exile. Their houses are still there. They are museums now. Dinner in the city.

Day 9. Irkutsk, on board
After breakfast we check-out and leave Irkutsk for the Lake Baikal. It takes about 1 hour to cover 70 km, the distance between Irkutsk city and the Lake Baikal. Baikal differs from the other lakes in the world by virtue of its unique depth, volume, the quality of its water and age for lakes exist usually for no more than of thousands of years, and finally, by virtue of its wildlife. If you dream about seeing the whole Lake you are welcome to cruise (but it's another story :)). 

You'll walk around Listvyanka village, have a visit to St. Nicholas Church, get known the flora and fauna of the Lake Baikal after visiting Baikal Museum. Lunch at the restaurant at the Lake Baikal. Check-in the hotel at the lake for a one-night stay. Free time for your own exploration of Baikal shore from Listvyanka village side.
Dinner at the hotel or at the restaurant on the shore (optional).

Day 10. Irkutsk
Free time in the morning. Departure transfer back to Irkutsk. And on your way you'll visit the Museum of Wooden Architecture 'Taltsy'. Taltsy Museum represents a real Siberian village! You'll see unique monuments of the Russian wooden architecture of the XVII - XIX cc: the passing tower and the church of the Mother of God of Kazan from Ilimsky Burg (the exhibit of the 17th c), the parish school, farmsteads of peasants with plank bed, Rusian oven and the 'red corner' with icons in it. Lunch on the way to Irkutsk. Departure transfer to the train station. Departure at 17.40 by train# 07/# 01 daily to Novosibirsk.  

* If you'd like to stay at the Lake Baikal or in Irkutsk city for 1-2 nights write us about it please and we'll make changes in the programme according your wishes. 

Day 11. Novosibirsk (+3 hours to the Moscow time)
Novosibirsk is the largest city and industrial center of Siberia. The geographical center of Russia, unofficially considered being a capital of Western Siberia. Novosibirsk is the largest scientific center in Siberia. The main feature of Novosibirsk is its virgin nature, its primeval beauty - Altai Mountains. We arrive in Novosibirsk at 21.43 by train# 01 or by train# 07. Arrival transfer to the 3-star hotel in the city center. 
Dinner at the hotel (optional).

Day 12. Novosibirsk
City tour, during which you'll see Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the first stone building raised in 19-20 cc, visit a backstage of the State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater, a building with 60-meters dome and 900 ml, the hugest theater building of Russia, railway bridge over the river Ob. Tour to the Akademgorodok (town of scientists). It's well known all over the world. A great number of discoveries in physics, chemistry, space technology was made here.

Excursion to the Sun Museum that is unique in the world. You will not find anything of that kind anywhere else. You'll see an incredible variety of representations of the Sun. Lunch in the city. You'll see paintings by Nikolai Rerikh, works of Russian paintings of the 18th-19th cc (Sourikov, Tropinin, Repin), samples of Western-European art, sculptures, graphics and applied art in the Art Gallery.  And in the Museum of the Train you'll get known the history of train development and see different kinds of the trains. Free time  at the hotel. Late departure transfer to the train station. Departure at 21.19 by train# 09 (on even dates only) to Yekaterinburg.  
Dinner in the city or at the hotel (optional).

Day 13. Yekaterinburg (+2 hours to the Moscow time)
Originally Yekaterinburg was founded as a capital of metallurgical region, center of mechanical engineering, a city of gold and precious stones. The location of the city is unique:  it stands on the meeting of the Asian and European parts of the continent, an idiosyncratic key to the endless and rich Siberia, a window to the Asia as St. Petersburg - a window to the Europe. We cross the Europe/ Asia divide before arrival in Yekaterinburg, capital of the Urals. We arrive in Yekaterinburg at 16.02. Arrival transfer. Accommodation at the 3-star hotel in the city center. After checking-in the hotel we'll go to the Boarder of Europe and Asia.. 
Dinner at the hotel (optional).

Day 14. Yekaterinburg
You'll have the possibility to follow the last way of Romanov Dinasty visiting place of the former Ipatyev's House, exposing wax figures and authentic photos of the Emperor's family, visiting the place where the remains which might belong to the members of the tzar family were found (30 km from Yekaterinburg). 

Geological Museum will show you a huge and unique collection of underground wealth of Urals accumulated here: 600 from 800 kinds of minerals known in Urals. You'll see the giant rock crystal just entering! That is the hugest and most beautiful rock crystal shown in the museums of Russia and Europe, its weight is 784 kg and it's 170 sm of height!  During the city tour you'll see the architectural monuments of Russian classicism of the 18-19th centuries. You'll  start with going down into catacombs of the modern Museum of History of Yekaterinburg. You'll see an unusual exposition there: masonry of aged mansion, tubes, cable,- everything that is retired from the tourists. The second and the third floor house many unusual surprises too. After museum you'll continue the city tour and see main sightseeing of the city such as Dam of the City Pond, Historical Square, October Square with the Drama Theater, mansions of the golden fever time. And the tour ends at the post station of Yekaterinburg frontier post with a visit to the pull-up where you'll get acquainted with the way of life & living conditions of local people leaving much time ago. Tea with pies and pancakes in Ural way.
Lunch and dinner in the city (optional).

Day 15. Yekaterinburg
Departure transfer to the train station. Departure at 09.17 by train# 15 daily to Moscow. 

Day 16. Moscow
We arrive in Moscow at 09.23 in the morning.  City tour  with the Sparrow Hills, pedestrian Arbat Street, Victory Park, Christ the Savior Cathedral. After check-in 3-star hotel we'll continue the city tour & visit the Red Square & Alexander's Garden, the Kremlin with its territory and cathedrals, Armoury Museum and Diamond Fund. Lunch in the city.
Dinner (optional).

Day 17. Moscow
Breakfast at the hotel & transfers to the airport for departure by international flights. 

Included: accommodation at the 3* hotels as per itinerary; meals mentioned in the programme as included; arrival & departure transfers, all guided programmes;  entrance fees, train tickets acc the class. The tour language is English & German. Other languages speaking guides are available on request and at a supplement. 

Not included: airfares; charges of a personal nature; any optional excursions; meals as optional; drinks; visa and excess luggage charges; insurance and laundry services, banks charges for money transfer.

All prices are subject to change without notice. Exact rates are confirmed at the time of booking. 

You are welcome to travel by regular trans-siberian trains along the Great Transsiberian Way!