Moscow and St Petersburg

Day 1 Fly to Moscow
You arrive in Moscow in the afternoon, where you will be met and taken to your hotel, the Best Western Vega, in time for dinner at your leisure. Your base for the next 2 nights, this well located hotel offers a choice of four restaurants together with a wellness centre with sauna, hammam and plunge pool. A short underground ride from the city centre, you could begin your holiday with a trip to see Red Square at night after dinner.

Meals: none

Day 2 Moscow
A heady mix of onion-domed gilt churches, imposing fortresses and broad sweeping avenues Moscow has shed its austere ‘cold war’ image and is now one of the world’s most vibrant capitals. As well as boasting a treasure trove of historical sites modern Moscow is an array of new art galleries, elegant cafes and designer shops. This morning your guide will take you on a fascinating walking tour that brings the different historical eras of Russia’s capital city to life. From the ‘Seven Sisters’ skyscrapers that were first conceived as luxury housing under Stalin to Lubyanka Square, the infamous headquarters of the KGB during the Soviet era. You’ll also walk down Tverskaya Street, Moscow’s busiest avenue that is lined with shops and restaurants and boasts a unique combination of Stalinist and modernist architecture before ending your walking tour at the legendary Bolshoi Theatre. In the afternoon your tour goes underground as you explore the marble floors, mosaics and stained-glass panels of Moscow’s underground rail system. You then return to your hotel in time for an evening at leisure. After unwinding in the sauna and steam room, you can sample Russian cuisine in your hotel’s Stariy Dvorik restaurant.

Meals: breakfast

Day 3 Moscow to St Petersburg
Today you’ll visit Russia’s most famous square, Red Square. Site of countless official ceremonies and even coronations over the years it is one of the capital’s most iconic images. The name was derived from a Russian word that can mean ‘red’ or ‘beautiful’ and it’s easy to see why. Overlooked by the colourful domes of St Basil’s cathedral, the ornate facade of the GUM department store, the imposing towers of the Kremlin and the Lenin Mausoleum you are rewarded with breathtaking panoramas in every direction. After enjoying a guided tour of the square and its famous landmarks, you’ll then explore the stately interior of the Kremlin, former home of the tsars and now the official residence of the Russian president. This imposing fortress-like building houses a unique collection of state regalia, priceless jewelled weaponry and over 50 Fabergé eggs. Later in the evening you’ll be met at your hotel and taken to the railway station to board the overnight sleeper train to St Petersburg.

Meals: breakfast

Day 4 St Petersburg
The following morning you’ll awake in the beautiful city of St Petersburg. Dubbed ‘the Venice of the north’, Baroque and Neoclassical buildings and world-class art galleries line its canals. Russia’s most European of cities it has a more sedate feel after the frenetic activity of Moscow. Built by Peter the Great over marshland in 1703, the forward thinking tsar commissioned Italian architects to construct his new capital. And the result is spellbinding. Upon arrival you’ll be taken to your central hotel, the Hotel Aster, where you’ll spend the next 3 nights. A short walk from Palace Square and the Hermitage you are ideally placed to explore St Petersburg’s classical architecture during your stay. After settling into your hotel, you begin your exploration of Russia’s second city with a guided bus tour. You’ll discover all of the city’s highlights including the imposing Peter and Paul Fortress, St Isaac’s Cathedral and the opulent domes of the Church of Christ’s Resurrection. You’ll also see the famous Aurora, the legendary ship whose canon gave the signal on Lenin’s order for the beginning of the Great Social Revolution over 90 years ago. You’ll then return to your hotel to relax or enjoy a stroll before a dinner at leisure in the heart of the city. There are many excellent restaurants a short walk away.

Meals: breakfast

Day 5 St Petersburg
The former winter residence of the Russian tsars, the Hermitage boasts one of the best museums in the world. A stunning architectural masterpiece in itself, beyond its ornate neoclassical facade are over 3,000,000 works of art representing the development of world culture and art from the Stone Age to the 20th century. You’ll learn more about this remarkable collection on a guided tour this morning. Housing one of the most extensive collections of Western art, you’ll find masterpieces by Italian artists including Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, Titian and Raphael together with French impressionists like Cezanne and Van Gogh. And Dutch masters like Rubens and Rembrandt. The museum also contains several works from Picasso’s blue period. There’s also porcelain, jewellery and coins as well as famous sculptures including the remarkable ‘Three Graces’ by Canova. As you tour this priceless collection, you’ll also get an insight into the lavish lifestyle of the Romanovs; the last tsars. The palace rooms boast marble floors, huge chandeliers and gold leaf walls. In the evening you return to your hotel where you are free for dinner.

Meals: breakfast

Day 6 St Petersburg
Your tour today takes you 25 kilometres south of the city centre to small town of Pushkin. Once called Tsarskoe Selo, meaning ‘tsars’ village’, it was renamed after the famous Russian author in the early 20th century. It was here, that the tsars built two of their most magnificent summer palaces. The first, Alexander Palace, is one of Russia’s finest neoclassical palaces and was the final official residence of Tsar Nicholas, the last of the Romanovs. Today the palace offers a fascinating insight into the latter days of Russia’s tsars. Your guide will take you on a tour of the interior of the second of these, Catherine Palace, which was commissioned by Peter the Great for his wife Catherine in 1717. And later extended and remodelled by their daughter, Empress Elizabeth, in 1743 who wanted it to rival Versailles. Designed by the eminent architect, Carlo Rastrelli, it is a late Baroque gem of ornate blue, white and gold facades which took 100kg of gold leaf to decorate. Unsurprisingly the interior is just as opulent, with rooms like the Blue Dining Room with a painted ceiling and silk wallpaper and the Chinese Blue Drawing Room whose walls are decorated with Chinese pastoral scenes. The highlight of the palace is the Amber Room, which was painstakingly constructed from panels of amber mosaic. In the evening, you’ll be taken back to your hotel to enjoy your final night in Russia with a dinner at leisure.

Meals: breakfast

Day 7 St Petersburg
Today you’ll enjoy a free day to enjoy the charming city. Maybe visit the largest collection of Russian art in the world; which is housed within the exceptional Russian Museum located inside the Italianate Mikhailovsky Palace. Alternatively explore the Yusupov Palace where Rasputin was allegedly murdered, or walk up Nevksy Prospect, St Petersburg’s main avenue that is lined with ornate churches, shops and grandiose department stores. In the evening you are free to enjoy another dinner at leisure.

Meals: breakfast

Day 8 Arrive London
You will be taken to the airport in time for your return flight to London, where you will arrive in the late afternoon.

Meals: breakfast

Tour includes:

Maximum group size: 25
Local expert guides in resort
All flights specified
Inspirational sightseeing programme
7 breakfasts
Moscow’s Red Square and Kremlin
Overnight express sleeper train

On a Journey of Distinction, you are not merely a bystander. They believe that the wonders, customs and cultures you experience will live on in the core of your being. They even go so far as to say that one of their holidays will change your life forever.

Their combination of Tour Managers and Local Guides is what makes Journey of Distinction so distinctive. When you’re embarking on a voyage of discovery, it’s reassuring to know that a seasoned traveller is with you every step of the way; planning, organising, checking details and offering their advice and support. Their groups all depart from the UK, and no one joins us along the way, so you have the reassuring constancy of always knowing your travelling companions.

Our Opinion
“Limited to just 25 travellers per departure, every Journeys of Distinction escorted tour has an intimate, personal feel that makes for a more enjoyable experience.”