TRANS-SIBERIAN JOURNEY - BEIJING TO MOSCOW: The Big Rail Tripper, an epic rail journey from Beijing to Moscow, offering exciting stopovers at all of our en route destinations including Ulaan Baatar, Buddhist Ulan Ude, Irkutsk, breathtaking Lake Baikal and Yekaterinburg, in the shadow of the Ural Mountains.
Trip Highlights
Included
Not Included
Itinerary
Beijing
Beijing. Arrive into Beijing for the start of your epic adventure. Arrival transfer from Beijing airport to your hotel. The remains of days 1 and 2 are free for you to explore the sights of Beijing. On day 2 there is the option to embark on a Beijing sighseeing tour. On the tour walk a section of the behemouth Great Wall at Badaling and back in Beijing, visit Tiananmen Square and the vast Forbidden City, a centre of power for five centuries and seat of the emperors.
Overnight: Beijing | Breakfast x 1
Mongolia
Beijing - Ulaan Baatar. Transfer to Beijing rail station this morning to catch the train bound for Ulaan Baatar, the capital of Mongolia. Leaving Beijing behind, the train enters the flat, dry and sparsely populated landscape of the Gobi desert before travelling north through landscapes of uninterrupted steppe, with the occasional nomad, camel and ger dotting the landscape.
Overnight: Train | Breakfast
Ulaan Baatar
Ulaan Baatar. After crossing the border into Outer Mongolia in the early hours of the morning on day 4, you'll arrive into Ulaan Baatar in the afternoon and transfer to your hotel.
Mongolia is a country of unspoilt natural beauty, with endless steppe, nomadic tribes people, stunning Terelj National Park, double-humped (Bactrian) camels and wild Przewalski horses. Enjoy free time exploring the capital, highlights include the National History Museum, Bogd Khan’s winter palace, the National Theatre of Opera and Ballet and Sukhbataar Square. Alternatively book an optional two night excursion to Terelj National Park.
Terelj National Park & ger camp: Upon arrival on day 4, enjoy lunch before travelling to nearby Terelj National Park, stopping to visit Turtle Rock and a nomadic family en route. With scenic alpine surrounds this protected area is host to diverse flora and fauna and famous for its unique granite rock formations. Spend two nights camping out in a Mongolian ger on the steppe.
Overnight: Ulaan Baatar | Breakfast x 1
Train to Ulan Ude
Ulaan Baatar - Ulan Ude. Transfer to the station for the afternoon departure of your train to Ulan Ude in Russia. In the evening the train will reach the Mongolia border point at Sukhe-Batorcross and after inevitable customs and immigration formalities and delays, you will cross the border into Russia after midnight (day 7).
Overnight: Train | Breakfast
Ulan Ude
Ulan Ude - Irkutsk. Early morning arrival into Ulan Ude and transfer to your hotel. Days 7 and 8 are free for you to independently explore the city or take an optional Ulan Ude city tour. Thanks to its proximity to Mongolia and China, the indigenous people of the region, the Buryats, clung on to their Tibetan-Buddhist faith through the Communist era. The guided city tour visits Ivolginsky Datsan - a centre of Buddhist culture and the open air Ethnographic Museum dedicated to the lives of local people and architecture through the ages. On day 8 there's a late evening transfer to the rail station for your train to Irkutsk.
Overnight: Overnight (1) - Ulan Ude, (1) - train | Breakfast x 1
Irkutsk & Optional Lake Baikal
Irkutsk. Morning arrival into Irkutsk, a town with the Asiatic influences of nearby Mongolia and China, and curious architecture, which is a legacy of Siberia’s exiled aristocrats. Spend the next three days at leisure exploring the town. Or choose one of the following optional excursions:
Listvyanka and Lake Baikal: Spend two relaxing days in the village of Listvyanka by beautiful Lake Baikal, where you can independently explore or opt to also add-on our Lake Baikal Discovery package to include guided sightseeing.
Irkutsk Summer Trek & Camp:
Enjoy an overnight trekking excursion through the scenic taiga of the Primorsky Mountain to Lake Baikal, camping overnight in a picturesque bay.
Overnight: Irkutsk | Breakfast x 2
Journey to Siberia
Irkutsk - Yekaterinburg. Spend day 12 at leisure in Irkutsk before your late afternoon transfer to the train station for your onward journey to Yekaterinburg across the tracts of Siberia.
Overnight: Train | Breakfast x 1
Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg. Late on the evening of day 14 the train pulls into Yekaterinburg. Transfer to your accommodation and spend the next two days at leisure exploring the city. On day 15 there is an optional city tour, which takes in the new monastery that marks the site of the Romanov family’s execution in 1918 and Ganina Yama - a beautiful monastic complex built on the site where their bodies were discarded and later found. The tour also takes you to the Europe/Asia border where you can stand with a foot in each continent!
On day 16 there is the option to test your dog sledding skills in the winter or enjoy a summertime visit to Tavatui Lake and village in the Ural Mountains.
Overnight: Yekaterinburg | Breakfast x 2
Journey to Moscow
Yekaterinburg. Early morning transfer to the train station for your overnight journey to Moscow, Russia's capital.
Overnight: Train | Breakfast
Moscow
Moscow - This morning, the train reaches Moscow which marks the end of your epic Trans-Siberian adventure. Extend your stay to explore the capital.
SPECIAL NOTE: Schedules dictate a morning arrival in Moscow on day 18, however we recommend that you to stay at least one night in Moscow to avoid the risk of missing your onward international flight in case of delays.
Bolt-on a 4 day Baltic Express
Bolt-on a 4 day Baltic Express and visit the northern city of St Petersburg - city of the tsars, home of the incredible Hermitage Collection at the Winter Palace, the beautiful Church on Spilled Blood and the lavish Tsarskoe Selo and Peterhof palace.
In Brief
Tour Add-ons
Enhance your trip with these amazing added extras and add-ons