NEW YEAR TOUR: For a truly unique New Year’s break, celebrate in Russia’s thriving capital city. Take in Moscow's Kremlin and Red Square before travelling north to beautiful St Petersburg, exploring delights such as The Hermitage and Catherine Palace.
Trip Highlights
Included
Not Included
Itinerary
Moscow
29 December. Welcome to Russia and the start of your winter holiday! Upon arrival you will be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel for check-in. This evening meet for an informative welcome meeting and dinner at the hotel with the rest of your group.
Overnight: Moscow | Dinner
Red Square & Kremlin
First thing this morning we hop on the Moscow Metro and make our way to legendary Red Square. As the historical, political and social heart of Moscow, this famous square is home to some of the city’s most recognisable landmarks. Within Red Square is the iconic St Basil’s Cathedral, the imposing red brick walls of the Kremlin and the glitzy Neo-Russian facade of the GUM shopping mall. Also in Red Square is Lenin's Mausoleum. If open, we can enter the mausoleum free of charge and see Lenin's embalmed body which has lain in state here since his death. This afternoon we will embark on a guided tour of the Moscow Kremlin - Russia’s bastion of power. Walking through the grounds we’ll see numerous governmental buildings, gold-domed cathedrals and the giant tsar bell.
Tonight there will be the opportunity to join an optional Moscow by Night Tour and River Cruise. Book and pay locally.
Overnight: Moscow | Breakfast
New Year's Eve
Today is free for you to independently explore Moscow. Alternatively you can book our optional Inside a Soviet Bunker excursion and head 65 meters underground to explore a Stalinist-era bunker that up until recently was a top secret symbol of Soviet Power. See the giant tunnels and enjoy a guided tour of the rooms and secret paraphernalia.
This evening we head into the city to ring in the New Year among the crowds and offer an optional New Year's Eve dinner (book and pay locally). While Red Square is certainly one of the most popular places to count down to midnight, it can also get extremely busy making it often difficult to find a place. But fear not, there are plenty of other exciting activities happening around Moscow’ capital city, whether it’s watching the fireworks as they light up the night sky over Christ the Savior Cathedral from Patriarshy Bridge or dancing in the New Year in one of the city’s trendy bars or clubs.
Overnight: Moscow | Breakfast
Moscow to St Pete's
Moscow - St Petersburg. Happy New Year! The morning is free to relax after your New Year's Eve celebrations or perhaps stroll to the Izmailova Market for a spot of souvenir shopping. It may not look like it from the outside, but behind the whimsically decorated walls of Izmailova you’ll find one of the best markets in Moscow. Whether you want to pick up some tacky souvenirs, genuine fur hats or some traditional handmade crafts this is the place to go. Don't forget to barter!
This afternoon we travel by high speed train to St Petersburg, arriving early evening. After hotel check-in spend the rest of evening at leisure.
Overnight: St Petersburg | Breakfast
St Pete's sightseeing
This morning we take in the sights of St Petersburg on a driving tour. We will make our way down Nevsky Prospekt - the main thoroughfare and stop for photos at iconic sights such as the Bronze Horseman and St Isaac's Cathedral. Then we enjoy a guided tour of impressive Peter & Paul Fortress and the beautiful Peter & Paul Cathedral, which houses the tombs of the Romanov monarchs. We will also visit the exquisite Church on Spilled Blood.
After a tasty traditional Russia lunch we enjoy a guided tour of the magnificent Hermitage Collection at the Winter Palace. Housing some 2.8 million pieces of art, with collections ranging from Egyptian mummies to Greek vases and a vast and dazzling array of Old Masters, we’ll view the highlights.
During our time in St Petersburg there will be the chance to join one of our optional evening excursions, such as a traditional Cossack Show or a night at the Russian Ballet (book and pay locally).
Overnight: St Petersburg | Breakfast, Lunch
Catherine Palace
This morning we head out of city to visit beautiful Catherine Palace at Tsarskoe Selo. The lavish interior of the grand palace cannot fail to impress, particularly the spectacular Amber room which really is a sight to behold!
The rest of the day is free for you to relax and independently explore the city. Most of the city sights are dotted along and just off the main thoroughfare - Nevsky Prospekt. St Petersburg has a spirited restaurant, bar and jazz club scene, plus some of Russia’s best beers!
Overnight: St Petersburg | Breakfast
St Petersburg
04 January. Our tour comes to an end after breakfast and hotel check-out.
Breakfast
Prices & Dates
Departure dates are guaranteed with a minimum of 4 persons. 'Twin Share' prices are per person when there are 2 people sharing a room. 'Single Room' prices are applicable to those who don’t have anyone to share a room with or anyone wanting the privacy of a single room.
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Hotels
The hotels listed below are ones which we frequently use on this tour. We reserve the right to substitute these hotels to ones of a similar standard.
Izmailovo Delta Hotel, Moscow
The 4 star Izmailovo Delta Hotel forms part of the huge Izmailovo Gamma Delta complex, which was built to accommodate guests and participants of the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow. Offering comfortable guest rooms with modern amenities, the complex also boasts 16 restaurants and bars serving Russian and international cuisine, a SPA, gym and swimming pool, in addition to shops, a bank and post office. Conveniently located with the Partizanskaya Metro Station just 350 yards away, it's a quick 10 minute metro ride to Red Square where you can take in the highlights of the capital. The hotel is also ideally located for souvenir shopping, with the famous Izmailovo Market just a short stroll away.
Harbor Club Hotel, St Petersburg
Well-located in St Petersburg, the Harbor Club Hotel can be found on a quiet street, yet only a short walk from the bustling city centre. Its guestrooms feature modern décor, with spacious ensuite bathrooms and modern amenities including air conditioning. You’ll also find a shared lounge and bar, as well as an on-site restaurant serving tasty European cuisine. Here, guests can enjoy a continental or buffet breakfast or, if you’d prefer, there is also the option of dining in the comfort of your hotel room.
Reviews
Travellers have rated this tour as 4.5 out of 5 based on 4 recent reviews
Trip of a lifetime , got to know the country and its people amazingly impressive . Our guide made us all welcome and so endearing , always there for our every need . The diversity of our group is another learning pleasant experience . Thanks again to Anastasia, who made my New Year 2017 so memorable . ”
Rating Tour Guide:
I can only say 5 Star (and more) all the way.
She gave more than expected, always went the "Extra Mile"
.Always has a smile on her face.
Definitely a people person and she must be seen as a true asset to your company.
Nothing was too much trouble which was particularly helpful given the language barrier.
Always considered our wellbeing (e.g. she phoned me after we had landed in Moscow to make sure that we had arrived safely and that the shuttle had arrived to collect us.
A very generous and considerate lady.”
Natalie was an amazing tour guide”
Olga is an excellent guide. She is kind, funny, knowledgable and organised. Olga's knowledge of art made the Hermitage extra enjoyable - she knew some really interesting facts about the pieces. I could have spent days in there with her guidance! Olga is patient and made the tour a success.
We decided to go on all the add-on tours - most of which were excellent. The ballet was rubbish however. Taking all the extra tours made it so there was no time to 'do your own thing'. We were waiting a lot in the lobby for people to arrive and that was frustrating. I felt we were always doing something so the trip was not very restful.
We got separated from our group on NYE and didn't get to spend the countdown together. As Red Square was closed I feel it would have been better for the tour to have kept us at the restaurant for another hour and then walked us to the bridge to view the fireworks. Instead we walked around outside for an hour and we got lost an ended up missing the bridge at the end. This could and should have been better organised; considering the news of red square being closed was available from the 28th of December.
All in all the tour was good. Exhausting but good.
A special thank you to Olga for helping us on the 5th when we realised our flight times and transfer were wrong. She was a real star and made the work seem effortless. It was very much appreciated. She is kind and approachable and a wonderful guide. ”
Olga is an outstanding tour leader. She is entertaining, charming, intuitive. Her enthusiastic, considerate and humorous manner made the tour very special for us. ”
Well organized tour, especially with two groups in St Petes and five in Moscow. Thank you, I loved getting to see Russia. ”
I really enjoyed doing a tour with On the go. It was also my first time in Russia and I loved the experience. ”
In Brief
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Trip of a lifetime , got to know the country and its people amazingly impressive . Our guide made us all welcome and so endearing , always there for our every need . The diversity of our group is another learning pleasant experience . Thanks again to Anastasia, who made my New Year 2017 so memorable . ”