The opulent Moscow Metro- The Kremlin
- Peter and Paul Fortress
- The Hermitage
Immersive Tour Standard
Moscow to St Petersburg by Rail
Russia
from £1,299 per person2 passengers 7 nights Including optional travel insurance or a price reduction of £30 if not required
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Discover by rail
Rail travel between two cultural gems...
Russia is a country with a turbulent past and an unwavering dedication to culture. The cities of St Petersburg and Moscow burst with palaces, fine art museums and points of political significance. Begin in the epicentre of modern-day Russia, Moscow, where you’ll explore the fortified Kremlin and its renowned Armoury museum, which houses a unique collection of Imperial artefacts.
Travel to St Petersburg, by the high-speed electric express train known as ‘Sapsan’. During your stay in the ‘Venice of the North’, tour the Hermitage, recognised as the second-largest museum in the world, and Catherine Palace at Pushkin, home to the renowned Amber room.
Including...
7 nights in hotels
9 meals: 7 breakfasts (B) and 2 dinners (D)
Saga tour manager
Plus...
- Return flights and transfers
- Welcome drink reception
- Porterage at both hotels
Included excursions and visits
- A tour of Moscow
- Explore the Kremlin and Armoury
- A tour of St Petersburg
- Visit Peter and Paul Fortress
- A tour of the Hermitage
- Half day tour of Catherine Palace
Use of audio headsets on all guided tours
The first Russian ballet school opened in St Petersburg in the 18th century, founded by French choreographer, Jean-Baptiste Landé. The ballet rose to prominence in the 19th century when Tsars and aristocrats encouraged and supported the construction of theatres. Attending the ballet became an important social occasion and, today, Russia delivers the highest quality of ballet to audiences from around the world.
View Full Itinerary
- Day 1 UK to Moscow
- Day 2 Moscow
- Day 3 Moscow
- Day 4 Moscow to St Petersburg
- Day 5 St Petersburg
- Day 6 St Petersburg
- Day 7 St Petersburg
- Day 8 St Petersburg to UK
Novotel Moscow Centre Hotel
Courtyard by Marriott Vasilievsky
Day 1 UK to Moscow
Fly to Moscow and transfer to the 4-star Novotel Moscow Centre Hotel (3Q) for your first three nights. Moscow is a city of enormous opulence where historic, iconic and cultural monuments mingle with modern businesses and bustling boulevards linked by a veritable spider's web of Metro lines.
Enjoy welcome drinks and dinner to better get to know your fellow travellers. D
Day 2 Moscow
Today you will explore the heart of Russia, Moscow. Tour the city, viewing Red Square and iconic St Basil's Cathedral with its highly decorative 'onion' domes. This afternoon you have the option to visit the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum, often touted as the city’s premier foreign art museum. B
Day 3 Moscow
Enjoy a full day at leisure. Alternatively, join an optional excursion to the Tretyakov Gallery. This historical building is home to more than 130,000 pieces of artwork from the 11th century onwards, with the primary focus on Russian fine art.
Consider also an optional excursion to visit the city’s opulent metro stations, built to be the people’s palaces. B
Day 4 Moscow to St Petersburg
Unmissable during any trip to Moscow, and at the heart of Russian politics, is the Kremlin. Following breakfast, tour the site surrounded by 15th-century walls and featuring the instantly recognisable colourful domes of St Basil’s Cathedral. Stand in Red Square, used throughout the Soviet era to parade the Bloc’s military prowess, and visit Armoury Chamber, founded in 1511 to manufacture and store weapons and jewellery. Today it showcases treasures such as gold and silver objects created between the 12th and 17th centuries, and a small selection of jewellery from the House of Fabergé.
This afternoon, travel by rail through the Russian countryside on board a high speed ‘Sapsan’ train to St Petersburg (four hours). Designed by Peter the Great, and built on 101 islands traversed by 350 bridges, the city gained the nickname ‘Venice of the North’. Check into your hotel, the 4-star Courtyard by Marriott Vasilievsky (3Q), where you will stay for the next four nights. B, D
Day 5 St Petersburg
Following breakfast, enjoy a city tour of St Petersburg.
Learn about its history - from the Tsars, through revolution, into Soviet control - and admire its abundance of alluring architecture. Capture the colourful domes of the Church of the Saviour on Blood - appearing similar to Moscow’s Cathedral of St Basil - on your camera and visit the Peter and Paul Fortress. This early 18th-century star-shaped citadel never fulfilled its defensive purpose. Instead, it played the role of a military base, prison and test site for several groundbreaking experiments. Its most eye-catching building is the impressive Peter and Paul Cathedral, featuring an unmissable 123-metre spire. The afternoon is spent at your leisure.
Consider taking an optional tour to visit Peterhof’s Grand Palace. B
Day 6 St Petersburg
Housing nearly 3 million artefacts and works of art, the Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg is the second largest museum in the world, after France’s Louvre. Your morning will be spent taking a tour of the Hermitage, partially housed within the splendid green, white and gold Winter Palace. Learn a little about the museum’s fascinating history - its role in the Revolution of October 1917 - and admire its staggering collection of artistic and historical treasures. B
Day 7 St Petersburg
Today head to the imperial estate of Pushkin, originally known as Tsarskoe Selo. In the 18th century two huge, ornate palaces were built with landscaped gardens created around them. One is the eye-wateringly opulent Catherine Palace, a gift to Catherine I. Tour the grounds and interior with a fascinating room-by-room headset commentary. The highlight is bound to be the famous Amber Room, decorated with engraved amber panels, jewelled mosaics and gilded wooden carvings.
In the afternoon, consider St Isaac’s Cathedral on an optional excursion. B
Day 8 St Petersburg to UK
Enjoy an optional excursion to visit Yusupov Palace before transferring to the airport and returning to the UK. B
A tour of the Pushkin Fine Arts Museum
It was opened in 1912 and showcases masterpieces from ancient civilisations, through the Renaissance and into the 19th and 20th centuries. Spend time in the main building, where highlights of Italian Renaissance - including Botticelli and Tiepolo. Spend some time gazing at the Portrait of an Old Woman, attributed to Rembrandt, and wander through the Ancient Civilisation exhibition. Within you will find Egyptian weaponry, jewellery and objects used during rituals.
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Optional on 7 nights itinerary
A tour of the Moscow Metro
Not only does this public transport system offer a glimpse into Moscow’s local life, but it also immerses you in the surprising sumptuousness of Soviet-era splendour. These are not the drab, functional stations seen on the London Underground. Oh no; at many of Moscow’s stations, marble walkways will be illuminated by glistening chandeliers and flanked by neo-classical sculptures. The Soviet Union was all about image and ambitious architecture for the community. The Moscow Metro captures that concept perfectly, projecting luxury for the workers despite the Bloc’s harsh reality.
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Optional on 7 nights itinerary
Tretyakov Gallery
A visit to the Tretyakov Gallery, gives you the chance to get acquainted with some of the foremost examples of pre-Revolutionary Russian fine art in the world. There are 170,000 exhibits housed within the museum, including famous works by Andrei Rublev and Kazimir Malevich.
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Optional on 7 nights itinerary
Visit the Grand Palace in Peterhof
Designed to be the ‘centrepiece of Russian Versailles’, this lavish palace is surprisingly small by Tsar standards - with a modest 30- something rooms. It was constructed throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, however, much of its sumptuous interior was reconstructed following Second World War destruction. Step into the Throne Room, the centrepiece of which is a velvet throne, and gaze up at the magnificent paintings that cover the ceilings throughout the palace. It is a palace that invites you to immerse yourself in the lavish opulence of its grandeur.
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Optional on 7 nights itinerary
Visit St Isaac’s Cathedral
No expense was spared in the construction of the cathedral, crowned by a golden dome and adorned with plenty of neo-classical flourishes. While its exterior appears exceptionally lavish, the interior is a marvel to behold, featuring religious artwork everywhere the eye turns.
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Optional on 7 nights itinerary
Visit Yusupov Palace
Enjoying an imposing position on the Moyka River, Yusupov Palace is a prime example of Imperial Russian architecture. Within its subdued yellow facade is a series of expectedly impressive interiors, adorned with tapestries, frescoes and gilded chandeliers.
While its decoration alone makes the site worthy of a visit, Yusupov Palace is historically significant as the site of Grigori Rasputin’s death. In 1916, anger against the Tsars was reaching fever pitch. Self-proclaimed holy man Rasputin was seen as having influenced Nicholas II and therefore was to blame for many of Russia’s problems. He had to go. Conspirators first tried poisoning Rasputin, and when that was unsuccessful they shot him three times before finally drowning him in the building’s cellar.
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Optional on 7 nights itinerary
Passengers joining us for the 27th August departure will receive a ticket to the Spasskaya Tower Military Music Festival and Tattoo in Moscow. Military bands from across the world - including pipes and drums from the UK - put on a show that has to be seen (and heard) to be believed.
Russia
from £1,299 per person2 passengers
7 nights Including optional travel insurance or a price reduction of £30 if not required
Russia
from £1,299 per person2 passengers
7 nights Including optional travel insurance or a price reduction of £30 if not required
