SIBERIA & MONGOLIA

Arrive at 0800 hrs at Kazan, the old Tartar capital situated on the banks of river Volga. Check into hotel. Breakfast. Relax in the hotel in the morning. In the afternoon, visit the Kazan Kremlin, Kul Sharif Mosque, Suyumbike Tower, the Annunciation Cathedral, Peter and Pavel Church and Anniversary Park. Afternoon free at leisure. En route, stop at the interesting Museum of Chak-Chak, a traditional fried honey cake. In the evening, enjoy dinner with a cultural program. Overnight stay at Kazan.

 

Breakfast. Excursion to the RaIfa Bogoroditssky Monastery of the Mother of God, which is 25km from Kazan. The process of restoration started in 1991 and it is now a leading monastery of the Eastern Orthodox faith. On the way photo stop at Temple of All Religions consisting of severa religious types of architecture. In the afternoon, transfer to the train station for a train to Yekaterinburg departing at 15:45 hrs. Packed dinner on train. Overnight in train.

 

Arrive at Yekaterinburg by 08:00 hrs. Check into hotel. After breakfast, morning free to relax in the hotel or walk around on your own. In the afternoon, visit the majestic Memorial Cathedral on the Blood in the name of all Saints, which was built on the place of execution of the last Russian tsar Nikolay II and his family. Then continue to Ganina Pit, the unique orthodox monastery built on the place of the initial burial place of the imperial remains. Later, visit seven wooden churches in the heart of a centuries-old pine forest. Continue with an excursion to the border of Europe & Asia and go for a tour of the column established on a geographical joint of two parts of the world. On the way to the border, we will stop to visit the memorial honouring the victims of the Stalin’s repressions during the 1930 to 50s. Dinner in a local restaurant. Overnight stay at Yekaterinburg.

 

After breakfast, continue with a guided tour of the historical centre including statues of Ekaterinburg communist leaders, 1905 Revolution Square, Church of Spilled and the Chapel of St. Elizabeth, the Hill of Ascension and the Ural Museum of Minerals. Transfer to airport to board a flight to Irkutsk departing in the evening.

 

Arrive at Irkutsk at about 0500hrs. Early check in at the hotel. Breakfast. Morning free at leisure. Afternoon, go for a Irkutsk city tour, a beautiful town known as the Paris of Siberia. During the tour, see the 18th century churches, brightly painted shutters and log houses decorated with wooden lacework, as well as examples of modern Russian architecture. Out of about 700 monuments of history & culture in Irkutsk, the most interesting ones are those in its central part: Spasskaya Church, the Epiphany Cathedral, the Roman Catholic Church, Cathedral of Kazan, the monument of the Siberian explorers, the Drama Theatre etc. Dinner and overnight at Irkutsk.

 

Breakfast. Transfer to Listvyanka by minibus (approx 70km/1.5 hours). On the way, stop at an open-air Wooden Architecture Museum located in a picturesque forest on the bank of the river Angara. This museum is has a large collection of original wooden houses equipped with old-style furniture, domestic utensils, and wooden tents belonging to the various ethnic groups which inhabited this region, brought here from several local villages. Here you can learn about the various aspects of village life, see the interiors of a Russian fort and a 15th century watchtower, as well as get a glimpse of the lifestyle of the Buryat & Evenk people and see a Shaman yurt and other interesting objects. Arrive at Lake Baikal, the gem of Siberia with beautiful and unforgettable surroundings and astonishing color of the lake's surface and the ever-changing play of water & sky and cliffs. Later, visit Baikal Lake Museum where you will learn Siberian traditions, history, flora & fauna of the deepest fresh water lake in the world. Also, take cable car up to the observation point, known as a Stone of Cherky from where you will get a panoramic view of Lake Baikal and the mouth of Angara river. Enjoy 1 hour boat ride at Lake Baikal. Then on the way to the center of the village, check out the Fish Market and try the smoked Omul, Baikal’s tasty fish. Also see Retro Park, a nice collection of metal sculptures and old Soviet cars. Dinner and overnight at Lake Baikal.

 

Breakfast. Take ferry/coach to Port Baikal and board the Circum Baikal train to enjoy a full day journey. Circum-Baikal railway was built over a hundred years ago and is an outstanding example of the Soviet engineering, with several breath-taking tunnels & bridges along the way. Dinner on the train.. Arrival at Irkutsk station at 22:00 hrs and transfer to hotel. Overnight at Irkutsk.

 

Transfer to the railway station (with packed breakfast) to board train to Ulaan Bataar at 07:53 hrs. En route, enjoy the scenery along the lake Baikal. Overnight on the train. Lunch & dinner will be on your own, from the restaurant car.

 

Arrive by 07:20 hrs at Ulaan Bataar, situated on the bank of the river Tuur, surrounded by four mountains believed to be sacred by locals. Breakfast at hotel. Leave for city tour of Ulaan Bataar to visit Gandan Hiid Monastery, the country’s largest remaining monastery, and Sukhebaatar square. Later go for a guided visit to the National Museum of Mongolian History which is a leading museum displaying Mongolian cultural heritage. You will learn about ancient states period (Hunnu, Turkish and Uighur), the Mongolian empire of 13th-14th centuries, Mongolian traditional lifestyle, clothing & jewellery, as well as current democratic reforms and modern state of affairs. You will see real dinosaur remains as well as other archeological findings from the Mesozoic Era found in the Gobi desert. Check in the Hotel. Free time for rest and freshen-up. Evening enjoy Tumen Ekh ensemble, Mongolia’s premier traditional performance featuring folk and traditional music, song, throat singing, dance and contortion. Dinner and overnight at Ulaan Bataar.

 

Breakfast. Transfer to Terelj National Park by mini bus. Famous as the home of Genghis Khan, Mongolia was the homeland of the tough & well-trained horsemen who, for over 500 years from the 13th century, occupied lands & cities from the Yellow river to the Danube. We will drive to Genghis Khan monument located on the bank of the Tuul River, 33 miles east of Ulaan Bataar. It is a 40-metre tall statue of Genghis Khan on horseback, erected in 2008. The statue symbolically points east towards his birthplace. There are 36 columns representing the 36 khans from Genghis to Ligdan Khan. Visitors can walk to the head of the horse where they can have a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape.The Genghis Khan statue is currently the biggest equestrian statue in the world. Later, visit the Terelj National Park which is famous for its unique granite rock formations, pristine alpine scenery and diverse flora & fauna. Explore the Turtle Rock and enjoy hiking to Aryabal monastery. We will have an opportunity to visit a real Nomad family and see its traditional way of living by exploring their lifestyle and learning how to milk the cows and preparing the dairy products. Stay overnight in a traditional Mongolian Ger (means "home") - a sturdy wood & felt type tent. Overnight at Terelj.

 

After breakfast, take a 2 hours’ drive to Hustai National Park (Wild Horse Park). On the way, explore Moltsog sand dunes. Upon arrival at Hustai, visit small Ger museum. After lunch free time with possibility horse riding (optional). Later, take a short drive to see Przewalski wild horses in their natural habitat. Here, enjoy hiking, take photos and watch wild flowers. If lucky, one can see fox, deer, eagle and more animals & birds here. Drive back Ulaanbaatar. Arrive and transfer to the hotel in Ulan Batar. Dinner and overnight stay.

 

Transfer to the airport (with packed breakfast) to take an early morning, flight to Dalanzadgad, a small town in Gobi desert Upon arrival, drive to the flaming, red cliffs at Bayanzag famous for the first discovery of dinosaur eggs, bones and complete dinosaur skeletons discovered by Roy Chapman Andrews, an American explorer in the 1920. Later, transfer to a Ger camp for dinner and overnight stay.

 

After breakfast, drive west to the extraordinary sand dunes of Khongor, which is one of the most scenic areas of Gobi. The dunes rise abruptly from the plain, in some places reaching a height of 300 meters, and extend over an area between 2-12 km in width and 180 km in length. After lunch at a Ger camp near the sand dunes, visit camel herder family in their Ger, explore their unique nomadic lifestyle. Its chance to try drinking Hormog (fermented Mongolian camel milk). The sand dunes are the perfect place for camel riding. We will discover this magnificent place on camel back. Mongolia is home to 2/3 of the two-humped Bactrian camels in the world. It is a gentle, calm and extraordinary patient animal and can carry on without water for a month. Bet, you never rode a Bactrian camel, riding a Bactrian camel is much more comfortable than the camel in Sahara, India or anywhere else. Its two humps support you from both sides and easy pace will comfort you so much. In the evening, we will climb up to the Singing Dune, one of the highest dunes, opportunity to see the breathtaking view of the surrounding area and amazing sunshine panorama of sand dunes. When it is windy, some dunes make a strange sound like the engines of an air plane, for which these are named as the “singing dunes”. Dinner and overnight at Ger camp.

 

Today, we will drive continues to the Yol valley situated in “Three beauties of Gobi” Mt. National Park. Yol means Lammergeyer, one of the most endangered bird species of prey. The valley is notable for a deep ice field; it remains frozen for most of the year, except late summer. After lunch at tourist Ger camp near the National Park, we will visit Yol valley. There is we will make little hiking through grassy meadows, small streams, long and narrow valley with sheltered by high cliff walls, sunlight bouncing off amazing rocks, covered with wild flowers and Gobi plants. You may be lucky enough to spot wild sheep and goat, grazing high on the cliff walls. After visit and explore the national park, we will drive to a Ger camp, which is near to an oasis .Dinner and overnight at Ger camp.

 

After early breakfast, transfer to airport of Dalanzadgad town and fly back to Ulaanbaatar. Upon arrival in the city, transfer to hotel. In the afternoon, visit Bogd Khaan Palace - the complex was a home of 8th Bogd Javzandamba in 19th century, the head of Mongolian religion. The palace consists of seven Summer Prayer temples and the winter palace. Continue to visit, visit The Zaisan Memorial; it was built for honors fallen soldiers of Soviet Union in World War II. From here available to see the best view of Ulaanbaatar and surrounding hills. Afterwards, go shopping for souvenirs and local products. Suggested shopping places are State department store, famous “Gobi” cashmere factory store or “Naran Tuul” Black market. After farewell dinner at BD’s Mongolian Barbeque restaurant, transfer to the hotel for overnight stay.

 

Transfer (with packed breakfast) to the city airport for your departure flight to Moscow at 0810 hrs, to connect to the flight to Delhi.

 

TOUR COST : USD 4300 per person

INCLUSIONS IN SIBERIA

• Internal bus/train/air transportation
• English-speaking tour leader/guide throughout the tour
• 4* hotels (with breakfast)on a twin sharing basis, with early check in on the days the train arrives in the morning after an overnight journey.
• All meals, including dinners on the train to and in Russia
• Entrance fees as per itinerary
• Ist class train ticket from Irkutsk to Ulaan Baatar (without meals)

INCLUSIONS IN MONGOLIA

• English speaking private guide during the tour,
• All meals as specified in the itinerary,
• 7 nights accommodations based on double/twin occupancy;
o Hotel 4* in the city for 3nights with early check in on arrival in Ulaan Bataar.
o Ger camps in countryside trip for 4 nights, sharing one Ger with twin beds.
• All relevant transfers and transportation in air-conditioned vehicles + Experienced drivers
• All sightseeing and entrance fees according to the itinerary
• All Internal flights + included all tax, free luggage allowance is 15kg
• Wonders of Mongolian Art performance by famous Tumen Ekh ensemble
• Camel ride at Khongor sand dunes,
• Bottled water during the tour (0.5 lit X 2 bottles per day),
• All service charge & local taxes
• Visa invitation letter

Exclusions for both sectors

• International air fares & taxes from Delhi to Delhi: Rs 75,500 per person (subject to change)
• Departure taxes & levies
• Russia & Mongolia visa charges @ Rs 15000 per person
• Travel & medical insurance premium (approx Rs 3000 per person depending on age & medical condition)
• Daily personal expenses, additional services
• Single room supplement
• Excess luggage charges @ USD 1.5per kg for internal flights
• Tip for your guides and drivers.

Current international flight schedules

-Delhi/Moscow: 0105hrs/0505hrs
-Moscow/Kazan: 0645hrs/0820hrs
-Ulaan Batar/Bejing: 1250hrs/1355hrs
-Bejing/Bombay: 1940hrs/0100hrs