Moscow Beijing Trans-Mongolian Tour – Itinerary

Day 1 (Friday) Moscow

Arrive in Moscow to begin an exciting once in a lifetime tour which includes an iconic journey by rail.
You will be met at the airport or rail station by a driver who will transfer you to your Moscow hotel to check in for 2 nights.

Entrances: None
Meals: None
Overnight: Izmailovo Vega (or similar)

Day 2 (Saturday) Moscow

10.00 hrs: After breakfast, meet your local guide in the hotel reception to begin your exploration of Moscow by metro, this will include some of the most spectacular stations and the you will arrive in the city centre to visit the iconic Red Square and the Kremlin. During the tour you will visit the territory of the Kremlin, one of the Cathedrals and the Armoury museum. The exhibits include ancient Russian regalia, Tsar’s ceremonial robes, vestments, gold and silverware by Russian, European and Eastern masters, arms and armouries, royal carriages and ceremonial harnesses.
Return to the hotel by metro with the guide at around 18.00 hrs, or continue exploring the city and return to the hotel independently.

Entrances:  Metro, Kremlin, 1 cathedral, armoury museum
Meals: Breakfast at hotel
Overnight: Izmailovo Vega (or similar)

Day 3 (Sunday) Depart Moscow

After breakfast, check out by 12.00 hrs and enjoy the morning at leisure. Meet your guide in the hotel reception at 15.00 hrs for your transfer to Yaroslavsky rail station, where you will begin your epic journey!  Your guide will see you on to the train to find your compartment.

16.38 hrs: Depart Moscow. Train #16 (or #86, #92) 

Entrances: None
Meals: Breakfast at hotel
Overnight: On train

Day 4 (Monday) Ekaterinburg

20.15 hrs (or 21.41 hrs): Arrive Ekaterinburg. You will be met and transferred to your hotel to check in for 2 nights.
Ekaterinburg, the gateway between European and Siberian Russia, is the official capital of the Urals region of Russia. It was founded by Peter I in the 1700s as a major industrial and administrative centre, and has become known for being the place where the last Tsar of Russia and his family were executed in 1918.

Entrances: None
Meals: None
Overnight: Transhotel (or similar)

Day 5 (Tuesday) Ekaterinburg

10.00 hrs: After breakfast, meet in the hotel reception for our panoramic City Tour of Ekaterinburg.  Included today is a visit to either the Mineralogical Museum or visit the impressive collection of the Military Transport Museum at Verkhnyaya Pyshma. An amazing collection of militaria and a large private collection of vintage cars and motorbikes.  You will also visit the Europe-Asia Border Obelisk, the place where East meets West.
Return to the hotel around 16.00 hrs.

Entrances: Military Transport Museum OR Mineralogical Museum
Meals: Breakfast at hotel
Overnight: TransHotel (or similar)

Day 6 (Wednesday) Depart Ekaterinburg

Breakfast at the hotel and check out.
11.00 hrs depart the hotel with your guide to the railway station for the next leg of your historic rail trip.
Your guide will make sure you are settled into your compartment before saying goodbye.

12.43 hrs Depart Ekaterinburg by Train #2.

Board the train for a comfortable two-day journey through the beautiful Russian countryside. The scenery will differ depending on when you choose to travel, each season bringing its own unique charm to a superb landscape.

Entrances: None
Meals: Breakfast at hotel
Overnight: On train

Day 7 (Thursday) On board

There are plenty photo opportunities, making new friends and fellow travellers and exchanging stories are part of the experience. On the train you can enjoy the local refreshments from the restaurant car and snacks, which are available at all time. During the journey there are short stops made at local stations, where you can very quickly purchase food or souvenirs from the platform vendors before departing for the next part of your journey.

Entrances: None
Meals: None
Overnight: On train

Day 8 (Friday) Irkutsk

21.16 hrs: Arrive Irkutsk. You will be met on the platform and transferred to your hotel to check in for 1 night.

Entrances: None
Meals: None
Overnight: Imperia Hotel (or similar)

Day 9 (Saturday) Listvyanka

09.00 hrs: After breakfast, check out, join your guide for a city tour of Irkutsk,  transfer to Listvyanka settlement, located by Lake Baikal, approx 60 km south-east of Irkutsk, stopping en route in Taltsy village for lunch (included) and a visit to the open air Ethnographic museum.   A unique assemblage of the history and culture of the peoples of Eastern Siberia, located in a picturesque place on the banks of the Angara River.  Comprising more than 40 historical and architectural monuments and 8000 exhibits of great historical value. The Museum attracts visitors for its rich natural landscapes, and for the chance to get acquainted with the spiritual culture of the peoples of the Baikal region – Russian, Buryat and Evenki.

Arrive in Listvyanka at around 15.00 hrs and enjoy a panoramic tour. You will see the Observation Point, St Nikolas Church, and Chersky View Point. (No entrances).

Entrances: Ethnographic museum
Meals: Breakfast at hotel, lunch
Overnight: Mayak Hotel (or similar) 

Day 10 (Sunday) Listvyanka

Today you have a full day at leisure before your evening transfer. Check out by 12.00 hrs.
Leave your luggage with reception.
18.30 hrs Depart Listvyanka and transfer to Irkutsk with driver only. Journey time 1 hour.

On arrival in Irkutsk, check in to your hotel for 1 night.

Pick up some snacks today for your rail journey tomorrow.

Entrances: None
Meals: Breakfast at hotel
Overnight: Imperia Hotel (or similar)

Day 11 (Monday) Depart Irkutsk

07.00 hrs After collecting your packed breakfast from reception this morning, meet your guide for your transfer to the Railway Station.

08.13 hrs Depart Irkutsk by Train #306 (no dining car)

A full day on board to relax, reflect upon the sights already seen, catch up on travel diaries, sort through your images, review guidebooks and enjoy the new scenery that will pass before you.

Entrances: None
Meals: Boxed breakfast from hotel (request at check in)
Overnight: On train

Day 12 (Tuesday) Ulaanbaatar

06.50 hrs: Arrive Ulanbaatar.

You will be taken for breakfast at a local restaurant/café (included) before starting your tour, including the Gandan Monastery with its huge gold-plated Buddha, a symbol of Mongolian national pride and cultural revival. You will see the monks chanting, spin prayer wheels and view the intricately embroidered “thanks”.  You will also visit the National History Museum, where you will see the artefacts from Mongolia and Central Asia from the Stone Age to the present, before transferring to Terelj National Park via the impressive Genghis Khan Statue en route.

Tonight, you will live and experience a nomadic lifestyle, when you spend a night in a Ger (Yurt) camp, staying in traditional Nomad’s hut style accommodation.
Dinner is included tonight.

Entrances: Gandan Monastery, National History Museum, Genghis Khan Monument
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Overnight: Ger Camp (shared facilities)
Supplement to upgrade to Luxury Ger (private facilities): €60 Euros per person per night.
In winter, there are limited facilities at the Ger Camp 

Day 13 (Wednesday) Ulaanbaatar

09.00 hrs:  This morning, experience the way typical locals live – the nomadic style. You will have the opportunity to explore Turtle Rock, and to visit a nomadic family to learn their amazing life style for lunch before transfer back to Ulaanbaatar.

This afternoon visit Bogd Khan’s Winter Palace, which used to be a winter residence of the last Bogd Khan of Mongolia, Javzandamba. The palace was built between 1893 and 1903, and is well known for its Gate of Peace, Temple and personal library of Bogd Khaan. The museum exhibits sculptures by Mongolia’s first Bogd Khan Zanabazar. The museum has 21 valuable sculptures of Taras.  You will also see Zaisan Hill Memorial and Sukhbaatar Square, named after Damdin Sukhbaatar, the ‘hero of the revolution’ who declared Mongolia’s final independence from the Chinese.

Tour ends at around 18.00 hrs. Check in at your hotel

Entrances: Bogd Khan’s Winter Palace
Meals: Breakfast, lunch
Overnight: Hotel Bayangol (or similar)

Day 14 (Thursday) Depart Ulaanbaatar

Collect packed breakfast and check out, at 06.00 hrs transfer to the railway station where your guide will assist you in finding your carriage.

07.30 hrs: Depart Ulaanbaatar by Train #24 

The remainder of the day is yours to relax on board and to check your Beijing guide book before the next and final exciting leg of your journey across the world’s greatest continent. The whole journey you have travelled 7,600 kilometres through three distinctly different cultures, five time zones and 80 degrees of longitude.

Entrances: None
Meals: Boxed breakfast from the hotel (request at check in)
Overnight: On train

Day 15 (Friday) Beijing

14.35 hrs: Arrive Beijing. You will be met by your local guide and driver to enjoy a tour of the Forbidden city before arriving at your hotel at around 18.00 hrs to check in for 1 night.  Beijing has long been the political, cultural and economic centre of China and its turbulent history is reflected in its ancient palaces, grand monuments, landscaped parks, narrow backstreets and wide boulevards.  Today Beijing is a massive and busy city of skyscrapers and feverish construction. However, it is still possible to see parts of the city that have changed little for millennia.
The rest of the evening is yours to explore at your leisure.

Entrances: Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square
Meals: None
Overnight: Qianmen Jianguo Hotel (or similar)

Day 16 (Saturday) Departure

Breakfast at the hotel is included. Check out today by 12.00 hrs.
At the agreed time, you will be met at the hotel and transferred to the airport or station for your onward journey.

Moscow Beijing Trans-Mongolian Tour
2022 Dates tour starts on Fridays throughout the year*

• February 04, 11, 18, 25
• March 04, 11, 18, 25
• April 01, 08, 15, 22
• May 13, 20, 27
• June 03, 10, 17, 24
• July 08, 15, 22, 29
• August 05, 12, 19, 26
• September 02, 09, 16, 23, 30
• October 07, 14, 21, 28
• November 04, 11, 18, 25
• December 02, 09, 16

Subject to availability
* Excludes public holidays in Russia, Naadam Festival in Mongolia (11-15 July) and Chinese New Year

Moscow Beijing Trans-Mongolian Tour – Prices in EUR

EUR 3,715 per person.
Based on two persons sharing twin hotel room and private 2 berth rail compartment*

EUR 405 single supplement (hotels only – does not apply to train)

Moscow Beijing Trans-Mongolian Tour – Tour Price Includes:

• Arrival and departure transfers (vehicle and driver)
• Rail and Hotel accommodation (15 nights)
• Guided tours as per itinerary
• Entrances as per itinerary
• English-speaking guide for excursions
• Breakfast in hotels and Ger camp only and on Day 12
• Lunch on Days 9, 12 and 13
• Dinner on day 12
• Train tickets Moscow–Ekaterinburg- Irkutsk–Ulaanbaatar-Beijing (private 2 berth) see notes
• Visa supports for duration of tour

Moscow Beijing Trans-Mongolian Tour – Not Included In Price:

• Flights
• Any meals, beverages, sightseeing entrance fees not specified in the inclusions
• Photo and video charges at museums and places of interest
• Extra personal costs incurred on the train or at hotels
• Gratuities for local guides and drivers
• Extended visa support
• Visas
• Visa registration fees (payable locally)

Notes

• Tour operates with minimum two persons.
• Accommodation may be substituted with similar grade hotels.
• There are no showers on the trains, only basic facilities.
• All train and other times are local time and subject to reconfirmation.
• Not all trains have 2 berth compartments, if not available we will use 4 berth for private use for 2 people
• Berths may be lower or upper.
• Itinerary subject to confirmation locally and may be subject to change
• You may purchase meals and drinks on the train and in the hotels.
  Food is also available on the platforms of the stops you make en route.
• Trains subject to availability.
• Singles – sorry, we do not operate a shared room scheme for single travellers.
• The tour is unescorted on the train. Guides will meet you at each stop and will take you back to your train for onward journey.
• Visa support – is supplied for duration of tour only. If you require an extended Russian visa support we can supply this from €25 per person (certain nationalities incur a higher extended visa support letter fee) – check with us for details.
• Visa Support – is granted to eligible foreign nationals only. This is at the discretion of the authorities.
• Russian, Mongolian and Chinese Tourist Visas – allow plenty of time to apply for all your visas in advance of travel.
• Visa Service – if you are residing in the UK, please ask about our low cost visa service.
  If you would like to extend your tour, pre or post, please ask for details of visa extensions.

Airport information:
SVO Sheremetyevo International Airport
DME Domodedovo Moscow Airport
VKO Vnukovo Moscow International Airport
PEK Beijing Capital International Airport
PKX Beijing daxing International Airport