“…Hi Becky, thought to give you feedback after what can only be described as a trip of a lifetime!!!!
Thank you to you and Select Tours for arranging everything. Our guides were fantastic, the accommodation was great and the experience unforgettable!!…”
CM and JM
South Africa – travelled May 16

Itinerary

Day 1 (Sunday)

Arrive in Moscow, you will be met and transferred to your hotel to check-in for 2 nights.

Overnight: Izmailovo Hotel (or similar)

Day 2 (Monday)

After breakfast, meet your guide in the hotel reception at 10:00 hrs to begin your exploration of Moscow by metro, this will include some of the most spectacular stations. Then 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 have included 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 14.00hrs, or continue exploring the city and return to the hotel independently.
Entrances: Metro, Kremlin, 1 cathedral, armoury museum.

Overnight: Izmailovo Hotel.

Day 3 (Tuesday)

Breakfast and check out by 12.00hrs. Meet your guide and driver in reception at 12.20hrs to transfer to Yaroslavsky railway station to start your historic journey.

Departure for Irkutsk on Train #70 at *13.50 hours.

Overnight: Train

Days 4 to 6 – On board (Wed, Thu, Friday)

During this time onboard you will see the amazing sights of Russia racing by. The scenery will be different depending on when you choose to travel. The seasons will colour the countryside, towns and villages which make up this fascinating landscape. You will find plenty of inspiration for photo opportunities, making new friends with fellow travellers and exchanging stories are part of the experience. On the train, you can enjoy the local refreshments of the restaurant car and snacks which are available at all times. 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 highlight.

Overnight: Train 3 nights

Day 7 (Saturday)

On arrival in Irkutsk at 11.31 hours, your guide will meet you off the train to enjoy a city tour of Irkutsk, then 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 at hotel at around 18.00 hrs

Entrances: Ethnographic museum

Overnight: Baikal Hotel

Day 8 (Sunday)

After breakfast, meet in the hotel reception at 10.00 hrs for your walking excursion in Listvyanka. You will see the Observation Point, St Nikolas Church, and Chersky View Point. (No entrances). From 13.00 hours at leisure or take Optional excursions:.
Depart at 18.30 from the hotel. Journey time 1 hour.
Time to have dinner in a local restaurant in Irkutsk (not included) before the guide sees you onto the train.

Depart Irkutsk. Train #362 departs at 21.50 hrs 

Overnight: On train

Day 9 (Monday)

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. As before, meals on the train are not included, so you will probably have the chance to share some of the delicacies you found in Irkursk with your fellow passengers and enjoy the now familiar experience of life on board the Trans-Siberian express.

Overnight: On train

Day 10 (Tuesday)

Arrive in Ulanbaatar at 05.10 hrs.Ulaanbaatar (meaning red hero) is the capital of Mongolia, and the largest of it’s cities with a population of over 1 million. Located on the shore of the Tuul river, it is an interesting blend of Mongolian and Soviet-style architecture, with beautiful surrounding countryside.Your guide will be waiting for you at the station, and you will be taken for breakfast at a local restaurant/café.  After breakfast,enjoy the journey by road, to an exciting new landscape at the Terelj National Park. Here, visitors can 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. (Lunch is provided)

The rest of the afternoon is at leisure. You may want to go horse riding, a way of life for the locals.   Tonight, you will live and experience a nomadic lifestyle, when you spend a night in a traditional Ger camp, staying in a traditional Nomad’s hut style accommodation.
Dinner is included tonight.
Overnight: Ger Camp

Day 11 (Wednesday)

After breakfast, depart at 09.00 hrs and travel to the city where your local guide will introduce you to the sights of the city, including visits to 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”.

Visit the National History Museum, where you will see the artefacts from Mongolia and Central Asia from the Stone Age to the present, 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 about 21 valuable sculptures of Taras. Lunch is included today.

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. Entrances: Gandan Monastery, National History Museum, Bogd Khan’s Winter Palace Tour ends at around 18.00 hours. Check in at your hotel.

Overnight: Bayangol Hotel (or similar).

Day 12 (Thursday)

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.

Depart Ulaanbaatar. Train #24 at 07:30 hrs

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.

Overnight: On train

Day 13 (Friday)

Arrive in Beijing at 11.40 hrs, where you will be met by your 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

Overnight: Dongfang Hotel Beijing (or similar)

Day 14 (Saturday)

Breakfast at the hotel is included. This is the end of your Trans-Siberian Train Journey to Beijing as you check out today. At the agreed time, you will be met at the hotel and transferred to the airport or station for your onward journey.

Tour Dates 2017 (tours start on Sunday)

• 09 and 23 July 2017
• 06 and 20 August 2017
• 10 September 2017
• 08 and 22 October 2017
• 19 November 2017
• 03 and 17 December 2017

Price in USD 2017

• USD 2,890 per person. Based on two persons sharing twin hotel room and 2nd class 4 berth rail.
• USD 835 per person supplement for rail upgrade to v2 berth cabin based on two sharing *
• USD 475 single supplement (hotels only – does not apply to train)

* Train #362 – there are only 2nd class 4-berth compartments, passengers upgrading to 1st class are provided with use of a compartment for 2 passengers.
There is no dining car on this train.

Tour Dates 2018 (tours start on Sunday)

• 11 February 2018
• 11 and 25 March 2018
• 08 and 22 April 2018
• 13 and 27 May 2018
• 03 Jun 2018
• 22 July 2017
• 05 and 19 August 2018
• 09 September 2018
• 07 and 21 October 2018
• 18 November 2018
• 02 and 16 December 2018

Price in USD 2018

• USD 3,090 per person. Based on two persons sharing twin hotel room and 2nd class 4 berth rail.
• USD 935 per person supplement for rail upgrade to v2 berth cabin based on two sharing *
• USD 475 single supplement (hotels only – does not apply to train)

Eastbound Tour Price Includes

• Hotel and rail accommodation (13 nights)
• Arrival and departure transfers (vehicle and driver)
• Guided tours as per itinerary
• Entrances as per itinerary
• English-speaking guide for excursions
• Breakfast in hotels only and on Day 10
• Lunch on Days 7, 10 and 11
• Dinner on Day 10
• Second class train tickets Moscow– Irkutsk–Ulaanbaatar-Beijing (sharing a 4-berth compartment)
• Visa supports for duration of tour

Not Included in Price

• 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
• Extended visa support.
• Visa service
• Visa registration fees (payable locally)

Notes

• Tour operates with 2 persons minimum
• Accommodation may be substituted with similar grade hotels
• Itinerary to be confirmed locally and may be subject to change
• There are no showers on the trains, only basic facilities.
• You may purchase meals and drinks on the train (*no dining car on train #362) and in the hotels.
  Food is also available on the platforms of the stops you make en route.
• Singles – sorry, we do not operate a shared room scheme for single travellers.
• Visa support – is supplied for duration of tour only. If you require an extended 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 Visas –  you must obtain your visas in advance of travel.
• Visa Service – if you are residing in the UK, please ask about our low cost visa service.