|  The
CRIMEAN EXPRESS
Journey through Belarus, Moldova and the Ukraine in
the comfort of our deluxe Private Train
May 22-June 4, 2005
Tour also
available in 2006. Click here for details.
ST. PETERSBURG - MOSCOW - MINSK - BREST - LVOV - KISHINIEV - ODESSA
- SIMFEROPOL - YALTA - BALACLAVA - SEVASTOPOL - KIEV
A journey of discovery to the land of Florence Nightingale and the Charge
of the Light Brigade
The names ooze history; Kiev (the cradle of Ancient
Rus), Lvov, Odessa, Yalta, Sevastopol, Balaclava (Charge of the Light
Brigade), The Tsar's Summer Palace at Livadia (site of the Yalta conference
in 1945), Catherine the Great, Nicholas II, Florence Nightingale and
many other evocative names and places that are waiting to share their
romantic beauty and historic events with you. Every stone here is a
witness to dramatic events, conflicts and happy times, love stories
and tragedies - and in the Crimea some of the most stunning scenery
in Europe.
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS
ˇ St. Petersburg - Peter the Great's Capital on the Gulf
of Finland - maybe the world's finest city
ˇ Moscow - Vibrant modern capital of Russia, which is in fact 500 years older than St. Petersburg
ˇ Minsk - Capital of Belarus
ˇ Brest - On today's border with Poland and scene of fierce fighting during World War II
ˇ Lvov - Ancient and well-preserved Capital of Western Ukraine
ˇ Kishiniev - Capital of Moldova
ˇ Odessa - Harbor city famous for the Potemkin steps, tree-lined boulevards and outdoor cafés
ˇ Yalta - Renowned Black Sea resort nestled in a natural amphitheatre below the 4,000 ft. Crimean Mountains
ˇ The Tsar's Winery at Massandra - location of the world's largest collection of old wines (1m bottles)
ˇ The Tsar's Palaces at Livadia and Massandra, Count Vorontzov's Alupka Palace
ˇ Sevastopol - Hero City of the USSR following the siege in WWII
ˇ Balaclava - British base during the Crimean War and location of the "'Charge of the Light Brigade"
ˇ Khersones - Ancient and vast Greek settlement within the City of Sevastopol
ˇ Bakhchisarai - Most Western Khanate from the days of Ghengis Khan and the Golden Horde
ˇ Kiev - Capital of the Ukraine and ancient Capital of Russia; the cradle of Ancient Rus
May is one of the best times of the year to visit this area, when spring flowers and cherry trees are in bloom
DAILY ITINERARY & SIGHTSEEING PROGRAM
SUNDAY, MAY 22
Passengers will be met at the St. Petersburg airport and transferred
to the Nevskiy Palace Hotel in the city center. Welcome dinner.
MONDAY, MAY 23
After breakfast we leave for Catherine's summer palace in Pushkin, where
our visit will include the world famous Amber Room. Lunch at the Podvorye
Restaurant in Pushkin before returning to the city for an afternoon
and evening tour. This is the White Nights period and it never really
gets dark. Around midnight we will arrive at Moskovski station where
our train will be waiting to depart.
TUESDAY, MAY 24
Having been lulled to sleep by the gentle rocking of the sleeping cars,
we awake as the train nears Moscow. The sights of Moscow are taken in
during an afternoon tour of the city. Dinner near Red Square before
we return to our train for a midnight departure.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 25
We spend the morning in Minsk, capital of Belarus. Lunch onboard as
we head to the Polish border and Brest. Brest saw fierce fighting during
World War II. We have a brief stop here to see the town and visit some
of the memorials.
THURSDAY, MAY 26
Early breakfast prior to arrival to Lvov, Capital of Western Ukraine,
an ancient city that has seen many rulers. Named Lemberg during Polish/Austrian
rule and again briefly during Nazi occupation, the old city, with its
winding streets, has survived. We will tour the city and have lunch,
reboarding our train for dinner and heading south.
FRIDAY, MAY 27
During the night we will have passed over the border into Moldova and
around lunchtime will arrive in the Capital city of Kishiniev. We spend
the afternoon visiting the city, including a stop at a Moldovan winery,
where we will have dinner.
SATURDAY, MAY 28
Breakfast time will find us arriving in Odessa on the Black Sea - with
its tree-lined Primorsky Boulevard full of street cafés on the embankment,
and Potemkin Steps - immortalized in Eisensteins' 1925 film Battleship
Potemkin. Nearby is the impressive Opera & Ballet Theatre. Lunch
will be in the city and dinner back on the train as we depart for the
Crimea's Capital City, Simferopol.
SUNDAY, MAY 29
As we have breakfast we will have crossed the Perekop Isthmus and be
on the Crimean Peninsula. At Dzhonkoy we will turn east and run through
the arid central part of the Crimean peninsular. Lunchtime arrival in
the seaside resort of Feodosiya. Here we will leave our train for several
days and drive along the coast to Yalta, pausing to view the stunning
Genoese fortifications at Sudak. Dinner at the Tiflis Georgian restaurant.
MONDAY, MAY 30
In the morning there will be a guided tour of Yalta including the Chekhov
house and Botanical Gardens, followed by lunch on the Hispaniola, a
Spanish galleon parked on the sea-front opposite our hotel. This afternoon
we will visit the Massandra Palace and Imperial winery where we will
tour the cellars (they have bottles dating back to 1775 and many bottles
from the Tsar's personal collection), followed by a tasting of their
excellent dessert wines.
For the next three nights our home will be the exclusive sea-front Hotel
Oreanda. Built in 1895 and fully restored in 2001, it is, by far, the
best hotel in the Crimea. Early evening we will take a 30-minute boat
trip along the picturesque coastline. The boat will drop us at Cape
Ai-Todor from where we will climb over 100 steps for dinner at Lastochinko
Gnezdo (the Swallow's Nest), a fairy-tale castle breathtakingly perched
high above the sea. This restaurant is a world famous location and many
world leaders have eaten here.
TUESDAY, MAY 31
This morning we visit the Alupka Palace, built for Count Mikhail Vorontsov,
former special envoy to the United Kingdom and friend of the Marlborough
family. The Palace is a strange but attractive combination of Scottish
Castle with Arabian additions; Churchill stayed here during the Yalta
Conference in February 1945. Lunch at the Oreanda, then free time before
we depart for a private tour of the Tsar's summer palace at Livadia
and site of the Yalta Conference between Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill.
A champagne reception in the grounds will be followed by a concert of
chamber music and dinner in the small restaurant attached to the palace.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1
Early departure for Sevastopol, home of the Black Sea fleet; on the
way we will pass the dacha (Russian cottage) in which Michail Gorbachev
was imprisoned during the abortive coup of 1991. Sevastopol is a town
steeped in the history of both the Crimean War and Second World War.
In both wars it was under siege for almost a year. Until 1995 Sevastopol
was a controlled city and needed a separate visa, required even by Ukrainians
and Russians. We will tour the old town, the Panorama (a 360 degree
painting and montage depicting the siege of Sevastopol during the Crimean
War) and Khersones - reputed to be the most complete ancient Greek settlement
in existence and only opened up to foreigners a few years ago.
We will visit the beautiful and secluded natural harbor in Balaclava
(British base during the Crimean War), and see the diorama depicting
the WWII battle - from which there is a fine view of the valley where
the Charge of the Light Brigade took place, now covered in neat rows
of vines and home to a white stone memorial to the infamous Charge.
Lunch and dinner will be taken in Sevastopol.
THURSDAY, JUNE 2
Breakfast time departure we head north towards Kiev. As the train pulls
away from the coast out of Sevastopol, we will pass cave dwellings,
some of which are still inhabited and have glass windows. After about
one hour we will pause in Bakhchisarai, seat of the Crimean Khans, descendants
of Ghengis Khan's Golden Hordes. We will visit the Khan's Palace (Built
in 1519 but destroyed by fire, it was rebuilt for Catherine the Great's
triumphant visit to the Crimea in 1787). We will then pass through the
village and climb to the Uspensky Cliff Monastery, dating from the 8th
century. It has become a working monastery again since the end of communism.
During the afternoon we leave the Crimean peninsula.
FRIDAY, JUNE 3
Breakfast time arrival in Kiev, where we stay the night. We will tour
this beautiful and ancient city which will include a visit to the beautifully
restored Caves Monastery and Lavra complex. The complex includes the
highest bell tower in the former USSR, the huge Mother Ukraina WWII
monument and museum, Khreshchatyk Street, Saint Sophia's Cathedral and
the recently completed Independence Square.
SATURDAY, JUNE 4
You will have some free time for shopping in the morning (Caviar in
Kiev is excellent and very reasonably priced). Transfers to Kiev airport.
FARES
Prices are per person for the fully inclusive tour from St. Petersburg
to Kiev and do not include air fares as our passengers join the tour
from all over the world.
2005 Rates:
First class twin share: $5,395 per person / First class single $7,495
Deluxe En-suite twin share: $9,995 per person / Deluxe single: $14,995
Accommodation on the Train:
First-class sleepers are modern air-conditioned cars built in Germany.
They are cozy and comfortable, and provide an ideal method of transport
for the remote areas of Russia that we visit. Each car has nine twin
compartments, all fitted with two lower berth beds that convert to sofa
seating for daytime travel. There is ample space for luggage storage
under each bed and for suitcases in a recess above the corridor area.
Clothes hangers are provided and the cars are appointed with mirrors,
bedside table, reading lamps and space for the storage of small items.
Deluxe sleepers are purpose-built, new carriages designed for the 21st
century to offer top-class comfort and service, which is equal to that
on the best luxury trains in the world today. Each carriage has four
compartments which can be configured for double, twin or single occupancy,
with the lower berth converting into a comfortable sofa for daytime
travel. Each compartment features its own private shower and toilet
facilities and has a wardrobe, audio system, DVD/VCR with the latest
flat, plasma screen TVs and air conditioning with individual climate
control by remote handset.
GENERAL INFORMATION
ˇ A full passport with six months validity remaining upon completion
of your journey is required. In addition, U.S. citizens are required
to obtain visas for Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova. Full details
on visa processing will be sent out around three months before departure.
The visas can take six weeks to process during which time the consulates
will need your passport.
ˇ The Tour language will be English.
ˇ Tour cancellation/medical insurance is required for this journey.
Please see tour booking conditions for details.
ˇ Holiday Suitability: This adventure holiday was designed to allow
you a chance to enjoy the highlights of the major stops on this route
as comfortably as possible. However, this holiday is not suitable for
everyone. Almost no facilities exist for disabled persons. Regretfully,
we do not consider our holidays suitable for passengers who use a wheelchair
due to the inherent limitations of living on board a train and the general
shortcomings of the local tourist infrastructure. If you suffer from
any physical disability or have any restriction to your mobility you
should consider carefully before travelling. Flexibility, a sense of
humor and the ability to walk at least a mile a day will be essential
components to the enjoyment of your trip. If you are in any doubt please
call us to discuss your situation in confidence. We do not consider
our holidays suitable for families with younger children.
THE TOUR INCLUDES
ˇ All meals including alcoholic drinks with lunch and dinner
ˇ The services of GW Travel Tour Manager / Interpreter
THE TOUR DOES NOT INCLUDE
ˇ Insurance
ˇ Charges of a personal nature at the hotels or on the train (bar, laundry,
telephone etc.)
ˇ Visa or Excess Baggage Charges, Airport Departure Taxes
ˇ Vaccination or Medical Costs
ˇ Air tickets to the point of joining or leaving the tour
HOW TO BOOK
Please call us at 800-478-4881 or email
us to check availability. We will hold space for you with no obligation
for 14 days. We will send to you a booking form, which you will need
to return to us completed and signed along with your deposit of $1,000
per person. We will then issue a Booking Confirmation. Your deposit
secures your place(s) on the tour and is refundable within the terms
of our Booking Conditions minus
an administrative fee. Final payment will be due 90 days before departure.
All bookings are accepted subject to the booking
conditions of The Society of International Railway Travelers and
the provider of the train journey, "The Trans-Siberian Express Company"
(GW Travel Ltd.). These conditions require, among other things, that
you have adequate Travel Insurance. Details will be provided upon booking.
The Society of International Railway Travelers
1810 Sils Ave., Louisville, KY 40205
800-478-4881 or 502-454-0277
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