Home » Dates »
Ship Chernishevskiy: St. Petersburg - Moscow, River Cruise 15 May 2010 - 25 May 2010
Route description:
Save vibrant Moscow for the end of your journey and start from magnificent St. Petersburg. This voyage willtake you from the Gulf of Finland to Lake Onega and then from the River Volga to the Moskva River.
Itinerary
| Day 1 | Arrival  Your personal driver will meet you at the airport (he will be holding a sign with your name on it) and take you to your ship. There is no evening program, as you will probably want to get some rest. You will be served dinner in the ship's restaurant after which you can relax in the bar or get some sleep. |
| Day 2 | St. Petersburg .jpg) St. Petersburg is Russia's cultural and historical treasure, one of
the world's most beautiful cities, and one of its top ten tourist
destinations according to "The Forbes Traveler." It is known as the
Venice of North thanks to its numerous canals and hundreds of
bridges. It is sometimes called Russia's Versailles thanks to
dozens of opulent palaces and royal estates. It can be rightly
called a living museum - so many of its buildings are part of
Russia's history.
|
| Day 3 | St. Petersburg  First half of the day you will have to explore St. Petersburg on
your own. You can also take an optional tour to Catherine Palace,
one of the worlds most interesting palaces. It is located 15 miles
away from St. Petersburg, and was a summer residence of
Tzars.This evening the cruise of Two Capitals will start. You will have a presentation of crew program and a "get to know" show.
|
| Day 4 | Mandrogi .jpg) Mandrogi is the name of a small village that has no architectural
wonders, giant castles or churches. You will, however, discover the
unique style and architecture of the northern tribes that have
occupied these lands for centuries
|
| Day 5 | Kizhi-Island  Kizhi-Island Kizhi is the name of unique island located on the Lake
Onega. In the center of the island stands the amazing
Transfiguration Church. This wooden church and its 22 domes are
built without a single nail. In fact, originally, the
Transfiguration Church was located in another place. The
Bolsheviks, who had little, if no, respect for religion, had some
respect for its architectural value, so they decided to move this
unique church as far from the major cities and people as possible,
to distant Kizhi Island. You will devote this day on the island to
the open-air museum of wooden architecture
|
| Day 6 | Goritsy .jpg) Goritsy is famous for the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery (1397). This
monastery's strong walls and bastions were used by some nobles as a
safe house during the Times of Trouble. The Polish armies stormed
it, but never succeeded in capturing it. Unfortunately, the
monastery was not so successful in repelling the attacks of other
invaders four centuries later. The Bolsheviks closed the monastery
in early 20th century and sent its monks to the prison camps.
|
| Day 7 | Yaroslavl  By today standards Yaroslavl is small, but its place in Russia's
history and culture cannot be underestimated. Before it was
annihilated by the Mongols it was Russia's largest city, its
economic, political, cultural and scientific center. It was rebuilt
shortly after but was once again burnt to the ground. While the
Mongols had been preoccupied with Yaroslavl, Moscow was able to
harness enough power to overthrow the "Mongol yoke."
|
| Day 8 | Uglich  Uglich is a small town located on the Volga River. The place was
the best-defended fortress of Moscovy and it was burnt on number of
occasions by Lithuanians, Tatars, and even the grand prince of
Tver, the city which rivaled Moscow.Uglich is most famous for the tragic events that took place in 1591 when the 10-year old prince Dimitry, the last heir to the throne of the ancient Ruyrik dynasty, was killed here (as historians now agree, by Boris Godunov, advisor to Dimitry, who wanted the throne for himself). Dimitry's death plunged Russia into decades of political turmoil known as Time of Trouble.
|
| Day 9 | Moscow  Moscow is Russia's largest city, its political and economic
capital. The town of Moscow was the center of Moscovy - a small
principality that unified the Russian lands against the Mongols in
the late 14th century and has ruled Russia ever since. As the
Mongols burnt major cities across Russia, refugees fled to smaller
principalities like Moscow, Tver and Nizhny Novgorod. Through
bribes, diplomacy and coercion, Moscow overcame its two rivals to
become "Russia's first city." Moscow's role was briefly challenged
when Tsar Peter the Great moved Russia's capital to his new city,
St Petersburg, on the shores of the Baltic Sea.
|
| Day 10 | Moscow  This day is very special, as we will go inside the Kremlin - the
ancient castle built to withstand the Mongol hordes. Throughout
history, the Kremlin has been the center of political power in
Russia and it remains a symbolic political center even today, as
the official site of the inauguration ceremony of the Russian
president (they don't actually live or work here).The Kremlin is a living museum of Russia's history. Its inside wasn't built overnight, rather various rulers added new pieces over time (and some, like Napoleon, plundered from it). This cultural and historical treasure has been so well preserved that it seems that you are traveling in time. You will see the most interesting places in the Kremlin as you follow our professional guide in the steps of some of the world's greatest leaders and its most terrible dictators.
|
| Day 11 | Departure  DepartureOur unforgettable journey across this unique country is coming to an end. It is time to say farewell to Russia and your new friends. Your personal driver will take you to the airport |
