The many faces of Moscow(4 days, 3 nights)

Day, 1

Passengers are met and transferred to the hotel for check-in.* 

Rest time.

Guided Moscow city tour with private transport (3-4 hours)**

Dinner independent with suggestion from the guide***

Overnight at hotel

*Hotel check-in time is between 2 pm — 3pm depending on the hotel.

**Depart on a half day tour of Moscow, the economic and political center of Russia.  Founded in 1147 by Yuri Dolgoruky ( «Yury of the Long Arms»), Moscow rose to prominence during Mongol domination and eventually became the Russian capital, later to be eclipsed by St. Petersburg.  Moscow was restored as the Russian political center after the October Revolution of 1917, and celebrated the 850th anniversary of its founding in 1997.  Begin the tour with a drive by some of Moscow's best-known places- the Duma building where Russia's governing body meets; the Bolshoi Theater; the Lubyanka prison where the KGB was headquartered; Moscow State University on the Sparrow Hills for a panoramic city view; the moving World War II Memorial and Victory Park on Farewell Hill; and a drive along the Sofiyskaya Embankment, past the 16th century Novodevichy Convent and by the Moscow White House.

***Depending on the hotel location, suggestions will be given for nearby restaurants.

Day, 2

Breakfast at the hotel

Your guide will meet you in the hotel lobby.

Beginning of day 09:00 unless otherwise discussed

End of day 17:00 unless otherwise discussed

Kremlin and Armory Tour*

Diamond Fund tickets provided*

Independent lunch at local restaurant**

Walking tour of Red Square including St. Basil's Cathedral* and Lenin's Mausoleum***

Cathedral of Christ the Savior****

Dinner independent*****

*The Moscow Kremlin reminds modern-day Russia of its medieval past.  Built on the site of Prince Yuri's hunting lodge, the Kremlin overlooks the Moskva and Neglina rivers.  In the mid-14th century, the Russian princes, ruling from the Kremlin, became so powerful that Moscow was named the center of the Russian Orthodox Church.  Under the guidance of Ivan the Great, Moscow extended its influence and soon became the seat of Russian political power.

Today, the Kremlin remains the center of Moscow and Russian politics.  Inside the fortress walls are palaces, cathedrals, government buildings and the Armory Museum.  Built in the 16th century as a warehouse for the Kremlin's weaponry, the Armory was transformed into an exhibition hall and museum in 1814.  It now houses Russia's national treasures, such as religious icons, Faberge eggs, a bejeweled chalice belonging to Prince Yuri, and Catherine the Great's ball gowns and shoes. 

The Diamond Fund is an exclusive collection of «crown valuables,» jewelry pieces made for the czars and the royal court, including imperial regalia such as crowns, scepters, and bejeweled clasps to fasten the coronation mantle.  The 189-carat Orlov Diamond is among the treasures, as is Catherine the Great's coronation crown, encrusted with pearls and 4,936 diamonds.  *You will tour the museum on your own.  You guide will wait for you at the museum entrance.

**Your guide will suggest several different restaurants in the area for you to select.

***Red Square and St. Basil's Cathedral are perhaps the most recognizable symbols of Russia.  The square owes its origins to Ivan III, who in the late 15th century had all buildings removed from the eastern wall of the Kremlin.  For the next 400 years, this newly formed area was a trading center.  In 1920 all traders were banned from the square, and in the early 1960s cars were banned as well, making Red Square a pedestrian area.

St. Basil's was built to celebrate Ivan the Terrible's victory at the Tatar stronghold of Kazan in 1552.  Built between 1555 and 1561, it was originally painted white.  The domes were not patterned and colored as they are today until a hundred years later.  St. Basil's is named after Vasily, the «holy fool» who predicted that Ivan would murder his own son.  You will not be going inside St. Basil's Cathedral as its beauty is in its colorful exteriors. 

The body of Vladimir Ilych Lenin has been lying in state for most of the last 60 years in his mausoleum in the Kremlin.  For many years since his death in 1924 long lines waited to file past the embalmed body, but since the dissolution of the Soviet Union interest has waned.  There has been much talk of burying him, but so far is hasn't happened.  *You will see Lenin's Mausoleum from the outside only.

 *****Your guide will suggest several different restaurants in the area of your hotel for you to select.

Day, 3

Breakfast at the hotel

Your guide will meet you in the hotel lobby.

Beginning of day 09:00 unless otherwise discussed

End of day 17:00 unless otherwise discussed

Metro Tour*

Tretyakov Gallery**

Independent lunch at restaurant near Tretyakov Gallery

Novodevichy Convent and Cemetery 

Dinner indendent

**The Tretyakov was founded by 19^th century Russian merchant, Pavel Tretyakov, who spent 40 years and much of his fortune collecting and preserving works of Russian art.  The history and trajectory of Russian art is displayed here, encompassing pieces from the 11^th century to the present, and including mosaics, icons, paintings and sculptures by such artists as Rublev, Repin, and Levitan.  The collection is rarely seen outside of Russia.

Day, 4

Breakfast at the hotel

Package based

on 5 star hotel accommodation

DBL accoumodation

Price per person

SGL Supplement

Price per person

Package based

DBL accoumodation

SGL Supplement

Package based

DBL accoumodation

SGL Supplement