Russian River Cruise Perm Moscow

Categories Small Ship Cruises Russian River Cruises Cruises

Optional 4 day extension to St. Petersburg available. Please inquire.

Itinerary

Arrival to Perm International airport. Transfer to the ship, embarkation. Information meeting followed by dinner. Overnight.

Leaving the harbor at 4:00 PM

Perm is administrative center of the Perm Region. It is situated on the banks of the Kama River, at the foot of the Ural Mountains. It is one of the largest cities of Russia with a population of over 1 million. The history of the modern city of Perm starts with the development of the Ural region by Peter the Great. Nowadays the city is a major administrative, industrial, scientific, and cultural center. It houses several theatres: Perm Opera and Ballet Theatre, Drama Theatre, The Philharmonic Society, as well as the University. It is also known as the production center of the famous Russian MIG fighter jets.

Morning sightseeing tour includes major sites and architectural monuments, such as baroque Peter & Paul Cathedral from the 18th century and numerous examples of architecture of the 20th century (all outside), as well as visit to the Art Gallery, containing a unique collection of icons, wooden sculpture from 17th to 19th century and paintings by famous Russian artists Bryullov, Repin, Shishkin and others.

Return to the ship for lunch. Set sail.

PM: Introduction of the crew on the sun deck (weather permitting) followed by a champagne party.

Dinner and Overnight.

Breakfast. Docking in the city of Tschaikovsky.

Excursion to Votkinsk, the birth place of Peter Ilich Tschaikovsky (35 km away). Sightseeing of Tchaikovski’s birthplace followed by a short piano concert performed by local talent.

Return back to the ship. Lunch on board.

Continue sailing on to Kazan. On board activities, lectures and entertainment provided by our on board staff and guides. Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast.

On board lectures on Russian History, Art and other interesting and fun activities.

Lunch.

Docking in Kazan. City sightseeing tour by motorcoach.

Kazan is a city of a million inhabitants. It was founded in the 13th century and in the present is the capital of the Autonomous Tatar Republic.

The city tour includes a visit to the Kremlin of Kazan, the Church of St. Peter and Paul, Kuibyshev Square, the Bauman Street - the pedestrian and shopping zone – and Lake Kaban, which is 8 km long and runs through the center of the city.

Return to the ship. Dinner.

Continue sailing to Cheboksary.

Overnight.

Breakfast. Arriving to Cheboksary.

Surprisingly pretty and calm, the city of Cheboksary, with a population of about 450.000, is the capital of Chuvashia. Chuvashia is a sovereign republic of the Russian Federation in the Upper Volga, and home to the Chuvash people, whose aancestors were Hunnish Bulgars and Suars. The Chuvash people joined the Russian state in 1552. Two major nationalities in the republic today are the Chuvash and Russians. Russian is the language of business, but the Chuvash language (of the Turkish group) is spoken by many, especially in the countryside.

Your City sightseeing tour by motor coach will go by the monastery of The Holly Trinity, Vedenskaya Cathedral, through the historical city centre, with the photo stops at Victory Park, monument to Chapaev (legendary Red Army commander), and beautiful embankment and pedestrian zone of the city.

The tour will include a visit to the Local History Museum.

Return to the ship. Lunch. Continue sailing to Nizhny Novgorod.

On board lectures, games and entertainment provided by your lovely guides

Dinner.

•Jazz concert on board.

Early morning arrival to Nizhny Novgorod. This gorgeous city, closed to foreigners until 1992, is located at the confluence of Volga and the Oka River. Founded in 1221, it was annexed to Moscow in 1392. It was strategically important in the Russian conquest of the Volga through the mid-16th century. In 1932 it was renamed to Gorky, after Soviet writer Maxim Gorky, who was born here. Under the Soviet regime it was a place of internal exile for well known atom-physic scientist Andrei Sakharov and other renown dissidents.

After breakfast, your panoramic sightseeing of Nizhny Novgorod will include visits to the Kremlin and Stroganovsky Church. Later on there will be some time for shopping and strolling around in the down town area. Return to the ship for lunch and continue sailing.

(Note: in case of low water level in Gorodetsky Lock, the ship will continue sailing at 9 am to the city of Gorodets while the guests are in N. Novgorod. In this case buses will transfer passengers to the small town of Gorodets, 57 km away, where they will embark the ship again. Gorodets was founded in 1152 by Prince Yuri Dolgorukiy (also the founder of Moscow). In 1263, Alexander Nevsky died in Gorodets on his way back to Novgorod from the Golden Horde. All major churches of Gorodets were destroyed during communist era. The oldest standing building nowadays is rather plain church from 18th century.)

Lunch on board. Afternoon lectures, Russian painting, language lessons and other activities.

Dinner and overnight.

Upon arrival to Plyos your walking tour of this small town will include the monument of the founder of the city, Moscow's Prince Vasil I, churches and other buildings dating 17th – 19th century. The highlight of the visit is the Art Gallery, displaying the works of Isaac Levitan, the renowned Russian painter who celebrated beauty of the Plyos and surrounding nature on his canvases.

Continue sailing to Kostroma during lunch.

One of the loveliest cities of the Golden Ring, Kostroma is certainly one of the highlights of the cruise. The pride of Kostroma is the museum at the former Ipatyevsky Monastery founded in the 14th Century by the Zernov family, the forefathers of the Godunovs. From this monastery, Mikhail Fyodorovich, a member of the Romanov dynasty, rose to the throne and this family ruled Russia for 300 years. The crypt of the Monastery became the Godunov burial vault. Kostroma is the only Russian city retaining the classical layout of the 18/19th centuries, with streets and boulevards facing out like the spokes of a wheel from a central square.

Sightseeing tour including visit to Ipatievsky Monastery.

Dinner. Continue sailing. Overnight.

Breakfast. Arrival to Yaroslavl.

Stretching on both sides of Volga River, modern Yaroslavl is an important Volga port with a population of 630.000. In 2010 the city celebrates its 1000 years anniversary. It was founded in the 11th century by prince Yaroslavl the Wise and today retains many noteworthy monuments of its colorful past. Of special interest are the magnificent 13th Century Spassky Monastery ensemble, a group of majestic 17th Century cathedrals, an elegant rotunda and remnants of an ancient trading center. Loveliest of all is the Church of Elijah the Prophet, situated in the town’s central square. The frescoes on the walls and vaulting inside the church constitute a veritable museum of old Russian icons and paintings.

Morning sightseeing tour (by bus) includes a visit to the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Monastery..

Included Highlight: Concert of Russian spiritual music performed by 20 -30 members choir in the Spaso – Preobrazhensky Cathedral. Duration: 45 minutes.

Return to the ship for lunch.

After lunch, a visit (10 minutes walk from the ship) to the Yaroslavl Art Museum, the biggest art museum of the Russian province with a rich collection of paintings from Russian Silver and Golden Ages. The Museum is situated in the former Governor’s House, the official residence of local governors, built in the first half of the 19th century. All Russian Tsars visited this palace. A visit to the Governor’s House is a trip back in time. Museum guides, dressed in 19th century style gowns, tell the stories of the life of governors’ families and show the building and the museum exhibits. The visit will end with a champagne party and short classical concert in the former Ball room.

After the tour, enjoy some free time in the city centre (walking distance from the Governor’s House and the ship).

Return to the ship. Dinner. Continue sailing.

Arrival at Uglich and walking sightseeing tour.

Founded in 1148, Uglich is one of the most beloved towns in old Russia. The view of the town as it is approached from the Volga River is especially lovely with the Cathedral of the Resurrection and St. John's Church looming on the horizon. At the end of the 16th century, Maria Nagaya, seventh wife of Ivan the Terrible, lived in honorary exile in the Kremlin in Uglich. It was here, in her garden, that the Tsarevich Dmitri met his death and where the Church of St. Demetrius of the Blood was built and still stands today. Within the Kremlin is the oldest building in Uglich - the Palace of Tsarevich Dmitri.

Lunch back on board. Continue sailing.

•Captain’s Farewell Gala Dinner

Breakfast. Time at leisure or on board activities.

Early Lunch on board. After lunch, arrival to Moscow.

Moscow is the capital of Russia, a modern metropolis, filled with imperial history and architectural splendour. Founded in 1147 by Prince Yuri Dolgoruky, it is nowadays one of the world’s most important cities with the population of more than 10 million people. A settlement of artisans and traders it became the capital of Russia in the 15th century. With the transfer of Russian capital to St. Petersburg in 1712, it became the country's second capital. In 1918 it again became the capital of the Russian Federation, and from 1922 to 1991, it was the capital of the USSR.. The glorious city, which embraces Western culture, has preserved its ancient heritage of unique onion domed cathedrals, magnificent walls of the Kremlin its culture and heritige.

Your Panoramic city tour will include: A drive via the lovely Tverskaya Street, the Red Square, St. Basil’s Cathedral with its colourful and ornate onion domes, The Kremlin, a fortified enclosure with its distinctive crenellated red brick walls, tall towers and many cathedrals and palaces, the Cathedral of Our Savior, the Bolshoi Theatre, Lomonosov University, Novodevichy Convent and the magnificent panorama of the city from Vorobievy Hills. The sightseeing includes a visit to the Kremlin grounds and minimum one Cathedral.

Note: On rare occasions Kremlin territory may be closed for visitors by decision of Kremlin Administration without prior notice. Dinner back on board.

Optionals:

a)Tour of the Armoury Museum - the treasury of the Russian Tsars, featuring a spectacular collection of jewels, crowns and royal amour.

b) In the evening Moscow by Night tour. View the magnificent city under lights.

Metro tour to the city center, free time for shopping and strolling around the Russian capital.

Lunch either on board or lunch boxes. Dinner. Final overnight

Optional activities:

a) Morning excursion to Sergiev Posad Monastery Complex ( Zagorsk) situated 70 km away, which is the center of the Russian Orthodox Church. Visit the Monastery area and all churches. After excursion transfer to Moscow city center, free time for shopping and strolling around.

b) In the evening, attend a performance at the world-famous Moscow Circus, renowned for its breathtaking acrobats, music and trapeze artists as well as trained animals.

Disembarkation at 9 am

Final Breakfast.