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Craig High School Russian Trip 2020

7 days
6 nights

Rates

Dates

Rates:

USD
EUR

PER PERSON:
$ 2,550.00 (double occupancy)
$ 950.00 (approximate airfare)

Dates:

Oct 19, 2020 - Oct 26, 2020 subject to change Book Now
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Hotels:

4* centrally located hotels

Included:

Russian Visas
Hotel in Moscow – 2 nights
Hotel in St. Petersburg – 4 nights
All airport/hotel transfers
Daily breakfast, 5 dinners
English speaking tour guides
Fast train St. Petersburg - Moscow
All tours described above with entrance fees 
Circus in Moscow or folk show in St. Petersburg

Highlights & Experience:

Moscow City Tour
Red Square and Kremlin
Metro Tour
City Tour of S. Petersburg
Spilled Blood Church (outside)
Peter and Paul Fortress
St. Isaac's Cathedral
Hermitage Tour
Pushkin with Catherine Palace and Amber Room
Yusupov Palace
WWII museum and St. Petersburg Siege Memorial

Itinerary:

Day 1  : Departure

 Air from Chicago to Moscow.

Day 2  : Moscow

Upon arrival you will be met at the airport and transferred to the hotel. Hotel check-in and free time to relax and get some rest before your tour begins. Overnight in Moscow. 

Day 3  : Moscow

Moscow City Tour is an overview of the city's main areas within the boundaries of the Garden Ring and the Boulevard Ring. We will drive by Red Square and the Kremlin, historical Kitay Gorod, Tverskaya, Arbat and Zamoskvorechje neighbourhoods, St. Basil's Church, Church of Christ the Savior, Novodevichiy Convent, Luzhniki, the White House, Moskva River and others. Then continue to the Sparrow Hills located 6 km south-west of the Kremlin to enjoy the best panoramic view of the city and the "wedding cake" building of Moscow University.
Visit to Moscow school. Evening open maybe with a school or going to Circus or Folk show. 

Overnight in Moscow. (Breakfast, Dinner)

Day 4  : Moscow

Today you will have a tour of the Red Square and  Kremlin area.  This is where you will see the famous Mausoleum, St. Basil's Cathedral,  Historical Museum and GUM department store. Inside the Kremlin you will explore the well known landmarks: Cathedrals of Assumption, Annunciation and Archangel,  dating back to the 15-16th centuries, Ivan the Great Bell Tower, Tsar Bell, Tsar Cannon, Hall of Facets and Terem Place. On your tour you will visit the Armory to explore a stunning collection of wealth and treasures accumulated by Russian royalties and church over the centuries such as royal regalia, Faberge Easter Eggs,  the coronation dress of Catherine the Great, the 800-diamond throne of Tsar Alexey, the jewel-studded and sable-trimmed gold Cap of Monomakh worn for coronations for two centuries, the sleigh in which Elizabeth rode from St. Petersburg to Moscow for her coronation pulled by 23 horses at a time. Between the Armory and the Annunciation Cathedral is the Great Kremlin Palace the official residence of Russian president.
In the afternoon you will take a  fast train to St. Petersburg. In St. Petersburg you will be transfered to your hotel. Overnight in St. Petersburg (Breakfast, Dinner)

Day 5  : St Petersburg

In the morning  you will have a city tour of St. Petersburg. We will drive by the elegant buildings on the Nevsky Prospect and stately palaces on Palace Embankment along the Neva River, in one of the most fascinating cities in Europe. You will see the Palace Square with Winter Palace and Alexander Column, the famous Bronze Horseman monument to Peter the Great, Admiralty, Schmidt Bridge, Strelka with Stock Exchange and Rostral Columns,  Alexander Nevsky Lavra, Kanal Griboyedova, Fontanka, Kazan Cathedral, Church on Spilled Blood and other finest architectural, historical and cultural landmarks.
The tour includes visits to Peter and Paul Fortress and St. Isaac’s Cathedral.  Peter-and-Paul Fortress was built in 1704 to defend the city from naval attacks. It never served its original purpose but became prominent for its rather gruesome history: thousands of workers died during its construction, many political prisoners, including Peter's own son Alexi were tortured in its cells,  the tombs of the Romanov family are located in its Cathedral. St. Isaac’s Cathedral is one of the world’s largest Cathedrals and can accommodate about 10,000 audiences. It was designed by then unknown Auguste de Montferrand and opened in 1858. The Cathedral is beautifully decorated inside with marble of 13 colors, malachite, lapis-lazuli, paintings, mosaics and stained glass made by the most famous Russian artists.
In the afternoon you will visit the Yusupov Palace located on a quiet stretch of the Moika River. This long yellow building once was a residence of the wealthy and respected Yusupov family and served as a stage for one of Russian history's moments of high drama - the murder of Grigory Rasputin, a peasant who had gained control over the tsar's family through his alleged supernatural powers. The Palace is notable for its lavish interiors, the exotic Moorish Room, the elegant Rococo style Theater and Rasputin Cellars where “the holy man” Grigory Rasputin was murdered by Prince Felix Yusupov.
Overnight in St. Petersburg (Breakfast, Dinner)

Day 6  : St Petersburg

Today we will drive to Pushkin  located 25-30 km from St. Petersburg. Pushkin's palaces and parks were created under Empresses Elizabeth and Catherine the Great between 1744 and 1796. The main landmark is the Catherine Palace designed by Rastrelli and named after Elizabeth’s mother, Peter the Great's second wife. You'll vist the palace and its Amber Room.
On our way back to St. Petersburg we will stop by an impressive memorial dedicated to the struggle and hardship of the residents living in the city during WWII. The Monument to the Heroic Defenders of Leningrad and St. Petersburg Siege Memorial was built to be the main focal point of Ploshchad Pobedy (Victory Square) in the early 1970s. A special bank account was opened to take donations and many people took part in the construction including volunteers and famous artists of the Soviet Union such as Mikhail Anikushin, Sergey Speransky, and Valentin Kamensky, all of whom participated in the defense of Leningrad.

Overnight in St. Petersburg (Breakfast, Dinner)

Day 7  : St Petersburg

Today you will  visit the Hermitage Art Museum, one of Russia’s main treasures. Occupying six stunning buildings along the River Neva, the Hermitage is the second largest art museum in the world (Louve in Paris is the first) founded in 1764 . The museum has a wide range of art on display (over three million pieces!) - from prehistoric collections to modern art. After the Hermitage  free time. In the evening folk show.

Overnight in St. Petersburg (Breakfast, Dinner)

Day 8  : St Petersburg

Transfer to the airport and departure to Chicago. (Breakfast)