Winter in Russia is a captivating wonderland of picturesque sights and bustling activity from the ice sculptures at the All-Russian exhibition Center and skating at Red Square to the Troyka Sleigh Rides, a traditional Russian sleigh led by horses, and so much more! Spend an afternoon Christmas shopping in a virtual winter wonderland before exploring the famous Vodka Museum. Enjoy famous museums and palaces that are much less crowded this time of year. Unforgettable experiences, stunning scenery and welcoming locals, Winter in Russia is not to be missed! A fascinating tour of this important country, enjoy it with the comfort of your private guide, 24/7 support, private transfers, and the flexibility of starting whenever you want and moving at your own pace.

The focal point of Moscow is Red Square, on one side of which is the Kremlin surrounded by a thick red fortress wall containing 20 towers altogether. There a several gorgeous buildings in the square including the Uspensky Cathedral, the 14th-century Grand Kremlin Palace, the golden-domed Belfry of Ivan the Great, and the renowned St Basil’s Cathedral, famous for its brightly colored domes. Lenin’s Mausoleum is also located in Red Square and is still open to the public on certain days. Outside Red Square, Tverskaya Street is one of the main shopping streets. Old Arbat Street is a pedestrian zone with crafts and artists’ stalls and street performers. The world-famous Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theater at Teatralnaya Square dates from 1824. Novodevichy Convent near Sportivnaya metro station houses a museum of rare and ancient Russian art, and is one of the finest examples of 16th- and 17th-century architecture in the city. The Metro system itself is steeped in history, with many of stations featuring beautiful decoration. Other sites include the superb Tretyakov Gallery, the Annunciation and Our Lady of Kazan Cathedrals, Gorky Park, and the macbre KGB museum.

Enjoy a private airport transfer in Moscow with a private vehicle, Driver and an Assistant.

A welcome package with small wooden doll Matreshka, nice book on Russia, vouchers, a city map, train tickets (if relevant) and any other touristic information that you may find useful will be waiting for you upon your arrival at your first hotel on your trip.

We will provide you with a letter of Invitation for your Russian Visa. Once payment has been received, the letter along with other important documents will be sent to you.

Peter 1 Hotel (4*) is located in the historical and cultural centre of the city, within walking distance from the Red Square and the Christ of the Saviour Cathedral. The Big Theatre, State Duma, Manezhnaya Square as well as the State Tretjakov Gallery are some of the major attractions near the property. The hotel is housed in a six-storey building and was constructed in the late XIX century. In 2005-2006 the hotel was totally renovated, and today is considered to be a modern hotel of the highest quality, while effortlessly combining its historial vestiges. The property has  133 spacious and originally decorated rooms.

Overnight at Peter 1 (4*).

Explore the All-Rusian Exhibition Center (VVTs) known by its Soviet-era name, VDNKh - the Exhibition of National Economic Achievements. A fascinating monument to Russia's transitional period, the exhibition centre is a mixture of faded Soviet pomp and unregulated, rapacious capitalism. The VVTs is a bizarre juxtaposition: part agricultural fair, part trade expo, part shopping centre and part street market, with amusements as diverse as paint-balling,  ice sculptures - as well as the ubiquitous slot-machine arcades - on offer in various parts of the grounds. The park itself is an intriguing example of 20th century landscaping with buildings which are preposterously magnificent. The VVTs is truly unique, and well worth a visit, especially as there is plenty more to be seen nearby, including the wonderful Cosmonautics Museum, the Soviet era - monument "Worker and Collective Farm Girl", Ostankino estate and TV tower.   Continue with the famous Red Square which starts outside the Kremlin´s walls. View the panorama of the Kremlin from the Sophiiskaya Embankment, Lubyanka Square, Tverskaya Street, The White House of Russia and Victory Park, St. Basil Cathedrals, Lenin Mausoleum, Manezh Square and shopping. Entrance fees are not included.

The ice skating rink on Red Square which covers more than 3000 square meters is one of the most well-known ice skating rinks in Moscow. Consider taking advantage of this popular winter sport while you are enjoying the city's most famous landmark. It is open from Nov. 28 to Mar. 13th every day from 10 a.m. to the midnight.

Overnight at Peter 1 (4*).

Tour the Kremlin, on a private 5 hour guided tour. The site is the city´s former military fortification, a palace, an armoury, the sovereign treasury and the workplace of the Russian President. The Kremlin is the center of Russia´s political life and State power. The Armoury Palace features weaponry, imperial regalia and unique art (Entrance to Kremlin territory and Armoury Chamber included).

Consider spending time at a classic Russian bathhouse, located in Kuznetsky historical district of Moscow. Sanduny baths isthe oldest (since 1806) sauna in Moscow, and boasts a rich and traditional interior decor. It's huge halls, tall ceilings, sculptured decorations and beautiful statues give you the authentic Russian banya feeling, and the healing effect of traditional Russian bath. You can relax and unwind in the five sauna areas with spacious rooms for relaxation, showers and swimming pools.

Overnight at Peter 1 (4*).

St Petersburg is known as a cultural center and for its elegant buildings, and is spread over 42 islands in the delta of the River Neva. In comparison to Moscow, which tended to be more Eastern in character, St Petersburg has always retained a European flavor and was intended as a ‘Window to the West’. It was built by Peter the Great in 1703 and remained the capital of Tsarist Russia for 200 years. Wide boulevards, tranquil canals, bridges and some of the best examples of tsarist architecture gave rise to the epithet the ‘Venice of the North’. The Palace Square and the Winter Palace (Hermitage Museum) are among the most popular attractions for enthusiasts of Russian history.

Visit the Russian handicraft centre – Izmaylovo, famous for its open air souvenir market. Izmaylovo is one of the oldest parts of Moscow, where the second Romanov Tzar Alexey Mikhailovich had his summer residence where his son Peter the Great was brought up. At the present moment the complex occupies the territory of 17 hectares and includes: trade town (with streets of private booth-shops where you can see and buy great variety of traditional Russian crafts objects – famous matryoshkas, wood-carving goods, porcelain, glass, birch bark items, Russian Army uniforms, badges, etc.), “Russian Yard” – a copy of a traditional wooden settlement with wooden churches, houses. After shopping continue to the Vodka History Museum that has settled down in Kremlin in Izmailovo to learn about centuries –long history of Russian vodka and its role in the history of the country. You will have a unique opportunity to see that the process of wine distillation (the original name for vodka production) was very up-to-date for that time period. In the museum halls you can see an originally made installation, showing a Russian monk by the first distillation unit equipped with all the necessary devices and, first of all, with a coil pipe! The museum can justly be proud of its collection of over 600 exhibits: various brands of vodka, XVIIIth century vodka recipes, vodka posters, vodka labels and vodka bottles of different sizes, from shkalik (or kosushka) to shtof and quarter. As an option you can taste different types of vodka and traditional Russian aperitifs (pickles, black bread, pancakes etc). If you would like to include vodka tasting please contact us for more details.

Enjoy a train station transfer with private vehicle/driver and guide.

Watch the changing landscapes on your fast speed train ride from Moscow to St. Petersburg, departing in the afternoon.

Enjoy a private train station transfer with vehicle, driver and English speaking guide.

Rocco Forte Hotel D`Angleterre (4*) is located next to the St. Isaac's Cathedral in the heart of St. Petersburg, and is only 5 min to Nevsky Prospect. Many of the main attractions of the city are close to the hotel, such as the famous Hermitage Museum, Peter's & Paul's Fortress, and the many palaces and gardens interspersed throughout the city. Each of the hotel's 188 bedrooms and five suites are decorated in a style that combines classic with contemporary, blending Russian and European furniture and accessories. Borsalino Brasserie provides a stylish setting with an innovative menu of contemporary European food combined with fresh local ingredients. The hotel features a fitness centre, a swimming pool, sauna, a turbo solarium and a beauty studio.

Overnight at Rocco Forte Hotel D`Angleterre (4*).

Take a panoramic tour and get acquainted with the main architectural and historical monuments of St Petersburg, ride along its main streets and prospects.. Drive along world famous "Nevsky Prospect" lined with marble palaces of Russian royalty and aristocracy, with most fashionable boutiques. View Monastery of Alexander Nevsky with its magnificent Trinity Cathedral and its cemetery where Dostoevsky, Tchaikovsky and other world celebrities were buried. Visit St. Peter and St. Paul's fortress, view St. Isaac Cathedral with «The Bronze Horseman».  Stop in the Field of Mars with the eternal flame lit in the centre of the monument to victims of revolutions and wars, at the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood at its background, one of the most unusual monuments of Russian Orthodox. Drive through the Square of Arts which is a perfect classical ensemble of the city, enjoy an overwhelming beauty of the third largest square in the world, the Palace Square with the Alexander Column, the Triumphal Arch of the general Staff building, and the Winter Palace complex. Entrance fee to Peter and Paul's Fortress is included in the tour price.

Overnight at Rocco Forte Hotel D`Angleterre (4*).

Enjoy a private guided 5hr tour of the Hermitage and admire the gems of the collection. During the tour you will see the State Rooms of the Winter Palace, a part of the collection of paintings of Old Masters and other exciting exhibits and works of art. Value the splendour of the Gala stair-way, Peter's Memorial Hall, the Armorial Hall, the Gallery of 1812 with its numerous portraits, the Pavilion Hall and its various amusements and other gala rooms. You are sure to enjoy the works of applied arts, precious items and paintings. The collection of Western European art, numbering over 600,000 items, is considered to be one of the finest in the world. It presents all the stages of the development of art from the Middle Ages to the present. Enjoy masterpieces by outstanding Western European artists, as Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Giorgione, Titian, Michelangelo, Francisco de Goya, Renoir, Picasso and others. You will have an opportunity to see such world-famous masterpieces as works by Degas, Renoir, Pissarro, Van Gogh, Gauguin and others. Admire the richest collection of ancient and early medieval items, works of art from Ancient Greece and Rome, fabulous treasures of oriental culture and wonderful European art. (Entrance fee to Hermitage Museum is included in the tour price).

Refined luxury, splendour of high life, dramatic relationships and the history of rich aristocratic family are reflected in the expositions of Yusupov Palace, one of the most mysterious places in St. Petersburg. Yusupov Palace once belonging to princes Yusupovs noble family is one of the most beautiful palaces in St. Petersburg. Princes Yusupovs had always been in the center of high life. Wonderful balls and masquerades, regularly held at the palace, amazed the contemporaries with the luxury and refinement. The palace retains its genuine interiors of the 19th century. The influence of the art of various cultures can be traced in the Turkish study, Oaken dining-room, Musical chambers and the chamber of Henry II. The real gem of the palace is the exotic Moresque chamber. The luxurious decorations of the interiors are dazzling: murals, carvings, marble, mirrors, gilded chandelier, silk clothes and refined furniture. The cellar of the palace became the setting of the murder of one of the most scandalous figures in Russian history -Grigory Rasputin. The legendary favourite of the wife of Emperor Nicolas II, Rasputin convinced the royal family that he possessed supernatural powers and that only he could cure the heir to the throne Alexis, who suffered from haemophilia. Rasputin had strong influence on the decisions of the tsar and tsarina. The tour end in the Palace or at the hotel. Entrance fee is included in the tour price.

Overnight at Rocco Forte Hotel D`Angleterre (4*).

Take a full day tour to Pushkin, originally named Tsarskoe Selo (Tsar's Village), famous for the marvelous Catherine Palace and park. The town, also known as Pushkin, in honour of the great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, was the main summer residence of the royal family. The collection of the palace includes a large number of precious works of art, such as furniture, porcelain, statues, canvases, including personal belongings of Russian emperors and members of their families. Visit one of the most remarkable interiors of Catherine Palace, the Amber Room. Your private guide will tell the story of the Catherine Palace's construction, and will get to know about the tragic moments in the palace's history, connected with the Nazi occupation during the World War II. Continue to Pavlovsk, site of the only fully-restored former imperial palace following the Nazi’s ravage. The palace-and-park ensemble was presented by the Russian empress Catherine the Great to her son Paul on the occasion of the birth of his first son, Alexander. The palace's Greek Hall is adorned with green Corinthian columns making the ballroom the most elegant interior of the Palace in Pavlovsk.  The park of Pavlovsk is the largest park in Russia with  valleys,and various statues laid out at the end of the 18th century. Enjoy horse sleigh ride, the quintessential and breathtaking Russian winter experience.  Entrance fees and sleigh ride are included in the tour price.

Overnight at Rocco Forte Hotel D`Angleterre (4*).

Meet your driver for a private airport transfer in St Petersburg.

Depart from St. Petersburg international airport - end of itinerary.

Overnight at Depart.