13 nights from UK £ 2,185 / US $ 2,950 per person*
*Price based on 2 people travelling in a shared 4 berth second class cabin. Upgrade to your own cabin from UK £ 575 / US$ 780 per person. These prices are based on 2021 rates and are here to give guidance. Final quotes vary by date, exchange rates and are subject to availability.
PRIVATE TOUR - NOT A GROUP TOUR - CAN BE TAILORED
SEASON - YEAR ROUND WITH WEEKLY DEPARTURES
TOUR CODE : TS-B-04
DOWNLOAD THE TRIP DOSSIER
Download the extensive Trip Dossier for this tour as a PDF file to read offline or print. The trip dossier contains more details of departures dates and trip inclusions for this tour as well as background information on the destinations, trains and FAQs.
China’s Capital is an eclectic mix of Imperial splendour & 21st Century Asia.
🇷🇺 IRKUTSK & BAIKAL - 2 nights
Forward looking Siberian city and gateway to Lake Baikal.
🇷🇺 MOSCOW - 2 nights
Russia’s vast and iconic capital and the start of this railway adventure.
ON THE TRAINS - total 6 nights
We use the most comfortable and reliable trains possible for each leg.
OUR EXCLUSIVE TRIP GUIDEBOOK
This trip includes our exclusive 200+ page guidebook personalised to your trip with sections about the trains, destinations, timetables and emergency contacts and allowing you to be fully prepared for your trip of a lifetime - an invaluable resource!
DAY BY DAY ITINERARY
DAILY DESCRIPTIONS OF ACTIVITIES, MEALS & OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATION
Welcome to Beijing, China’s cultural and political capital and a real highlight with its extraordinary blend of ancient and modern sights. Your guide will greet you at the airport with a transfer by private car to your hotel. The rest of the day is free to relax from the long flight or start to explore the city with the help of your personalised and exclusive Trip Guidebook we send you before the trip. The area around your centrally located hotel is perfect for an introductory walk.
THE GREAT WALL AT STUNNING MUTIANYU & VISIT ONE OF BEIJING’s MARKETS
Today we will be showing you one of China’s most famous sights - the Great Wall. We visit the dramatic and less crowded Mutianyu section 70km from Beijing set amongst spectacular mountain scenery. Dating back to the 6th Century and largely rebuilt in the 16th century during the Ming Dynasty it is one of the best preserved sections of the wall largely due to the high standard of construction. The tour includes cable car tickets cable up and down the Wall.
Also today, if you wish, we can take you to one of Beijing’s many markets. Favourites are the Silk Market, Pearl Market and Panjiayuan antique market. If souvenir shopping isn’t for you other options are the Hutong street of Nanluoguxiang, the 798 Dashanzhi contemporary art area or a quick look at the impressive 2008 Olympic Stadium. You can discuss which is right for you with us in advance or your guide on the day.
Return to your hotel for a free evening to enjoy Beijing further or ask us about cultural activities.
TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, TIANANMEN SQUARE, FORBIDDEN CITY & SUMMER PALACE
Today you will see the main highlights of Beijing starting with the Temple of Heaven, considered by many to be the most beautiful building in China. On to vast Tiananmen Square, home to the Mao Mausoleum (it may be possible to visit if open) and Monument to the People’s Heroes before walking to the huge palace complex of the Forbidden City. We’ll walk up the middle axis from South to North taking in the splendour of the most important central buildings before finishing in a small and ancient garden by the north gate.
The last stop today is at the Summer Palace to the west of Beijing. Dominated by Kunming lake it is as popular an escape from the city for todays Beijingers as it was for the Imperial court over the centuries.
Return to your hotel with the rest of the evening free or just ask us for suggestions of shows or cultural activities.
TRAIN JOURNEY UP INTO INNER MONGOLIA REACHING THE CHINA MONGOLIA BORDER
Morning transfer to the station to catch your first train. Pass through Beijing’s suburbs before entering the grasslands of inner Mongolia, an expansive land of villages and farms. Evening arrival at the China-Mongolia border at Erlian. Here the carriages are raised up (with you still in them!) and the new bogies of the Mongolian gauge fitted making for a unique experience. Once completed the train continues across the border to the Mongolian town of Zamyn-Ude for the Mongolian immigration formalities. By this time it is late as you continue your journey in darkness through the Gobi desert.
THROUGH THE GOBI DESERT & GRASSLANDS OF MONGOLIA TO THE RUSSIAN BORDER
If you wake up early this morning you will find yourself in the heart of Mongolia’s stoney Gobi desert. Keep your eyes peeled for camels! Gradually the landscape changes from desert to grassland as you approach Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar.
The afternoon is spent crossing Mongolia’s picturesque and wild grasslands and you will see plenty of gers, the homes of the local nomads. Evening arrival at the Mongolia-Russia border at Sukhe-Bator. The stops on each side are long but manageable as Mongolia’s track is the same gauge as Russia so the bogies do not need to be changed this time.
MEALS: None today - however the train does have a dining car.
PASS ULAN UDE & TRAVEL ALONG THE SHORES OF LAKE BAIKAL TO ARRIVE AT IRKUTSK
Today is usually the scenic highlight of the entire journey, a day of lake, forest and mountain views. Early in the morning you reach Ulan Ude before joining the main Trans-Siberian line on to Moscow. Later in the day the train rumbles around the Southern shore of stunning Lake Baikal often passing within a matter of meters of the lake and providing endlessly changing vistas. Irkutsk itself is early afternoon.
Transfer from the station the 2 hour drive through dense forest to the remote village of Bolshoe Goloustnoe located inside Pribaikalsky National Park. The setting is quintessential Siberia with almost all the village's houses made of wood running up to the lakeshore of beautiful Baikal, among the deepest in the world at 1,642 meters. Many of the 700 residents have lived their entire lives in the village which dates back to 1673.
Your accommodation here is in a Siberian house in the heart of the village. Once settled in take a walk with your guide through the village including a visit to the church. We walk along the lakeshore and can also climb into the forests and hills for views of Lake Baikal (good shoes or walking boots advisable). Return to the house for a pre-dinner Banya - the traditional Russian Sauna. Your guide will explain the procedure and after a hearty Siberian homestyle meal should set you up for a great nights sleep!
A DAY EXPLORING THE LAKE SHORE VILLAGE OF BOLSHOE GOLOUSTNOE & SURROUNDS
There is no rush to wake this morning. Enjoy a hearty breakfast before heading off for a walk up a nearby mountain ascending 400 meters for panoramic views of Baikal (if this is too strenuous or the weather is bad your guide will make other suggestions). A leisurely return to the house for lunch. Free time in the afternoon to relax back at the house or further explore the village and surrounding forest and hills or enjoy another invigorating Banya.
IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT THIS LAKE BAIKAL STOPOVER Bolshoe Goloustnoe is a small village on the shores of Baikal and provides a genuine Siberian experience in beautiful surroundings. The village is far enough from the Irkutsk to keep day trippers to a minimum and has retained it charm. However, this does mean accommodation is in the traditional Siberian style of log cabins, separate, outside buildings for drop (not flush) toilets and a Russian banya (sauna) for washing. For many this is all part of the experience and feedback is overwhelmingly positive. If you would prefer more comfort we can arrange a higher level guesthouse in Bolshoe Goloustnoe or a different stopover in the more built up village of Listvyanka.Ask us for more information.
MEALS: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner at the Guest House.
RETURN TO IRKUTSK WITH A CITY TOUR AND FREE TIME TO RELAX AT YOUR HOTEL UNTIL A LATE DEPARTURE
After breakfast drive the 2 hours back to Irkutsk arriving late morning at your hotel. Once settled in you will have a 2 hour walking tour of the city centre including the park and War Memorial, some of the beautiful churches along the Angara river, the main city centre streets and the statue of Alexander III - the Tzar responsible for the Trans-Siberian railway.
Return to your hotel with free time until a transfer in the early hours of the morning for the train on to Moscow.
GOOD SCENERY TODAY PASSING KRASNOYARSK & ONTO NOVOSIBIRSK
Some good scenery today with a landscape consisting of gently rolling hills and dense forests of larch, pine and birch trees. There are many rivers and ponds and if it hasn’t happened before now you will start to comprehend just how vast and quite untouched much of Russia is. Pass attractive and prosperous Krasnoyarsk reaching Siberia’s largest city of Novosibirsk in the evening.
MEALS: None today - however the train does have a dining car.
LAST DAY IN SIBERIA, EKATERINBURG & CROSS EURO-ASIA BORDER
The scenery today is flat, often swampy or forested and with few major settlements except for Omsk. Late in the evening you enter the rolling hills of the Ural's before reaching Ekaterinburg, historic capital of this mineral rich region. Shortly after Ekaterinburg you pass the Europe Asia border and so leave Siberia behind to the East.
MEALS: None today - however the train does have a dining car.
THE LAND BECOMES MORE UTILIZED & POPULATED AS MOSCOW IS APPROACHED
Your last day on the train through a relatively highly populated region by Russian standards - a landscape of farms, small towns and villages. There are a few large cities to stop at but by now most people’s minds are focused on the final stop of Moscow reached tomorrow morning.
MEALS: None today - however the train does have a dining car.
Morning arrival at Moscow’s large Yaroslavsky station where a driver will be meeting you to transfer you to the hotel. Note that due to parking restrictions and enthusiastic traffic police you will need to check-in yourselves.
This afternoon you will have the perfect introductory walking tour of central Moscow designed to orientate and open up its hidden treasures. Your guide will take you along the main streets and less visited back roads to see the diversity of architectural styles from the austere and restrained Russian style to richly decorated Moscow Baroque, elegant Empire, fascinating Art Nouveau and even Pseudo-Chinese and Moorish. Hear stories and legends not found in the guidebooks as well as passing the most important sites in the city including the Bolshoi Theatre, Tverskaya street, GUM Department store, Red Square and St Basil’s Cathedral.
FREE DAY TO EXPLORE RUSSIA’S CAPITAL & ITS MANY WORLD CLASS SIGHTS
A free day to explore Moscow. The city has much to offer whatever the weather from the famous museums such as Pushkin Fine Arts and Tretyakov Art Gallery to more outdoor areas including the Park of the Fallen Idols and Novodevitchy Convent. Of course, if the weather is not so good Moscow is one of the few cities where a day spent on the metro is a tourist attraction with many beautiful stations to visit and all for the price of a single ticket! For relaxing we recommend the bars, galleries and cafes of the Red October district or the fabulous Gorky Park.
DEPART MOSCOW & RUSSIA AFTER YOUR EPIC TRANS-SIBERIAN ADVENTURE
Today is a free until a transfer to your onward travel from Russia. We sincerely hope that you will have enjoyed your epic journey as much as we have many times already and we look forward to welcoming you back on another one of our trips!
MEALS: Hotel Breakfast.
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Thank you so very much. We had the best time!
AMY WEGERHOFF
"Your company really did an amazing job on this trip."
ENGELA POTGIETER
"Nothing short of outstanding & the fulfilment of a lifetimes dream."
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