Russia & The Baltics

• Itinerary
• Prices & Information

Day 1 – Depart from MSP
Depart from MSP by Icelandair overnight flight and dinner.

Day 2 – Arrive in Helsinki     
Meet your tour director at the airport and depart for transfer to your centrally located hotel. Welcome to Helsinki, in this charming city with its unique blend of Eastern and Western European culture. The beautiful streets and boulevards create an air of spaciousness and  the white facades of its buildings have earned it the name of the “White City of  the North”.
Hotel: Scandic Simonkentta
Included Meals: Dinner

Day 3 – Helsinki to Tallinn   
Depart Helsinki and cruise to Tallinn where your central located hotel awaits  Your Estonian Escort will take you a walking tour of Tallinn  and give an introduction  This evening enjoy  dinner at charming local restaurant
Hotel: Hotel Olympia
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 4   Tallinn     
Touring this picturesque old city will introduce you to whole districts dating back to the Middle Ages that are still intact today. You’ll see the medieval upper and lower town with its narrow streets and beautiful merchants’ houses. Visit Pirita, the site of Olympic Yachting during the Moscow Olympics. Visit the song festival grounds, where national song festivals are held. In the afternoon, tour Kadriorg Palace, discovered in 1721 by the Russian Emperor Peter the Great. It was a gift for his wife, Catherine II, to use as their summer palace.  This afternoon and evening is free to explore more of Tallinn and have dinner at one of many good restaurants in Tallinn.
Included Meals: Breakfast

Day 5  Tallinn to Cesis
After breakfast we leave Tallinn and  head south to Tartu, the famous university town, where Estonia gained its statehood. We see the charming Old Town and the University founded in 1632. From Tartu we drive onwards into Latvia to Cesis, a Hanseatic city with wind ing streets, castle ruins and beautiful gardens. We see the ruins of the Castle of the Livonian Order and the St. John’s Church before we check in at the Hotel Cesis.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel:Hotel Cesis

Day 6   Cesis to Vilnius
Drive through the Gauja National Park to Sigulda, a popular holiday resort. See the ruins of the Episcopal Castle and the ruins of the of the Castle of the Knights of the Sword before we continue to Vilnius. Reach the magnificent Rundale Palace, the former summer residence of the Duke of Courland. After a guided tour of the palace, we travel through Lithuania to Vilnius late afternoon.  Tonight enjoy dinner with entertainment at local restaurant.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Hotel Naujasis

Day 7  Vilnius  
After breakfast, you begin the day with a city tour of Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital for over 600 years. The tour includes the city’s most beautiful churches – St. Peter and Paul, St. Ann’s Church, a gem of Gothic architecture. Continue to Vilnius University — one of the oldest universities in Eastern Europe (founded 1579). Your day will end with a tour to the lovely Trakai Castle, completed in the 14th century and built on an island amid lakes and forests.
Included Meals: Breakfast

Day 8  Vilnius to Riga  
Depart for Riga, the capital of Latvia. Stop in Siauliai and visit The Hill of Crosses, one if Lithuania’s holiest shrine. The next stop will be Rundale to visit the magnificent 18th Century Rundale Palace. This palace was designed by F.B. Rastrelli, who also designed the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg. Rundale Palace is considered the finest example of baroque architecture in the Baltic States.
Included Meals: Breakfast
Hotel: Hotel Riga

Day 9  Riga to St.Petersburg  
Tour Riga, a medieval Hanseatic town. The tour includes St. Peter’s Church, the Powder Tower, and Dome Cathedral, which boasts one of the world’s largest pipe organs. See the old town with some of the most beautifully restored merchant houses cozy beer cellars and cafes, historical monuments, and more. View some of the masterpieces of early 20th Century Art Nouveau architecture.  This evening enjoy a Baltic seafood dinner at the exclusive Restaurant “Kalku Varti” in Riga. Afterwards transfer to the Riga Railstation and depart by overnight train  to St. Petersburg.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Overnight Train

Day 10  Arrive in St. Petersburg
Arrive in St. Petersburg this morning for a guided city tour driving past the most important sights. Motoralong Nevskij Prospect, the main shopping street of St. Petersburg, passing Kazan Cathedral, Palace Square and the Winter Palace to Vassilevsky Island, with visit and superb views of the Peter and Paul Fortress, with its cathedral which is burial ground to many of the Russian tsars. Motor by St. Petersburg University and the Academy of Sciences before crossing the River Neva for photo stop at the statue of Peter the Great. Continue to St. Isaac’s Square for views and photos of St. Isaac’s Cathedral. Stop at Church of the Spilled Blood before passing the Field of Mars and the Summer Gardens with their fabulous Italian marble statues.  Visit the Hermitage, one of the world’s finest art museums beofre dinner and Russian folklore entertainment.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Petro Palace

Day 11  St. Petersburg
The morning is free in St. Petersburg.  Later, depart  for Tsarskoye Selo & Catherine’s Palace.  Visit the 18th century palace of *Catherine the Great, designed by the great Italian architect Rastrelli. Admire the dazzling splendor of the main facade performed in baroque style as well as exquisitely decorated interiors of the palace. Visit the famous Amber room and park.  Dinner is at a local restaurant.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 12  St. Petersburg –Helsinki
Spend the morning at your leisure here in St. Petersburg.  This afternoon depart by the Finnish train“Sibelius” for a 6 hours train ride from St. Petersburg to Helsinki. Arrive in Helsinki for the night.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Hotel Scandic Simonkentta
      
Day 13  In Helsinki   
Take in a city sightseeing tour of Helsinki, called the “Daughter of the Baltic”. Experience the bustling city harbor of Helsinki with its large ferries and picturesque islands and all fo the most important sights of this city. Tonight enjoy farewell dinner celebration.
Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
Hotel: Hotel Scandic Simonkentta

Day 14  Helsinki to Home
Most of the morning is free in Helsinki before we transfer  to the airport for our flight home.  Arrive home the same day in the late afternoon or early morning.
Included Meals: Breakfast