The Trans Siberian Railway & Naadam Festival
UlaanBaatar to Moscow ( Westbound )
A cultural tour of Russia & Mongolia

The longest and most famous railway journey in the world, the Trans Siberian traverses Russia from Europe to the Orient. Changing time zones and the urgency to arrive are lost in the soothing gait of the rails and the comfort of our cars. Eric Newby summed it best in his book, The Big Red Train Ride, "There is no railway journey of comparable length anywhere in the world.The Trans Siberian is the big train ride. All the rest are peanuts." We culminate this journey viewing the many Mongolian cultural activities at the world famous Naadam festival.

Day 01: Arrive Ulaanbaatar
International arrivals are met and transferred to a centrally located hotel in the heart of this intriguing city. There is free time to explore before we have a welcome reception and dinner in a city restaurant. This is a great time to get to know fellow travellers with whom we will be sharing this 13 days adventure.
Overnight: Hotel, Ulaanbaatar (3 nights) (D)

Day 02: Ulaanbaatar
Today we spend a full day at the festival. We get to observe the elaborate opening ceremony which consists of local dancers, athletes, horse riders and musicians, before watching the main competitions. (B, L, D)

Day 03: Ulaanbaatar
After a further half day at the Festival, we take a city tour which includes a visit to the Gandam Monastery. After spending some time at the central square with its impressive monument to the legendary ruler, Gengis Khan, we visit the National Museum, which gives us a comprehensive insight into this fascinating land and people. (B, L, D)

Day 04: Ulaanbaatar
We have a day to enjoy the magnificent alpine scenery of Terelj, one of the most beautiful places in Mongolia. We can take a leisurely stroll through meadows carpeted with edelweiss and a dazzling variety of other wild flowers; view fascinating rock formations against a backdrop of pine covered mountains; or wander along the wooded banks of a mountain stream. The more adventurous of us can go horse riding in the 300,000 hectare Gorkhi-Terelj National Park. Alternatively, we can spend the day in Ulaan Baatar with its many opportunities for leather or cashmere shopping. Tonight we board the Golden Eagle and have time to settle into our modern, stylish cabins before enjoying dinner in one of our beautifully designed restaurant cars. There is then time to listen to our resident pianist in the comfortable bar car.
Overnight: On Board (8 nights) (B, L, D)

Day 05: Ulan Ude
This morning we have time to relax on board the Golden Eagle. As well as watching the ever changing scenery, there is time to chat with fellow guests in the bar car, or maybe watch a DVD in our cabins. Crossing the border into Russia we arrive in Ulan Ude, capital of the Buryat Republic. Our tour here includes a visit to the Village of Old Believers where we have time to learn about the local culture and history of these unique people. (B, L, D)

Day 06: Lake Baikal
Just one of the many highlights of our journey; we wind our way through tunnels and round cliffs along the shoreline of Lake Baikal, the world’s largest freshwater lake. The scenery we pass is stunning and the snow-covered mountains on the distant shore form a beautiful background to this awe-inspiring lake. Stopping at one of the bays we have a barbeque on the beach (weather permitting). The brave can even go for a swim! We then board a hydrofoil which takes us to Listvyanka, a small Baikal village nestled at the base of the surrounding hills. (B, L, D)

Day 07: Irkutsk
We have a morning arrival into the “Paris of Siberia”, Irkutsk. Our tour includes a cultural immersion into the major sights and museums of this fascinating city, which include the classic wooden architecture that this area is renowned for. This afternoon after a tour of the Count Volkonsky’s house museum we enjoy a private concert performed in our honour. (B, L, D)

Day 08: Abakan
Heading west we enjoy the peaceful pace on board enjoying the scenery. Today there will be the choice of attending one of the various lectures and lessons on board, socialising in the bar car and if time permits, we will have a short stop in Krasnoyarsk, which lies on the Yenisei river and is the third largest city in Siberia. (B, L, D)

Day 09: Novosibirsk
We stop in this modern “Soviet” city and visit the famous Opera House, Lenin Square and Akadem Gorodok. This fascinating “Academy Town” is the educational and scientific centre of Siberia. (B, L, D)

Day 10: Yekaterinburg
This afternoon we arrive in Yekaterinburg, the last city in Asia and capital of the Urals. Our city tour includes the Romanov execution site, now a Church dedicated to the memory of the Russian Royal family and the monument to the Europe/Asia divide where we can stand with a foot in each continent. (B, L, D)

Day 11: Kazan
After a morning arrival we have time to discover Kazan, the picturesque capital of Tatarstan on the Volga River. One of the highlights of today is our visit to the Kremlin fortress, a UNESCO world heritage site, containing a stunning mosque and Russian Orthodox cathedral. Tonight we have our final dinner on board the Golden Eagle, our home for the last 7 days. (B, L, D)

Day 12: Moscow
Mid-morning arrival in Moscow. We spend the rest of the day touring the amazing sites of this vibrant city, including Red Square and the Kremlin. We transfer to a centrally located five-star hotel for a one-night stay and enjoy our farewell dinner where we say our goodbyes.
Overnight: Moscow (1 night) (B, L, D)

Day 13: Depart Moscow
After breakfast in the hotel, free time in the rapidly-changing Russian capital brings our tour to an end (note that it is possible that the Kremlin visit could be this morning). Airport transfers are provided for our departing flights. (B)

We offer two classes of sleeping car accommodation on our trains. First class and Deluxe class.

First class offers comfortable accommodation in air-conditioned cars with nine twin-berth compartments, all fitted with lower berths on the Trans Siberian Express, and eight twin-berth compartments, upper / lower, on the China Orient Express. The beds convert into comfortable sofas for daytime travel and there is ample space for luggage storage under the beds and in a recess above the corridor. Clothes hangers are provided and the cars are well appointed with mirrors, bedside table, reading lamps and space for the storage of small items. On the China Orient Express a washbasin and shower is shared between adjacent compartments. On the Trans Siberian Express there is a completely separate shower car. A washroom / toilet is located at each end of every sleeping car, one of which contains a chemical WC for the convenience of passengers' use during station stops.

Deluxe class on the Trans Siberian Express offers luxurious accommodation that equals or surpasses the best luxury trains in the world today. Each car provides four compartments, each of which can be configured for double, twin or single occupancy. Every cabin has its own en-suite shower and WC, together with audio system and DVD / VCR with latest flat screen plasma television, air-conditioning with individual climate control, a wardrobe for clothes, and space for luggage storage. There is also a small bar / lounge for the exclusive use of the passengers in each car. In China there are no fully en-suite cars available, but the China Orient Express offers the best accommodation available. The cars are the same as the first class sleeping cars, with eight compartments sharing a washroom and shower between adjacent compartments. A washroom / toilet is located at each end of every sleeping car. In deluxe class couples will be allocated two compartments with a washroom between, singles will share the washroom with another single.

The restaurant car(s) will serve three meals per day (except where meals are taken off the train) and each sleeping car will have two attendants who provide tea and coffee throughout the tour and make up the beds each night during dinner. A Bar Car will also be included in the formation of both trains.

We do not operate a 'fixed formation' train, we vary the composition to suit the number of passengers. Maximum capacity is 96 passengers and we generally expect to run each departure with a minimum of 64 passengers. A typical train formation for 64 passengers is 13 cars, comprising First class sleeping cars, Deluxe class sleeping cars, Restaurant and Bar cars, Shower car (Trans Siberian Express only), Staff, Generator and Office cars, with a total staff complements of around 40-60. These are comfortable, well appointed modern trains, ideal for your long journey through China and Russia.

For more information/pictures of the train (Russian portion) please feel free to download/view the following images:
Train Facilities 1, Train Facilities 2, Restaurant & Bar Car Facilities, Sleeping Car Facilities

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Departure Dates

2008 English Speaking Departures Jul 10, 2008 2009 English Speaking Departures Jul 10, 2009

Inclusions

Tour Price Includes Tour Price Does Not Include Train Accommodation as mentioned International Airfare Hotel as mentioned or similar Airport/Departure Taxes Meals as mentioned with beer, wine or soft drinks during meals Insurance / Visas All sightseeing and transfers by private transportation   Services of local English speaking guides   Entrance Fees to Museums and Sites

Tour Price

We accept payment in US $ (US Dollars), CA $ (Canadian Dollars) or equivalent EURO (for clients outside North America). Bestway Tours & Safaris offers conversion rate protection. Once full payment has been received, and no modification has been made to the tour itinerary, we will honour that rate. For complete payment procedures, please download Bestway_Payment_Info.pdf Note: to read this file you must have Adobe Acrobat.

Departure Double Occupancy Single Room Supplement Silver Class US $ 11395 • CA $ 11395 US $ 5200 • CA $ 5200 Gold Class US $ 12365 • CA $ 12365 US $ 6000 • CA $ 6000 Special Note: Silver Class (Twin share): Deposit for this particular tour will be $ 4000.00 per person. Gold Class   (Twin share): Deposit for this particular tour will be $ 5000.00 per person. Final tour payment is due no later than 90 days prior.

Estimated International Airfare - International airfare is NOT included in this tour

Canada - West Coast CA $ 1800 USA - West Coast US $ 1600 Canada - East Coast CA $ 2000 USA - East Coast US $ 1800

Participants

This tour operates on a minimum of 64 and a maximum of 116 participants.

Notes

Customised Itinerary If you would like to have a tour on dates other than the above ones or with a customised itinerary, please contact us and we will be happy to work out an exclusive program for you. Foreign Language Departures Please contact us for information on French, German, Italian and Spanish speaking departures. You may e-mail us at bestway@bestway.com or call us at 604.264.7378. Residents of U.S.A./Canada may call us toll free at 1.800.663.0844.