10D 7N The Best of Russia

Day 1 Check in at Changi Airport

Day 2 Singapore Moscow SQ62 0230/0910 L/CD

Upon your arrival in Moscow, meet and greet at the airport after the immigration customs. Then we will start the City tour which includes Sparrow Hills, embankments of the Moscow River, the University, the newly reconstructed Christ the Savior Cathedral and other main sights of the city. Later, we will have lunch in a local restaurant. After lunch, visit The Cathedral of Christ the Savior which is the tallest Eastern Orthodox Church in the world. The Cathedral had taken many years to build and did not emerge from its scaffolding until 1860; elaborate frescos by some of the best Russian painters continued in the interior for another twenty years. In 1931, the Cathedral was dynamited and reduced to rubble. In 2000, The Cathedral was totally rebuilt. Visit the Victory Hill (Poklonnaya Gora). It is at 171.5 metres, one of the highest spots in Moscow. In the 1960s, they decided to make it the open-air museum dedicated to the Russian victory over Napoleon. The Moscow triumphal arch, erected in wood in 1814 and in marble in 1827 to a design by Osip Bove, was relocated and reconstructed here in 1968. In 2005, President Putin inaugurated 15 extravagant bronze columns, symbolizing main fronts and navies of the Red Army during the World War II. Then, we will have Chinese Dinner. After dinner, transfer to the hotel.

Day 3 Moscow ( high-speed train ) St. Petersburg B/L/CD

After breakfast in hotel, you will be transferred to the railway station for St. Petersburg. Have a pleasant trip on the new comfortable high speed train "Sapsan", The Peregrine Falcon, or sapsan in Russian, is the fastest bird in the falcon family, therefore, it was an appropriate name for this new train, which can reach to a speed of up to 250 kmph. The seat designs and fittings on the Peregrine Falcon are taken into account of their passengers behaviour to ensure high comfort levels even on longer journeys. Upon your arrival in St. Petersburg, we will begin the City tour which includes the Nevsky Prospect - the main street of the city, the Bronze Horseman statue of Peter the Great, the first Stock Exchange, Decembrist's Square, Vasilievsky Island, Smolny Cathedral, Palace Square and the Admiralty building and many beautiful bridges of the city. Visit the legendary "Aurora" cruiser, currently preserved as a museum ship in St. Petersburg. She became a symbol of the Communist Revolution in Russia. We will have lunch in local restaurant and then, visit The Peter and Paul Fortress. It is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, Russia, designed by Domenico Trezzini and founded in 1703. The fort contains a number of buildings including the Peter and Paul Cathedral, where all Russian tsars from Peter I to Alexander III are interred; the remains of the Imperial martyrs, Nicholas II and his family and entourage, were also interred there more recently. Later, we will have Chinese dinner and will be transferred to the hotel.

Day 4 St. Petersburg B/L/CD

After breakfast in hotel, visit the Palace Square - the central city square of St Petersburg and the former Russian Empire. It was the setting of many events of worldwide significance. The centre of the square is marked with the Alexander Column (1830-34), designed by Auguste de Montferrand. This red granite column (the tallest of its kind in the world) is 47,5m high and weighs some 500 tons. It is set so well that no attachment to the base is needed. The square also serves as open-air venue for concerts by international acts, including Roger Waters of Pink Floyd fame, The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Paul McCartney and Madonna. St. Petersburg channels and rivers boat trip will give you the great opportunity to see the beauty of the city from water. Then, have lunch in local restaurant and we will go for a Walking tour "Three beauties". During this tour, you will walk through Nevskiy Prospect - the main street of St.Petersburg and will see three fantastic creations built in different times and styles - St.Isaac's Cathedral, Kazan Cathedral and the Church on the Spilled Blood with a visit to one of them. Later, a visit to the Souvenir Market in city centre. Later, have Chinese dinner and transfer back to the hotel.

Day 5 St. Petersburg Novgorod B/L/D

After breakfast in hotel, get ready to depart for Peterhof. We will begin the Excursion to Peterhof with a visit to the Grand Palace - the favorite residence of Peter the Great, after whom it's named. Visit the Peterhof Park. Peterhof constitutes a grandiose 18th -19th century architectural, fountain and park ensemble with an area of over a thousand hectares. Lunch in local restaurant. In a Russian Village, we will participate in Russian Wedding Entertainment Program. This program features a real Russian wedding where the guests themselves will play bride and groom, their parents, friends and guests. Our folklore ethnic theater actors will offer a merry performance, which consists of several scenes : “Meeting the Guests” ,“Giving Gifts”, “Purchasing The Bride”, Celebrating”. During the game the participants and guests of the wedding will be treated to honey and wine. Then, depart for Novgorod. Upon your arrival in Novgorod The Great, notwithstanding its name, Novgorod is the most ancient Slavic city recorded in Russia. The chronicle first mentions it in 859, when it was already a major station on the trade route from the Baltics to Byzantium. No other Russian city may compete with Novgorod in the variety and age of its medieval monuments. Medieval Novgorod was one of the greatest art centers of Europe. Its architectural traditions, school of icon-painting, jeweler’s and decorative applied art became famous all over the world. Later, you will be transferred to the hotel and dinner in local restaurant.

Day 6 Novgorod St. Petersburg B/L/CD

After breakfast in hotel, we will begin the city bus tour of Novgorod with a visit to the Kremlin of Novgorod and the Yaroslav’s court. It was princely compound in the city. Today it is roughly the area around the Trade Mart and the 3 Churches. The Trade Mart renovated and heavily modified in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, is all that is left of the princely palace itself. Later, visit the open-air architectural-ethnographic museum “Vitoslavlitsy” provides a whole complex of genuine folk wooden architecture, including ancient churches of the 16th-18th centuries and peasant houses of the 19th-early 20th centuries, exhibitions of folk art and everyday life items of Novgorod peasants of the same period. Have lunch in the local restaurant and depart for St. Petersburg. Upon your arrival, have a short break at the Victory Square at the Monument to the Heroic Defenders of Leningrad. Victory Square is home to the Monument to the Heroic Defenders of Leningrad, which commemorates the victims and survivors of the Siege of Leningrad. The monument consists of a 48-metre high obelisk, a large circular enclosure, and a subterranean Memorial Hall. Visit the Chocolate Museum - the world chocolate figures. It is the only chocolate boutique in St. Petersburg. Unique collections of chocolate figures, chocolate truffles with alcohol filling, marzipan of different tastes, vegetarian chocolate made of palm oil and soybean milk are represented in small rooms. The items are made of tree types of chocolate – black, milk and white. Absolutely all the exhibits are hand-made. Then, have Chinese dinner and you will be transferred back to the hotel after that.

Day 7 St. Petersburg ( high-speed train ) Moscow B/L/CD

After breakfast in hotel, we will have sightseeing at The State Hermitage Museum – the former Winter Palace of the Tsars. Designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli, the Rococo-style, green-and-white palace has 1,786 doors and 1,945 windows. The palace is now part of a complex of buildings known as the State Hermitage Museum which holds one of the world’s greatest collections of art. Many of the Winter Palace’s 1,057 halls and rooms are open to the public. Later, transfer to the railway station to Moscow. Have a pleasant trip on the new comfortable high speed train "Sapsan". The Peregrine Falcon, or sapsan in Russian. You will have lunch onboard the train (lunch boxes and hot tea will be served). Upon arrival in Moscow, you will have Chinese Dinner and then be transferred to hotel.

Day 8 Moscow B/L/CD

After breakfast in hotel, make an excursion trip to The Kremlin & visit the 3 Cathedrals. The Moscow Kremlin is a historic fortified complex at the very heart of Moscow, overlooking the Moskva River (to the south), Red Square (to the east) and the Alexander Garden (to the west). It includes four palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Kremlin Wall with Kremlin 20 towers. The complex serves as the official residence of the President of Russia. After lunch, we will visit the Moscow metro which is well known for the ornate design of many of its stations, which contains beautiful examples of socialist realist art. After which, make a walking tour along Arbat Street, the first pedestrian street in the center of Moscow with old history and interesting today's life. Then, we will have Chinese dinner. After dinner, enjoy an evening performance in the famous Russian Circus. Their performances cover all the familiar circus skills such as clowning, juggling, trapeze artistry, extreme balancing and strongman acts etc. All performers are by the Russians, whom are trained in the Russian circus tradition.

Day 9 Moscow Singapore SQ61 1520/0545+1 B

Day 10 Arrive Singapore