RUSSIA: St. PETERSBURG & MOSCOW

The Kosher Travel Club, a joint production of Eddie's Travel and Shai Bar Ilan Geographical Tours, invites you to experience the Pearls of Russia. Moscow, Russia’s capital, is an exciting and vibrant city. It is rich in history, politics, tradition, authority and religion. St. Petersburg, on the other hand, is Russia‘s most romantic and culturally important city. Discover the fascinating Kremlin in Moscow and the splendor of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Experience Moscow’s powerful present and encounter St. Petersburg’s imperial past. Each city has a long history of Jewish involvement at multiple levels. Our combined Moscow and St. Petersburg tour will leave you with unforgettable memories of Russia‘s most interesting and important cities.

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Full Itinerary

Day 1 Tuesday: St Petersburg

Arrival to St Petersburg and transfer to the hotel including an orientation tour. We’ll start with an introductory tour of this 300-year old city, formerly the capital of Tsarist Russia. We’ll view some of its many squares, its cathedrals and its palaces. We will drive along the central boulevard: Nevsky Prospekt, and pass by the Kazan Cathedral. We will enjoy a view on the Winter Palace, located between the Neva River and the Palace Square. We’ll see the statue of Peter the Great, the battleship Aurora, and the Church of the resurrection. We will stop in front of the Cathedral of St. Isaac, one of the most opulent in all of Russia, as well as the Monument of Nicholas I which stands on the square.
Overnight at Angleterre hotel or similar.
www.angleterrehotel.com

Day 2 Wednesday: St Petersburg

Today we'll visit the Peter and Paul Fortress in order to visit the Peter and Paul Cathedral. It is here where Peter the Great and many members of the Romanov dynasty coming after him are buried. The last Tsar buried there was Nicholas II and his family, after their remains were discovered in an unmarked mass grave. After midnight we highly recommend a night tour, “The White Nights of St.Petersburg” in order to see the opening of the bridges. (Optional Extra).
Overnight at Angleterre hotel or similar.
www.angleterrehotel.com

Day 3 Thursday: St Petersburg

This morning we’ll start the day with a visit at the Winter Palace and the world famous Hermitage Museum. The Hermitage houses a collection exceeding 3 million pieces of art, including works by Leonardo da Vinci, Rafael, Van Gogh, French impressionists and many more. We will visit some of the State Rooms as well. After the museum we’ll have a boat ride on the Neva River and some of the city's main canals, and soak up the views of St. Petersburg’s magnificent architecture, as we pass beneath some of the 400 bridges that pass over the river and the canals. In the evening we recommend going to see one of the ballet performances for which St. Petersburg is renowned. (Optional Extra).
Overnight at Angleterre hotel or similar.
www.angleterrehotel.com

Day 4 Friday: St Petersburg

After breakfast we’ll head out to Peterhof, the Summer Palace of Peter the Great, designed much the same as the Palace of Versailles, and renowned for its gardens and many fountains and its waterfalls. After our visit we continue to the Palace of Yekaterina in the town of Pushkin. This palace became famous thanks to the amber room that was recently restored. Here, Tsar Alexander founded the Lyceum - a school for children of the nobility, where the famous author Alexander Pushkin studied. We then return to St. Petersburg, while on the way we will pass by the impressive monument to the heroes of the 900-day siege of the city during World War II. Then back to our hotel for preparations for Shabbat.
Overnight at Angleterre hotel or similar.
www.angleterrehotel.com

Day 5 Shabbat: St. Petersburg

After Shabbat services in the magnificent Choral Synagogue, restored and renovated by the philanthropist Edmond Safra, we’ll walk over to the majestic palace of Felix Yusupov, the place where Gregory Rasputin was assassinated. The palace contains wax figures of those who planned and carried out the murder in December 1916. After the tour we’ll return to the restaurant for our Shabbat dinner and after Mincha prayers we return to our hotel for some rest and relaxation.
Overnight at Angleterre hotel or similar.
www.angleterrehotel.com

Day 6 Sunday: St. Petersburg - Moscow

Today we’ll fly to Moscow. Upon arrival we’ll depart for a panoramic tour of the city, which became capital of Russia in the 14th century. We’ll drive along the banks of the Moscow River, pass by the walls of the Kremlin, walk on Red Square and stop in front of the Mausoleum of Lenin. We then drive by the Bolshoi Theater, the statue of Karl Marx and the former KGB Center. We’ll visit Moscow’s famous underground stations that were designed by various Russian artists, as well as the renewed Church of the Savior. We’ll visit the Choral Synagogue, made famous during the time of the “refuseniks” where Golda Meir visited when she was Israel’s ambassador to the Soviet Union.
Overnight at Marriott Moscow Grand hotel or similar.
www.marriott.com/hotels

Day 7 Monday: Moscow

This morning we’ll tour Victory Park the site that integrates a church, synagogue and mosque. Afterwards we’ll visit the Museum of the Battle of Borodino, the famous battle between the Russian Army and that of Napoleon in 1812. The museum is built as a large circle creating a panorama, on the walls all around an impressive painting describing the battle. In the afternoon we’ll stroll down the famous, bustling Arbat pedestrian mall where Pushkin and his friends lived. The mall is lined with coffee houses and restaurants. In the evening we recommend a night tour of the city, to see how beautifully and creatively its buildings are lit up. (Optional Extra).
Overnight at Marriott Moscow Grand hotel or similar.
www.marriott.com/hotels

Day 8 Tuesday: Moscow

Today we’ll visit the Kremlin. We’ll tour the Cathedrals Square and visit the State Armoury that houses the treasures of the Tsars. We continue to the burial pantheon next to Novodevichy Convent where important figures of Great Russia and the former Soviet Union are buried, along with some notable Jewish artists and writers. From the gallery we’ll head for a cruise on the Moscow River from where we’ll see the famous “White House.” It was here that Boris Yeltsin, then mayor of Moscow, launched his failed coup attempt. In the evening we recommend seeing the International Folklore Show. (Optional Extra).
Overnight at Marriott Moscow Grand hotel or similar.
www.marriott.com/hotels

Day 9 Wednesday: Moscow - Home Gateway

After breakfast we'll visit to the Tretyakov Gallery, where Russian art from the 12th to the 20th centuries are displayed. Afterwards we'll spend the day at leisure, strolling around the city or doing some last minute shopping. In the evening we’ll make our way to the airport for our flight to our home gateway.

Tour Code	ERUS0708	ERUS0409
Tour Start Date	Aug 6, 2012	Sept 4, 2012
Tour End Date	Aug 15, 2012	Sept 13, 2012
Price Land Only	$3720	$4,420
Price with flights from Tel Aviv	$4,340	$5,040
Single Supplement	$740	$1,330
Pre/Post Hotel Night	$290 twin share $250 per single	$350 twin share $290 per single

Important:

• There may be changes to the schedule and hotel reservations dependent upon internal flights. We will make every effort to visit every location mentioned.

PRICE INCLUDES

• Domestic flight
• 5* Hotels
• Entrance fees as per the itinerary
• Comfortable air conditioned touring coach
• Kosher Half board & lunch packs daily
• FTwo Professional experienced English-speaking Eddie's Travel guides
• Local English-speaking Guide as required

PRICE EXCLUDES

• Travel & Health Insurance
• International Flights
• Personal expenses
• Tips for local service providers US$90 per person
• Shows and evening entertainment not included in the itinerary
• Personal expenses
• Miscellaneous expenses such as departure fees, visas, security surcharges etc. where applicable.
• Tip for our tour guide (Recommended: $3 per person per day)

Deposit, Cancellation Fees & Policy:
A $500 USD Deposit per person must be received at the time of booking in order to confirm your reservation. Payment in full is due 90 days before departure. A minimum number of participants are required to operate tour dates. If a minimum number has not been reached prior to tour departure and the tour is cancelled you will receive a FULL refund.

• 90 days before departure bookings are refundable less a $100 administration fee
• 60-90 days prior to departure: $500 + $100 per passenger
• 30-60 days prior to departure: $1,000 + $100 per passenger
• Less than 30 working days prior to departure: 100% of total - no refund
• We strongly recommend purchasing Travel Insurance.

Travel Insurance

Travel insurance encompassing both cancellation and medical insurance is very important and we can not stress that enough. We strongly recommend that our clients are adequately insured when travelling. It is crucial to purchase the travel insurance within 14 days from the 1st payment that you make for this trip (flights/cruise/tour etc). Your payment is made directly to the insurance company.

We highly recommend the 'cancel for any reason' upgrade option.

Our preferred policies are Travel Safe (USA & Canadian residents), Travel Select (USA residents) and Global Trip Protection Elite (All other Nationalities).

For an obligation free quote and further details email Yonah insurance@eddiestravel.com