...B etter than every documentary...

The year 2005 the whole world was celebrating the 60th anniversary of the WWII or the Great Patriotic War as it is called in Russia.

We are offering you to visit the main battlefields on the territory of Russia and Ukraine. Journey from St. Petersburg to the Black Sea with stops in Moscow, Kursk, Stalingrad, Odessa and Kiev.

An exclusive tours of the former restricted areas. Expert guides.

Please note: All private travel will be customized upon your specific interests, dates and hotel choices. The itinerary can be modified according to your dates and needs if necessary.

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Highlights

◊ 18 days of Russia and the Ukraine

◊ Visit St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kursk, Volgograd (former Stalingrad), Yalta, Odessa and Kiev

◊ Visit “Road of Life”

◊ Tour to the Russian Federation Air Force and Tank Museums

◊ Experience the cruel history in a real Cold War Bunker

◊ "...the USSR recorded 250,000 deaths and 600,000 wounded soldiers..." - Learn about the Battle of Kursk from a Military Expert on site

◊ Visit Stalingrad: founded in 1589 as a stronghold to defend Russia's newly acquired land along the Volga

◊ Trip to the old Tartar Capital Bakhchysaray

◊ Visit to the labyrinth of Odessa's catacombs

◊ Visit to Chernobyl

We recommend: Minimum 18 days stay.

About the tour:

St. Petersburg Highlights: Famous Russian Navy War Ship "Aurora", Hermitage, White Cabinet of Lenin, Piskarevo Cemetery, Peter & Paul Fortress, Victory Square, "Road of Life" Trip

Learn about the siege. The Piskarevo Cemetery, the burial place of almost one million people who died during the siege. On the display there is a diary of a teenage girl Tanya Savicheva ( Russian Ann Frank), whose relatives all died during the siege. Peter & Paul Fortress will show the dark side of the Romanov reign - the imperial prison. At the Museum of the Monument to the Heroic Defenders of Leningrad on Victory Square see original documents and possessions of the city's residents and soldiers. Next we will travel the historic "Road of Life". This five hour trip will include a stop at the "Broken Ring" monument on Lake Ladoga and an expert explanation of the siege, the defense of Leningrad, and the role of the "Road of Life" in the city's survival during World War II. Of particular interest will be a visit to a small museum in the village of Osinovets that was used as an evacuation point during the siege. Some leisure time before boarding our overnight train to Moscow.

Moscow Highlights: Red Square, St. Basil's Cathedral, Lenin's Tomb, Christ The Savior Cathedral, Victory Park, The Russian Federation Air Force Museum, Museum of Armored Vehicles in Kubinka, Cold War Bunker and Secret Passages

Visit Victory Park, which houses the largest museum in the world of the Great Patriotic War. The museum, which opened on the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II, is designed to give post-war generations an appreciation of the victory that cost 35 million Russian lives. Special permission has been obtained for an exclusive tour of Russia's largest and best aviation museum, The Russian Federation Air Force Museum at Monino, approximately 38 km from Moscow. The museum opened in 1960 at a former air base (which operated from 1932 to 1956). Many of the Russian aviation designers (Tupolev, Ilyushin, Antonov, Mikoyan, etc.) have contributed exhibits and resources to the museum. Tour the suburban military town of Kubinka, where is the Museum of Armored Vehicles and Equipment. It has one of the world's largest collections of armored vehicles representing 11 countries. The 290 items on display include self-propelled guns, armored cars, reconnaissance and command vehicles, and a variety of technical and engineer support vehicles. Many of the Russian items are prototypes that were never mass-produced. In the afternoon – to the Cold war bunker in downtown Moscow. Around midnight we board the overnight train to Kursk.

Kursk Highlights: Battle Site of Kursk

First thing in the morning, we will meet our military expert for a tour of Kursk and its museums. The Battle of Kursk was monumental for numerous reasons, including being the site of the largest clash of armor during World War II. The USSR recorded 250,000 deaths and 600,000 wounded soldiers. Germans reported 100,000 deaths and 200,000 wounded. In late afternoon we depart by bus for Stalingrad.

Volgograd (former Stalingrad) Highlights: Memorial Complex Mamayev Kurgan (hill), Statue Mother Russia, Rossoshki Village Cemetery, Museum of Defence of Stalingrad

We will start from the memorial complex Mamayev Kurgan(hill). The hill is topped with the magnificent rendering of the statue Mother Russia, 52 meters high. To get a better feel of this terrible struggle, you can also visit a panorama of the Stalingrad Battle, a 360 degree lifelike depiction of the Stalingrad Battle. Later in the afternoon, we will travel 40 km outside to the war memorial devoted to fallen Soviet soldiers in Rossoshki village. It became very well-known for the cemetery, where the remains of 21.000 of German soldiers, fallen in the fierce battle for Stalingrad lie. The ensemble includes a monument "Mourning Mother", which was put up in 1999, and the replica of it will be set up in London in memory of World War II. The monument divides the cemetery from burial places of Russian soldiers.

We will furthermore visit the Museum of the Defence of Stalingrad which houses all kinds of weapons and uniforms of the Soviet soldiers who participated in the battle. A three-hour guided city tour to the main battle sites afterwards.

Simpheropol (Ukraine) Highlights: Crimean Riviera, Livadia's enormous complex of Tsar's Palaces

Early in the morning, we check out of hotel and off to the airport for the flight to Simpheropol via Moscow. We arrive in Simpheropol in the afternoon and take a 1.5 hour bus ride to Yalta, the principal city of the Crimean Riviera. In the late 19th c., the Russian aristocracy built palatial homes and hotels here and all along the spectacular coast. Russia's great writers Pushkin and Chekhov resided here, and Mark Twain was a visitor. In the afternoon, we travel 15 minutes west to Livadia, with its enormous complex of Tsar's palaces. It is here that Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin met in 1945 and agreed on the post-war division of Europe into East and West. Still further in the same direction, at Alupka, we will visit the park and spectacular, 19th C., Casa Loma-type palace of Count Voronstov.

Yalta-Sevastopol Highlights: Russian/Ukrainian Navy Base and Museum, Ruins of Greek City "Chersonese Taurica", Balaklava Battle Site

We spend all day on a guided tour of Sevastopol, which was founded by the Russian Navy at the end of the 18th.C. During the Soviet era, no foreigners were allowed anywhere in this area. Now the Russian and Ukrainian navies share the base. There is an interesting navy museum and an aquarium. On a peninsula, just outside the city, you will find the well preserved ruins of a large Greek city Chersonese Taurica, founded 500 B.C. as an independent Greek city-state. If you saw one of the several film versions of the "Charge of the Light Brigade", the suicidal attack of British troops on fortified Russian positions during the Crimean War (1854-56), you will be interested in seeing the actual site of this battle at Balaklava on the hills above Sebastopol. A panorama in the city depicts one of these battles.

Bakhchysaray-Odessa Highlights:Old Tartar Capital, 16th Century Mosque, Khan's Palace, Odessa's Obelisk and Eternal Flame, Primorsky Boulevard, Odessa Opera and Ballet Theater, Labyrinth of Catacombs, Military Settlement of Nerubaiskoye, Underground Walk

After checking out of our hotel, we travel to the old Tartar capital Bakhchysaray, Odessa. The palace is dominated by the graceful minarets of the 16th century mosque, which may be visited. After visiting Khan's Palace and Assumption Mountain Monastery, we take the overnight train to Odessa.

Perennially popular and much loved, Odessa celebrated its 200th anniversary in 1994. According to legend, its first mayor wanted to build a city to rival Paris' beauty. Generations of artists, poets and scientists have expanded the city's glory. Your city tour includes a viewing of the obelisk and eternal flame that honors the Unknown Sailor. We will then take a pleasant stroll along Primorsky Boulevard, the city's most popular promenade, lined with many of Odessa's finest buildings and monuments. Our walks takes us past the impressive Potemkin Staircase and the Odessa Opera and Ballet Theater, Europe's second grandest theater after Vienna.

Your exploration of Odessa would not be complete without a visit to the labyrinth of catacombs that lace their way under the city and its environs. Our journey begins in the village of Nerubaiskoye, originally built as a southern Cossack military settlement at the end of the 18thcentury. Here, your guide will escort you on a fascination underground walk of approximately 500 yards, including stops at the command post for the brave members of the World War II resistance effort. A recreation of the resistance headquarters will be visited in the local museum after you leave the catacombs. There will be leisure time in the afternoon before boarding the overnight train to Kiev.

Kiev Highlights: Kiev Boulevards and Parks, Monastery of the Caves, St. Sofia's Cathedral, St. Adrew's Cathedral, Cruise on Dnieper River, Babi Yar Site

We arrive early in the morning in Kiev, one of the oldest cities in Europe predating St. Petersburg by nearly 1,000 years. Your city tour will allow you to appreciate the city's broad boulevards, leafy parks and medieval monasteries perched majestically on bluffs above the Dnieper River. You will visit the monastery of the caves and St. Sofia's Cathedral, have some free time to explore St. Andrew's Cathedral, and enjoy a cruise on the Dnieper River. Next to the Museum of World War II, which includes an imposing 102-meter-high Mother Country statue, and a visit to Babi Yar, site of the infamous massacre of Ukraine Jews by the Nazis during World War II. From September 29 to 30, 1941, more than 33,000 Jewish residents of Kiev were marched to this site and systematically gunned down over the edge of the ravine. Another 100,000 people, including Jews, Gypsies and Sovet POWs, were executed at this site between 1941 and 1943. Last day take a full day trip to Chernobyl, 100 km north of Kiev.

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Please note:

All private travel is customized based on your specific interests, travel dates, included experiences, entrance fees and hotel choices. We will help you choose the perfect length of stay in each city, go over all hotel options, including upgraded rooms or suites if desired, and specific views and room features at each hotel. We invite you to tell us about your specific interests and “likes and dislikes” so we can further customize your trip to your exact needs. Minimum stay of 18 days to cover St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kursk, Volgograd (former Stalingrad), Yalta, Odessa and Kiev we would recommend .