Winter in Karelia

Arrival to Saint-Petersburg. Meeting with a guide at the airport.

Transfer to the hotel, check in.

Free time.

Optional: Dinner at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel. Check out (luggage is left in the hotel's storage room).

Sightseeing tour of winter Saint-Petersburg.

The Northern Capital delights visitors with magnificent landscapes every season. If you happen to be here in winter, then you are certainly in luck. In winter, Saint-Petersburg is transformed: the Neva is covered with ice, frost covers monuments and buildings, which creates a unique image of the city. To see the city fairs, the main streets, bridges, palaces under the cover of snow is a dream of many tourists.

Lunch in a local café.

Free time.

OPTIONAL

VISITING THE ICE RINK IN NEW HOLLAND PARK

There are many ways to have fun and spend time in winter. One of them is to visit the ice rink in New Holland Park! New Holland Park has become a huge art object in Saint-Petersburg, where in winter there is an ice field with an area of 2000 m2, as well as a heated recreation area with tables and chairs. You can get here directly from the rink without removing your skates and enjoy delicious warming drinks.

Return to the hotel for the luggage.

Transfer to the railway station.

Speed train “Lastochka” Saint-Petersburg – Petrozavodsk.

Transfer to the hotel. Check in.

Optional: Lunch boxes in the train / Dinner at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

City tour “Fascinating winter in Petrozavodsk”.

In winter, everything in Karelia is presented in new colors: the famous sights look even more majestic under the snow cover, and the clear frosty air is invigorating to the point of vertigo! During our tour, you will see the “heart” of winter Karelia – Petrozavodsk – a city that grew up on the shore of lake Onega from the factory settlement founded by Peter the Great in 1703, a few weeks after Saint-Petersburg. The emergence of Petrozavodsk is connected with the stormy historical events of the beginning of the XVIII century: the struggle for Russia's access to the Baltic sea, the reconstruction of the entire life of the country in the «European manner», the active development of industrial production.
You will get acquainted with the sights of the city, learn its history, and you will also have the opportunity to walk along the embankment of the city, which is the pride of Petrozavodsk residents.

Return to the hotel.

Lunch in the hotel.

Snowmobile safari tour along the prepared track.

Winter in Karelia is an ideal time and a wonderful place for exciting Snowmobile safari in the snow-covered Karelian surroundings. Everyone who comes here at this time is fascinated by the pristine beauty of this beautiful land. A cool, gentle winter without severe frosts can not but cause sincere joy and delight for both children and adults!

Return to the hotel. Free time.

Optional: Dinner at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Depart to Kizhy Island by hovercraft “Khivus-10” over the iced lake surface (~1,5 h for one way).

Visit to the Museum of wooden architecture.

A sightseeing tour of the main Museum exposition, during which you will get acquainted with the pearl of Russian wooden architecture – the Kizhy architectural ensemble. During the tour, you will see the unique multi-headed temples and iconographic decoration of the Intercession Church of the Kizhy Pogost, enter the house of a Zaonezhsky peasant, learn how and what these people lived, see the Church of the resurrection of Lazarus – the oldest in Russia, which was revered as an Orthodox Shrine.

Lunch in a local café.

A master class of the traditional crafts of the Zaonezhie region.

Working on the island of Kizhy, the masters carefully preserve traditional craft technologies and create copies of ancient household items before your eyes. An interactive training program will introduce you to the history of these items and the process of their manufacture. You can spin a thread, weave a belt or forge a nail – create an object with your own hands that will remind you of visiting Kizhy island.

Return to the hotel.

Free time.

Optional: Dinner at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Tour of the national reserve Kivach.

You will have a tour of the picturesque Karelian places in the natural reserve “Kivach”. Kivach waterfall is the most famous waterfall in Karelia, sung in Russian poetry as the “Northern hero”. Compressed by basalt rocks, the waters of the Suna river from an 11-meter height fall down in heavy streams, forming a powerful waterfall and creating an impressive noise. Kivach is beautiful at any time of the year. You will admire the winter waterfall Kivach in carved ice lace. The surrounding area of the waterfall is a protected area. On the territory of the reserve you will visit the Nature Museum, and in the arboretum, you will see a real Karelian birch.

Picnic lunch in the national reserve Kivach.

Transfer to the husky nursery. Excursion with a Dog sledding.

You will see Russia’s 40 best sled dogs, champions and participants of famous dog racing competitions. These dogs covered thousands of kilometers along the most difficult snow tracks. You will make an unforgettable sledge ride thought the pine forest along the prepared track of 2.5 km. You can either drive the sledge or enjoy the ride as a passenger. Upon return we will relax by the fire and have tea in the traditional “chum” (temporary dwelling of reindeer herders in the north).

Return to the hotel in Petrozavodsk.

Free time.

Option: Dinner at the hotel.

Breakfast at the hotel or breakfast boxes.

Check out.

Transfer to the railway station.

Speed train Petrozavodsk – Saint-Petersburg.

Arrival to Saint-Petersburg. Transfer to the airport.

End of the tour.