Voyage to the Island of Sun

Less than within a week you will visit Irkutsk city – the capital of Eastern Siberia, Peschanaya Bay called Siberian Riviera and the most sacred site of lake Baikal – Olkhon Island.

Itinerary

• 1 day
• 2 day
• 3 day
• 4 day
• 5 day
• 6 day
• Tour budget (based on double occupancy)
• The price includes
• The price excludes

Day 1

Arrival in Irkutsk city. Meeting and assistance at the airport. Transfer to your hotel. Check in ^* Lunch in the hotel restaurant. City tour with the visit to the Cathedral of Holly Sign ^** Visit to the Museum of Decembrists ^***. Return to your Hotel. Dinner (optional, not included). Leisure time. Overnight.

* In case there are no rooms available the check in will be after 1 pm (after the city tour).

** Apart from ornate and rich iconostasis the cathedral is famous for its graveyard where you can see the tombs of Decembrist Mukhanov, Beschasnov, Trubetskaya and Grigory Shelekhov, explorer of Alaska.

*** In the past the mansion belonged to one of the leaders of Decembrist revolutionaries – Russian aristocracy who were banned to Siberia after their attempt in December of 1825 to overthrow the Russian Tsar.

Day 2

Breakfast. Departure to Listvyanka settlement located on Lake Baikal shore. En route a guided tour to Taltsy – the Museum of Russian Wooden Architecture in the open air ^* Transfer to the beginning of the headwaters of the Angara River to see the famous Shaman Rock. Check in your Hotel, lunch. Visit to the Church of Saint Nicolas the Wonderworker ^** – the guardian angel of all the travelers in the world. Visit to Baikal Museum ^***. Return on foot to your hotel. Dinner.

* There is a numerous number of ethnographical and architectural sights in the museum. The oldest building on a site is Spass Tower of Ilimsk Fortress (1667) and active Kazan Chapel (1679)

** Built in the middle of the XIX century by Ksenophont Serebryakov. Dedicated to Saint Nicolas – the guardian angel for all the travelers.

*** Baikal Museum exhibits the lake’s unique samples of flora and fauna: a rich collection of minerals, different kinds of fish and other organisms inhabiting the lake.

Day 3

Breakfast, packing up and departure for the boat station to start the aquatic part of our journey towards Peschanaya Bay ^* (6 hrs sail) Upon arrival – visit to the bay and the neighboring Babushka Bay. A light hike to the Big Belfry Cliff located nearby. Return aboard. Dinner. Overnight.

* Peschnaya Bay is a nature landmark of Lake Baikal, often called ”Siberian Riviera”. It is the only place in entire Eastern Siberia where the average annual temperature is above zero Celsius ( + 0,4C).

Day 4

We proceed towards Olkhon Isle. Lunch. Arrival at Khuzshir settlement – the center of the Island. Transfer to the tourist camp. Accommodation. Dinner. Russian Banya experience upon request (optional service). Overnight.

Day 5

Breakfast. A trip to Khoboy cape ^* located northwards of the Isle. En route – drive through the Sand Tract (20 km Northwards from Khuzhir settlement) famous for its sand dunes ^** Picnic on the shore. Return to the camp. Overnight.

* is located near the widest part of Lake Baikal (79,8 km). Near the northernmost point of this cape there’s a special site (a small platform) that was used for carrying on the so-called “ tailagan” – gatherings of shamans. From the cape one can often see Baikal nerpas – fresh-water seals, the lake’s only aquatic animals.

** They founded a little settlement on a shore of 20 houses in 1950. By the beginning 70-th the settlement was absolutely sand blown.

Day 6

Early breakfast. Departure from the camp. Transfer to the ferry station and further trip to Irkutsk City. En route stop to have a snack in the local cafe. Upon arrival we transfer you to the railroad station/airport to depart for Moscow.

Tour budget (based on double occupancy)

• Single supplement, Rubles – 3 680

The price includes:

• Hotel double occupancy accommodation for one night in Irkutsk City Hotel (***star category), accommodation for one night in Listvyanka Settlement, two day accommodation on Olkhon Island in a tourist camp.
• Sail boat freight;
• Full board as mentioned in the program (except dinners on days 1,2);
• All ground and water transfers as mentioned in the program;
• Bilingual guide;
• Tour and entrance fee as mentioned in the program.

The price excludes:

• Other items not specifically mentioned as included or mentioned as ‘optional’.