Pearls of the southern steppes. Sightseeing tour to Kalmykia, Astrakhan and Volgograd regions

After breakfast, we go on an excursion to the places where wild birds congregate along the Kumo-Manych depression or to Lake Manych-Gudilo to explore its unique flora and birdwatching (duration – 4 hours). 

Pelicans, cormorants, herons, loaves and many other birds live here on the islands blown by steppe winds.

Next, we will have a picnic in nature in the steppe and go to the parking lot "camel island", where we will ride camels. 

After that, we will go to the City Chess - chess town for a sightseeing tour, visit a souvenir shop and a museum of nomadic peoples there, where you will shoot arrows, learn how Kalmyk tea "Jomba" is prepared and will be able to get acquainted with "Todo bichig" – old Kalmyk vertical writing. 

Here, you can try on Kalmyk national costumes and take a photo. 

In the evening we will have dinner and go to the hotel. 

The length of the route is 150 km.

In the morning you will have breakfast at the hotel and go on a trip to Kalmykia.

The route will pass along the shores of the salty Mekletian lakes, in the water of which the microscopic crustacean Artemia Salina lives, coloring the water pink and taking part in the formation of therapeutic mud.

Salty mud – brine – is black in this lake, has a light gray color when dried, with the smell of hydrogen sulfide, can be used to treat various skin diseases and the production of cosmetics.

There is a picnic lunch waiting for us in nature, after which you can participate in the ritual of igniting the "burning spring", a special type of springs in Kalmykia that can be set on fire by holding a lighted match correctly.

Next, we will go to the border of the Black Lands reserve, where, if we are lucky, we will observe saigas (in the period from April to the end of May, the probability of seeing saigas in the steppe is very low due to their departure deep into the reserve, therefore, in May, instead of an excursion to the reserve, you will visit the village of Utta, which is recognized as the hottest place in Russia).

After that, we will go to the village of Adyk for an ethnic program.

We will visit the Kalmyk yurt, the traditional dwelling of a nomad.

At the master class, you will learn how to properly throw a noose on a horse and learn how to tie a Kalmyk knot.

The program will end with a dinner in a yurt with dishes of national cuisine.

After that, we will go to Astrakhan, where we will check into a hotel and relax.

The length of the route is 450 km.

Breakfast at the hotel and then a walk through the territory of the Astrakhan Kremlin – one of the main and historical attractions.

This is a unique example of military engineering art of the second half of the 16th century, a monument of federal significance.

After that, we will go to the capital of the Golden Horde – Sarai Batu, which was founded in 1250 by Khan Batu, the grandson of Genghis Khan, the ancient city grew out of a headquarters for nomads.

By the end of the XV century, enemy raids, natural disasters and time destroyed the capital of the Golden Horde. Bricks from the ruins of the city were used in the construction of the Astrakhan Kremlin. 

Initially, a museum was supposed to be at the excavation site, but in 2010 the Barn-Batu was reconstructed for the filming of the film "St. Alexy" ("Horde").

In the evening we will arrive in Akhtubinsk and check into a hotel.

There will be an opportunity to walk along the boulevard along the Akhtuba River.

The length of the route is 315 km.

Breakfast.

After which we go to the territory of the Bogdinsk-Baskunchak Nature Reserve to see its main attractions. 

Lake Baskunchak is a kind of depression on the top of a salt mountain, extending thousands of meters deep into the earth and covered with a layer of sedimentary rocks.

The lake is powered mainly by springs.

After visiting the lake, lunch is waiting for us at a cafe and we go to Bogdo Mountain.

Bolshoe Bogdo Mountain is the only real mountain in the Caspian Lowland.

Every year Bolshoe Bogdo Mountain gets higher.

The fact is that there is a salt dome inside the mountain, which increases by about 1 mm per year.

Bolshoe Bogdo Mountain has brought us the remains of the Mesozoic era.

In the cliffs of the mountain there is a marine Triassic with fossilized remains of animals that lived 200-250 million years ago – this makes Bolshoe Bogdo a real geological paradise.

Check-in at the tourist base, dinner.

The length of the route is 300 km.

In the morning after breakfast we will go to Volgograd.

There we will visit the famous memorial complex "Heroes of the Battle of Stalingrad" on Mamayev Kurgan. 

You will see the main sculpture of the ensemble "Motherland calls!" and the changing of the guard in the Hall of Military Glory. 

After that, we will visit the panorama museum "Battle of Stalingrad" and have lunch in a cafe. 

After which we go to the airport for the departure flight.

The route and means of transportation according to the program may vary depending on weather conditions.