Big Country Travel: Trips to Russia, Adventure Tours & Vacation Packages

16 more

The most intense 6-day jeep tour, in which you have the opportunity to drive all over Karelia!

The program includes a visit to the first Russian resort "Marcial Waters", the famous Kivach waterfall, ancient Valaam, the mysterious Kizhi Island, Ruskeala Mountain Park and the highest point of western Karelia – the mystical mountain Vottovaara.

Lots of positive emotions, hundreds of amazing photos, adrenaline rush from driving an SUV — everything in this jeep tour!

The tour is available on request on any dates.

Location

Republic of Karelia, Petrozavodsk

from

Early
booking

Contact the tour coordinator

Weekdays: 8am - 8pm
Weekends: 8am - 7pm (GMT +3)

Or text us in messengers

Tour highlights

With a breeze on jeeps

Get an adrenaline rush from driving an SUV on the Karelian off-road

A trip on the Meteor

Race across the lake to the famous island of Valaam, where you will plunge into history and have dinner in the monastery refectory.

Kronid Gogolev Gallery

Visit the museum of wooden paintings, located in an old Finnish building.

The Spirit of Karelia

Explore the original settlements and ancient churches of the Russian North

Marcial Waters

Try the water from three underground springs

Atmospheric Mountain Park

You will see the famous marble canyon and nearby waterfalls on the Tohmajoki River, where the filming of the final scenes of the film "And the dawns are quiet here" took place

Itinerary

Day 1 - The beginning of the route. Marcial waters. Kivach Waterfall and Girvassky hydroelectric power station
09:00 Meeting at Petrozavodsk railway station, accommodation by jeep.
Breakfast at the cafe.
A short sightseeing tour of the city, a walk along the Onega embankment.
10:00 Departure from Petrozavodsk along the "old Murmansk highway" – the historical route along which Peter I passed.
11:00 Visit to the first Russian resort "Marcial waters". (Founded by Peter I in 1719) Tasting water from three underground springs. On the way, visit the Church of the Holy Trinity (Church of the Holy Trinity) in the village of Konchezero.
13:00 Visit to the Kivach Nature Reserve and visit the famous Kivach waterfall.
15:00 Lunch at a country cafe.
Having refreshed and rested, we continue along the route.
Driving along the runway of the airfield, hidden in the taiga.
We inspect the stone Port-Threshold on the Suna River. (The most picturesque, little-visited place, where there are no tourists and tour groups.).
17:00 At the end of today's route, we will drive up to one of the oldest, but still operating Girvassky hydroelectric power station, built on a rock of volcanic origin.
It was thanks to the dam of the hydroelectric power station, which drained the riverbed of the Song River, that the oldest volcano, Girvas, was discovered (about 3 billion years old).
18:00 Arrival at the park hotel "Khvoya Karelia", located on the shore of Lake Navdozero.
Accommodation in comfortable rooms or cabins.
Dinner at the hotel restaurant.
Outdoor heated swimming pool, spa complex, sauna - optional (for an additional fee).

3 more photos
Day 2 - Zaonezhye and Kizhi Island
Breakfast.
09:00-10:00 Wake up, breakfast, check out.
Departure along the route: Medvezhegorsk – Zaonezhye – Kizhi island. Zaonezhye is one of the most distinctive places in Karelia and the Russian North.
Ancient settlements have been preserved here – some villages are completely abandoned, some are still inhabited by people.
Ancient churches from the 16th and 18th centuries have been preserved in many villages.
12:00 p.m. The asphalt ends, and we continue driving along the forest roads, exploring the ancient villages: Narrow, Kosmozero, Vegoroks and monuments of wooden architecture of the Russian north – chapels and churches of the 17th and 18th centuries.
In the 15th – 18th centuries, these were rich villages located on the ancient trade route from Novgorod to the White Sea. The villages are now abandoned.
At 13:00, the boat will take us to Kizhi Island for a guided tour of the Kizhi Museum Reserve.
16:00 Return from the island to the mainland to the jeeps, lunch-picnic in nature.
Return to the hotel.
19:00 Driving through Medvezhegorsk, we will stop at the top of Lysukha Mountain and inspect the Finnish defense unit Karhumaki, which was built by the Finnish army during the occupation of the city from 1941 to 1943.
20:00 Return to the park hotel "Khvoya Karelia".
Dinner at the hotel restaurant.

2 more photos
Day 3 - Mount Vottovaara
08:00-09:00 Wake up, breakfast, check out.
Today we are going to the wildest places on our route, to the very "heart" of Karelia – the Vottovaara National Park.
The park was named after the famous Vottovaara Mountain, the highest point of western Karelia and the oldest place of worship – the sacred place of the ancient Sami.
Today we have to climb to the top of Vottovaara!
13:00 Lunch on the way.
15:00 We will drive as close to the mountain as possible, leave the jeeps and make a hike to the top of Mount Vottovaara (about 5 km).
Sightseeing of the seids and panoramas opening from the mountain. Photo.
18:00 Descent from Vottovaara to the jeeps, driving along the forest road around the mountain.
Inspection of the monument to the partisan detachment, built on a rock by Komsomol members in the 80s.
A staircase cut into the rock leads to the monument.
20:00 Arrival at the hotel.

2 more photos
Day 4 - Lake Ladoga. Excursion to the trout farm. Hiidenwuori Mountain
09:00 – 10:00 Wake up, breakfast, check-out.
Today our goal is Lake Ladoga.
We are moving along former logging roads and dirt roads to the south of Karelia, to the largest lake in Europe, Lake Ladoga.
14:00 We arrive at Ladoga Bay.
Lunch at a restaurant on a trout farm.
Excursion to the trout farm.
16:00 Drive a few kilometers along the shore of Ladoga and climb the trail to Mount Hiidenvuori (from Finnish – "leshogo mountain").
The mountain is much lower than Vottovaara, but since it is located on the shore of Lake Ladoga and offers a beautiful view of Ladoga and the islands from its top, the Yanisjoki River flows at the foot of the mountain and you can see how it flows into the Gulf of Khijdenselga. There is a cave at the top of the mountain.
19:00 Arrival at the hotel. Comfortable rooms with all amenities are waiting for you.
Supper.
Day 5 - Valaam Island and Ruskeala Mountain Park
07:00-08:00 Early rising, breakfast, departure to the river station in Sortavala.
A trip by meteor to Valaam Island in Lake Ladoga.
09:00 Island tour – visit to the Central Manor House, the Transfiguration Cathedral, the old fraternal cemetery.
Lunch at the monastery refectory on the island.
16:00 Return to the river station in Sortavala.
Visit the unique museum of wooden paintings by Kronid Gogolev.
The museum is located in an old Finnish building built in 1899.
The unique collection of works by the National Artist of Russia Kronid Alexandrovich Gogolev, a professional artist who worked in a unique manner (wood carving), is known all over the world.
The main part of the works is a sculptural relief in wood.
18:00 Visit to the Ruskeala Mountain Park.
Private tour of the Marble Canyon and nearby waterfalls on the Tohmajoki River, where the filming of the final scenes of the film "And the dawns are quiet here" took place.
20:00 Arrival at the hotel.
Supper.

2 more photos
Day 6 - Completion of the program. Yanisjoki River and White Bridges Waterfall
09:00-10:00 Wake up, breakfast at the hotel restaurant, departure to Petrozavodsk.
Along the way, we will visit several more beautiful and unique objects that combine both natural beauty and the beauty of engineering.
11:00 We leave the asphalt and move along the bank of the Yanisjoki River, admiring its rapid current with numerous rapids.
The Yanisjoki River (from Finnish — "rabbit river") is very stormy and rapid. Therefore, it was chosen by rafters, but not only them.
Back in the 19th century, the Finns built hydroelectric power plants on the largest rapids and waterfalls of the river.
Ancient Finnish hydraulic structures made of natural stone and concrete have been preserved: canals, dams and bridges.
12:00 The most striking point of this section of the route will be the arched railway bridge built across the Janis River by the Finns in 1919.
The bridge still impresses with its beauty, monumentality and fits seamlessly into the surrounding natural landscape.
13:00 We return to the asphalt.
Lunch at our favorite restaurant on the trout farm.
15:00 Visit to the highest Karelian waterfall "White Bridges" on the Kulismajoki River, the historical name of the waterfall is Yukankoski.
The waterfall is almost 19 m high, which is 8 m higher than the most popular and widely known waterfall Kivach.
20:00 Arrival in Petrozavodsk.
Transfer to the railway station.

Difficulty

Suitable for everyone

Accommodation

Hotel

5 nights

Comfort

Basic+

The tour provides accommodation in hotels, forest hotels or guest houses according to the program.

The cost of the tour for 1 person, rub.:

Number of people in the car	Cost
3 people	160 200
2 people	186 500

The places of accommodation depend on the arrival dates, please check when booking.

Park Hotel Khvoya Karelia is located 7 km from the village of Girvas in the Republic of Karelia.

The bright standard double room includes bed linen and towels, a tea set with a mini fridge and Wi-Fi, as well as satellite TV. There is a shower stall in the bathroom, and there is a hairdryer.

In the Les Restaurant, guests can enjoy Karelian cuisine made from local products.

Vacationers are offered boat and catamaran rentals, SUP boards and bicycles, fishing, and interesting sightseeing programs. A pontoon bath made of cedar wood and a heated bath tub are also available. The distance to Besovets airport is 68.3 km, and Kondopoga Train Station is 37.2 km away.

3 more photos

Tour conditions

Group

From 1 to 20 tourists

Minimum age

6 years old

Duration

6 days 5 nights

Group meets at

Republic of Karelia, Petrozavodsk

Included in price

SUVs (imported four-wheel drive vehicles, fuel, driver-guide);
accommodation in hotels, forest hotels or guest houses according to the program;
meals specified in the program (meals according to the program throughout the route);
water transport;
entrance fees and guided tours.

Paid extra

air and railway tickets to Petrozavodsk and back;
medical insurance;
personal expenses.

It's important to know

When choosing clothes for jeep tours, you can follow all the principles of choosing clothes for any active tour or just a hike in nature.

Main principles:

Clothing and shoes should be durable and waterproof.
You should be comfortable and comfortable in these clothes.
Clothes should not be heavy and take up a lot of space.

Modern travel clothes meet all these requirements. The widespread use of membrane materials makes clothes completely waterproof, but at the same time allows clothes to "breathe" — you will not get wet in a downpour, but you will not sweat, as in a polyethylene raincoat.

Backpack.

It is best to pack all personal belongings carefully in a travel backpack. You should not take bags or suitcases — they will be inconvenient to carry and pack in jeeps.

Footwear.

Trekking waterproof boots, preferably high — above the bone. In the hot and dry period — durable sneakers. Most of the time you will be on the route in boots. Rubber boots are optional.

Outerwear.

A waterproof hiking jacket (or windbreaker) with a hood. Trousers are better for travel, but jeans or any sturdy trousers that you feel comfortable in will also work well. If the tour includes an overnight stay in nature, then you can bring a small sports down jacket for night gatherings around the campfire and during the cold season (even in summer, nights in Karelia can be cold), but it must be tightly folded and packed so that it does not take up much space. If you do not want to wear a hood, take a hat or a cap without nets and holes.

The middle and lower layer of clothing.

A sweater (sweatshirt) or a pair of thick T-shirts (shirts) with long sleeves. Special thermal underwear can replace warm T-shirts. A pair of warm socks and thin socks for every day. Lightweight cotton sweatpants and a lightweight cotton T–shirt are used as nightwear (if overnight stays in tents are planned). Underwear. Swimming trunks, if you want to swim.

Personal hygiene products and anti-mosquito products.

Towel, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, and more. Insect repellents – mosquitoes, horseflies, midges (jeeps must have a set of anti-mosquito products). We recommend using aerosol sprays to apply to exposed areas of the body.

Documents.

Passport, driver's license (if available). It is better to pack the documents in a plastic bag or a special sealed case.

Money.

We recommend that you always have a small amount of cash or a plastic card with you, so that you can quickly buy drinks or sweets at the village shops along the route of the jeep tour.

Dates and Prices

Individual dates available on request

1 Jul – 31 Aug

Submit request
No need to pay now
from
$1,816

2 – 7 Jul 6 days 5 nights

Submit request
No need to pay now
from
$1,816

9 – 14 Jul 6 days 5 nights

Submit request
No need to pay now
from
$1,816

16 – 21 Jul 6 days 5 nights

Submit request
No need to pay now
from
$1,816

23 – 28 Jul 6 days 5 nights

Submit request
No need to pay now
from
$1,816

30 Jul – 4 Aug 6 days 5 nights

Submit request
No need to pay now
from
$1,816

6 – 11 Aug 6 days 5 nights

Submit request
No need to pay now
from
$1,816

20 – 25 Aug 6 days 5 nights

Submit request
No need to pay now

Jeep tour "All of Karelia"