Tales of the North: Karelia and Solovki

This tour is for those who do not have enough time, but dream of visiting the famous Karelian islands: Kizhi, Valaam and Solovki.

In Karelia, not only the world-famous epic "Kalevala" was written, but also a huge number of legends, songs and runes. Amazing northern nature. The monastery and its shrines. The Tsar's prison and its famous prisoners.

All the most interesting things are waiting for you!

Location

Russia, Republic of Karelia, Sortavala
from
$763
+ tickets to the starting point of the tour
No need to pay now
Duration
6 Days
5 Nights
Departures
  • Group departures
    • Dates for next season
    • 19 – 24 May, 2025
    • 26 – 31 May, 2025
    • 2 – 7 June, 2025
    • 9 – 14 June, 2025
or
Accommodation
  • Hotel
    5 nights
Comfort
  • Midscale
Difficulty
Easy
Suitable for everyone
Group
Up to 50 people
Minimum age
4 years old
Group meet at
Russia, Republic of Karelia, Sortavala
Contact the tour coordinator
Weekdays: 8am - 8pm
Weekends: 8am - 7pm (GMT +3)
Or text us in messengers

Tour highlights

An ancient variety
Let's walk around the city with Swedish roots
Marble Canyon of Ruskeala
We will see the most visited tourist site in Karelia, stunning with its fantastic views
Solovki
Let's go to distant islands and find out about the events that took place there at different times
Valaam
We will visit the largest and most famous Karelian monastery, as well as the most beautiful protected area
Kivach Waterfall
We will come to see one of the most picturesque waterfalls in Russia
The taste of Karelia
Let's try the local cuisine and feel like real locals

Itinerary

  • Day 1 - Holy island of Valaam, ancient Sortavala, Kronid Gogolev Gallery

    Welcome to Karelia! 

    08:20 Meeting of the group and gathering at the railway station of Sortavala

    Our journey starts from the city of Sortavala. Our guide will meet you with a sign.

    08:40 Breakfast at the cafe. 

    We have breakfast in a cafe and go on an excursion to Sortavala — the locals do not bend the name of this city and are very offended when someone does it. That's the national flavor!

    09:10-10:50 Sightseeing tour of the city of Sortavale with a visit to the main attractions of the city. 

    Sightseeing tour of the city and sightseeing of the stunning monuments of the Northern Art Nouveau. 

    Just look at how beautiful it is: 

    • the building of the national school, built in 1929 in the neoclassical style; 
    • The Seurahuone Hotel, built in 1908, where Nicholas Roerich stayed; 
    • Leander's House (1905); 
    • the building of the Finnish Bank, built in 1915, in which every detail informs about the inaccessibility and reliability of the bank; 
    • The Siitonen Merchants' House is a typical Northern Art Nouveau built in 1907; 
    • The Town Hall, built in 1882, is one of the most beautiful buildings: turrets, carved skates, pale pink color, with carvings and white frames, as if a lace napkin was thrown on top; 
    • wooden fire station built in 1888; 
    • the house with a lantern, built in 1920 and owned by the Helsinki Joint—Stock Bank, resembles a glass syringe in shape; 
    • The Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. It was built with the money of St. Petersburg merchants in 1873. It is built in the Russian style. Today, the main city temple of Sortavala.

    11:00 Departure by meteors to Valaam Island

    We are going to the pier — there are high—speed comets waiting for us, which will rush us to the first holy island of our adventure - the island of Valaam.

    The holy island is not so far away — only 22 kilometers. By the way, did you know that in Ladoga, the only freshwater reservoir in Russia, there are seals — small black seals? No wonder they say that Ladoga is almost a sea.

    11:50-16:50 Arrival at Valaam, sightseeing tour of the central manor of the monastery, performance of the male choir.

    And here it is — the holy island of Valaam. Nature seemed to have specially created it away from the shore. These Kizhi are closely connected with the shores and nearby villages. Balaam is different. It was created for solitude, in order to be away from civilization.

    We arrive at the Monastery Bay

    Here we will have a walking tour of the central manor of the monastery. 

    We will visit the Transfiguration Cathedral, where the relics of Saints Sergius and Herman, the founders of the monastery, are located. 

    And what a holy island without a concert of the creative team

    This time the singers of the male ensemble "Valaam" will sing for us.

    After enjoying the beauty of the church hymn, we will move on the Meteor to Nikonovskaya Bay

    Here we have already been waiting for a lenten lunch in the refectory, prepared within the walls of the monastery.

    Lunch in the monastery refectory

    The New Jerusalem tour will reveal unknown fragments of the island's history. 

    We will visit the Resurrection Hermitage

    Further along the forest road we will walk to the man-made Gethsemane Garden, where the cozy Gethsemane hermitage with the wooden church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is located. 

    The tour ends on the Mount of Olives, where one of the most poetic views of Ladoga opens.

    Balaam heals both the body and the head. 

    It is calm and peaceful here. 

    So it's time for us to go back. From Nikonovskaya Bay, the Meteor carries us back to the glorious city of Sortavala.

    16:50-17:50 Return trip by meteor to Sortavala. 

    18:00 Visit to the Kronid Gogolev Art Gallery

    Gain strength, because you have not yet seen the unique and one-of-a-kind Kronid Gogolev House Museum. 

    It is located in an old Finnish building built in 1899. 

    But the building is not as interesting as the creations of Kronid Gogolev. 

    In front of us is an exhibition of paintings made in a unique manner of wood carving

    Probably, these are the very first paintings in 3D format. 

    The theme of the Russian North, expressive nature, ordinary people, their way of life and holidays — all this is in the works of Kronid Gogolev.

    19:00 Check-in at the hotel, dinner, free time and rest.

    4 more photos
  • Day 2 - Retro train, Ruskeala Marble Canyon and Ladoga Waterfalls
  • Day 3 - Petrozavodsk and Kizhi Island
  • Day 4 - Mount Sampo. The resort "Marcial waters". Girvas volcano. Kivach Waterfall. Evening transfer to Kem
  • Day 5 - Solovetsky Kremlin and a big tour: Sekirnaya Gora — Savvatievo skete — Jung Alley — Red Lake Dam — Isakovo skete
  • Day 6 - Zayatsky Island and a tour of the village of Solovetsky / Agar plant and method of extraction and processing of algae / The big story about the Solovetsky seat
Difficulty
Suitable for everyone

Accommodation

Accommodation
  • Hotel
    5 nights
Comfort
  • Midscale

The tour provides accommodation in hotels along the route.

The cost of the tour for 1 person:

  • The cost of the tour for an adult is 74,400 rubles.;
  • The cost of the tour for a child (up to and including 14 years old) is 68,350 rubles.

The surcharge for single occupancy is 10,000 rubles.

Pensioners, veterans of the database, the disabled — a discount of 800 rubles.

If desired, you can upgrade the room category for an additional fee. 

Information on accommodation in Petrozavodsk:

We provide comfortable rooms in superior hotels and service levels located in the city center and within walking distance from the city's waterfront, restaurants and entertainment centers, souvenir and grocery stores. 

We accommodate our guests in the following hotels: Severnaya, Prionezhsky, Onega Castle, Sakvoyazh, Cosmos, Boutique hotel 13 chairs, Peter INN. These are some of the best hotels in Petrozavodsk, consistently providing a high level of service and high-quality accommodation.

You get breakfast at the hotel in the price of the tour. 

All excursions will also start from the hotels (a maximum of 10 minutes walk from the meeting point for the tour, including on the day of check—in and check-out, as some hotels are difficult to access by large buses). 

You can write your wishes in advance on choosing a specific hotel and we will try to ensure that you check in to it, but the specifics of group tours are such that the accommodation grid is drawn up at the last moment, based on the available room quotas in the hotels we have booked.

Sortavala Hotel 1 night

Sortavala Hotel is located in Sortavala, 600 metres from Sortavala and 1.1 km from Serdobol Youth Center. It offers a restaurant, free Wi-Fi in all areas and free private parking. The village of Khumpeli and the village of Tokkar Lahti are 3.7 km away, while the village of Helyulya is 4.8 km away. The reception is open 24 hours a day. Other facilities offered at the property include a tour desk and luggage storage.

All rooms at the hotel are equipped with a desk and a flat-screen TV. Towels and bed linen are provided in the rooms at Sortavala Hotel.

A continental breakfast is served in the morning.

2 more photos
Severnaya Hotel or The Prionezhsky Hotel or 2 nights
Hotel in Kemi 1 night
The hotel on Solovki 1 night

Tour conditions

Group
up to 50 tourists
Minimum age
4 years old
Duration
6 days 5 nights
Group meets at
Russia, Republic of Karelia, Sortavala

Included in price

  • meals: 6 breakfasts, 3 lunches (1 on Valaam, 2 on Solovki), 2 dinners (in Sortavala and in Kemi); 
  • the work of a tour guide; 
  • hotel accommodation;
  • all entrance tickets according to the program;
  • transport service by bus;
  • meteors on Kizhi and Valaam;
  • the ship to Solovki.

Paid extra

  • air and railway tickets to Sortavala and from Kem;
  • meals outside the program;
  • additional expenses.

It's important to know

Are train tickets included in the tour price?

Air and railway tickets are not included in the price of the tour. You can purchase them yourself or contact us for help.

Is insurance included in the price of the tour?
What are the features of the tour?

Dates and Prices

The tour dates are not confirmed yet. Please, for clarification
  • $763
    19 – 24 May, 2025 6 days 5 nights
    Submit request
    No need to pay now
  • $763
    26 – 31 May, 2025 6 days 5 nights
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    No need to pay now
  • $763
    2 – 7 Jun, 2025 6 days 5 nights
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    No need to pay now
  • $763
    9 – 14 Jun, 2025 6 days 5 nights
    Submit request
    No need to pay now
  • $763
    16 – 21 Jun, 2025 6 days 5 nights
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    No need to pay now

Reviews

  • O
    Olga
    2 Nov, 2024
    about provider
    I was very impressed with the guides and would gladly recommend them to friends and family. Our guide, Marina, shared fascinating insights about Karelia and made sure everyone felt completely at ease.
    2 Nov, 2024
    5 more photos
  • N
    Natalya
    21 Oct, 2024
    about provider
    Ihr seid einfach großartig! Macht weiter so
    21 Oct, 2024
    2 more photos
  • G
    Galina
    26 Jul, 2024
    about provider
    The guides told us in an interesting way about the history of Karelia, the traditions and the way of life of the population who previously lived on this territory.
    26 Jul, 2024
    6 more photos