The Karelian Odyssey

Early departure for the tour from the hotel.

Breakfast – lunch box.

Transfer to the town of Sortavala (250 km).

Arrival in Sortavala.

Departure along Lake Ladoga to Valaam Island (50 minutes on the way).

Sightseeing tour of the central estate of the monastery with a visit to the Transfiguration Cathedral, the Assumption Church, chapels, cell buildings, outbuildings and hotel buildings.

Lunch in the monastery refectory.

New Jerusalem tour. 

The center of the "New Jerusalem" is the Resurrection Skete, located on the high Ladoga coast, which was completely restored and consecrated for its 100th anniversary in 2006. 

The lower church of this hermitage, which resembles early Christian temples in its decoration, has a semblance of the cave of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. 

From the Resurrection Skete, the forest road goes towards the man-made Garden of Gethsemane, where, among the southern broad-leaved trees and picturesque lilac bushes, there is a small, cozy Gethsemane skete with the wooden Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

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

The "New Jerusalem" tour can be replaced by the "Nikolsky Hermitage" tour.

Return to Sortavala.

Transfer to Ruskeala Mountain Park (30 km).

Marble Canyon tour.

During this tour you will get acquainted with the unique natural landscapes.

For more than 70 years (until the middle of the nineteenth century), decorative light gray marble was broken out in local quarries to decorate the temples and palaces of St. Petersburg, the fountains of Petrodvorets, the columns of Tsarskoye Selo and Gatchina.

Magical lakes with clear water in a beautiful Ruskeal marble bowl will make an indelible impression.

Later return to Petrozavodsk.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Walking tour of the historical center "From the history of Petrozavodsk".

The architectural ensemble of the Round Square, the Governor's Garden, the Theater Square, the embankment of Lake Onega with the world's only open-air museum of modern avant-garde sculpture.

For an additional fee, we offer you an excursion to Kizhi Island (to be booked upon purchase of the tour, to be paid on the spot). The cost will be known after 04/01/2025.

In the program:

• Transfer by high-speed vessel "Comet" to Kizhi Island (travel time 1 hour and 15 minutes)
• Sightseeing tour of the Kizhi Museum-Reserve.
• An inspection of the masterpieces of wooden architecture, which are included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List.

Return to Petrozavodsk.

Breakfast at the hotel.

Departure for an interactive country tour to the national Karelian village of Kindasovo.

The village of Kindasovo combines the culture of Karelian people and the peculiar Kindas humor in a unique way.

Arriving there, you will find yourself in a fairy tale! You can enjoy the silence of the Karelian forest, breathe in the intoxicating pine air! 

Here you will be treated to real Karelian pies and fragrant tea with herbs! 

You will hear the enchanting sounds of kantele and jouhikko, find out what eiga is, why Karel needs a big house and who is in charge of the village.

Transfer to a rural tourist complex on the banks of the Shuya River.

Lunch in an ethnic plague by the hearth in a pine forest.

A master class on cooking traditional Karelian gate cakes. A skilled craftswoman will tell you how to bake this favorite dish. It will show you how to make rye dough, potato filling, and dough rolling and pinching techniques.

You will be able to participate in the preparation yourself and, of course, taste the wonderful Karelian gates.

Tea party with hand-made gates.

Return to Petrozavodsk.

Transfer to the railway station.

The program ends at approximately 18:00.

Departure to Moscow or Saint Petersburg.