A trip to the edge of the world: Sakhalin, Shikotan, Kunashir, Iturup

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This exciting journey will open up the Pacific islands of Russia — Sakhalin, Iturup, Shikotan and Kunashir.

Wayward islands with a unique history, rich in diverse wildlife, coves, capes, volcanoes and hot springs.

You will admire the Sea of Okhotsk from the deck, reach the caldera of Golovnin volcano, walk through abandoned Japanese tunnels, relax in the thermal complex "Baths" and see the mirrored beach of Kasatka Bay.

An adventure in the Far East that will stay in your heart for a lifetime!

Location

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk

Sightseeing tours

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

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Tour highlights

Four Islands

Take a trip to the islands of Sakhalin, Kunashir, Shikotan, and Iturup

Fumarole field

Observe the fumaroles, from which volcanic gases come to the surface

Lakes are Boiling and Hot

You will see lakes formed after a giant explosion thousands of years ago

Lava field

Take a walk along the frozen volcanic lava of the Yankito Plateau

Dinner with oysters

Try fresh oysters on the shore of Lake Busse

Hot springs

Relax in the thermal baths

Itinerary

Day 1 - Arrival in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. City sightseeing tour
Arrival in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
Meeting at Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk airport.
Transfer to the hotel.
Free time.
Check-in at the hotel from 14:00 (early check-in on request, with an additional fee).
15:00 Information meeting in the hotel lobby: all about the upcoming trip.
16:00 Guided tour of the most beautiful and iconic places of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
Transfer to the restaurant.
18:30 Welcome seafood dinner at one of the most popular restaurants in the city.
19:30 Transfer to the hotel.
Free time.

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Day 2 - Departure to Shikotan Island. A day at sea
Breakfast at the hotel.
09:00 Packing and transfer to the port city of Korsakov.
10:00 Arrival, check-in.
12:00 Departure to Shikotan Island.
We go to Shikotan Island through Kunashir Island. The total travel time is 30 hours.
What you can do 30 hours before Shikotan:
Meet the beautiful sunrise and sunset at sea;
get to know the band better;
Enjoy the fresh sea air;
see the landscapes of the coastline of the islands;
to believe in luck and meet sea companions – dolphins.
Self-catering on the ship.
Day 3 - Arrival at Shikotan Island
The first Kunashir views and the most important one are with the Tyata volcano.
Parking at the port of Yuzhno-Kurilsk is 4 hours.
17:00 Arrival at Shikotan Island.
Transfer to the hotel.
Supper.
Free time.
Breakfast and lunch on your own on the ship.
Day 4 - Nameless Bay and Cape World's Edge
Breakfast.
Departure for an excursion to Bezymyannaya Bay and Cape World's Edge.
Jeep tour to Cape World's End along a forest road.
Walking tour of Cape World's Edge.
Cape World's Edge is high, undulating and long, like a rolled–out scarf. Take a short walk and the Pacific Ocean opens up in front of you. This is the most remote point from the capital of Russia, the distance to Moscow in a straight line is just over 7,100 km.
That's it, Russia is over. Further – for 8 thousand km of water - only America. Underfoot, at the bottom of a steep 50-m chasm, heavy waves are beating against the rocks. A strong wind makes itself felt, almost tearing it from its place, energizing this place.
Photo stop.
Transfer to Cape Crab, an external inspection of the Spanberg lighthouse.
Lunch – lunch box.
Departure to Nameless Bay.
Nameless Bay – since the film was shot in 1972, it is increasingly called Robinson Bay, but this name is unlikely to take root, because Nameless has already taken root. According to many eyewitnesses, this bay is the most beautiful natural place on the island.
Photo stop.
A walk along the coast of the Pacific Ocean.
Return to the hotel.
Dinner at the hotel.

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Day 5 - Dolphin Bay
Breakfast at the hotel.
Collection and departure to Dolphin Bay.
Dolphin Bay is located in the southwest of the island, which juts into the shore for 2.4 miles.
The bay was named after the ship "Dolphin", which in 1912 was used to explore the northern coast of the Sea of Okhotsk, the Tatar Strait and Nagaev Bay.
Lunch in nature: bonfire soup.
Walking tour of the bay.
Spectacular views open from the height of the flat hills.
A real forest-steppe landscape with open bamboo expanses and mounds of conifers and stone birch.
Photo stop.
Return to the hotel.
Supper.
Free time.

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Day 6 - Transfer to Kunashir Island
Breakfast.
Collecting things and transfer to the port.
Check-in for the flight.
14:00 Departure to Kunashir Island.
Lunch on your own on the ship.
18:00 Arrival at Kunashir Island.
Transfer to the hotel.
Supper.
Free time.
Day 7 - Golovninsky cliff and the Caldera of the Golovnina volcano. The Lake is Hot and Boiling
Breakfast.
Departure by jeep to Golovninsky cliff.
Passage along the ebb tide.
Sightseeing and walking along the shore.
Breathtaking photos of the cliff's sheer shores and waterfalls.
Departure before the start of the trekking route to the Golovnin volcano caldera.
Where cars can't cope, we walk.
Trekking route to the Golovnin volcano caldera.
The distance from disembarkation from the transport to the destination is 7 km (round trip is 14 km).
Descent into the caldera.
There are two lakes in the caldera, one of them is named Hot, and the second, which is located directly in one of the craters, is Boiling Lake.
There are a large number of sulfur and sulfide compounds in lakes, and sulfide-sulfur foam floats on Boiling water.
Inspection of the lakes is Hot and Boiling.
Photo stop.
Lunch on the picnic route.
Return to the parking place of the transport. Boarding a transport.
Return to the hotel.
Dinner at the hotel.
Free time.

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Day 8 - The fumarole field of the Mendeleev volcano
Breakfast.
Transfer to the starting point of the route.
The route starts from the parking lot.
Departure for the route along the forest path through the bamboo thickets.
The tracking route from the parking lot to the fumarole fields is 3.5 km (round trip 7 km).
The route passes through bamboo about 1.5–2 meters high.
Arrival at the fumarole field. Inspection of fumaroles.
Fumaroles are cracks from which volcanic gases come to the surface with loud exhausts. They contain sulfur, which crystallizes and decorates the outlets with yellow lace patterns. An unusual and spectacular sight, which is difficult to break away from!
On request, it is possible to take natural thermal baths.
Lunch – picnic on the route.
Return to the parking place of the transport. Boarding a transport.
Return to the hotel.
Dinner at the hotel.
Free time.

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Day 9 - Cape Columnar
Breakfast.
Jeep tour to the coast.
A 7 km long trekking route along the coast.
A tour of Cape Columnar. We will tell you the best angles separately.
Cape Columnar is one of the business cards of Kunashir Island and the entire Sakhalin region.
The cape was formed as a result of the eruption of the Mendeleev volcano. The whole breed consists of hexagonal and pentahedral regular columns, which are striking in their shape. In some places, the height of the pillars reaches 50 meters.
Cape Columnar is listed in the UNESCO register as a monument of world importance.
Lunch – picnic on the shore of the Sea of Okhotsk.
Return to the hotel.
Dinner at the hotel.
Free time.

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Day 10 - Departure to Sakhalin Island. A day at sea
Breakfast at the hotel.
Transfer to the port. Check-in for the flight.
13:00 Departure of the ship.
We go to Sakhalin Island through the island. Shikotan.
Parking at the port of Malokurilskoye is 5 hours.
Lunch and dinner on your own on the ship.
Overnight on the ship.
Day 11 - Arrival on Sakhalin Island
Breakfast, lunch and dinner on your own on the ship.
20:00 Arrival of the ship at the port of Korsakov.
Transfer to the hotel.
Free time.
Day 12 - Departure to O. Iturup. Excursion to the Baransky volcano
Breakfast at the hotel.
An extract from the hotel.
Free time before departure.
Transfer to the airport.
Departure to Kurilsk (the time will be known after the publication of the summer schedule).
Excursion to the foot of the Baransky volcano.
Baransky Volcano is an active volcano on the island of Iturup. The slopes of the volcano are full of mud, mineral springs and other thermal manifestations.
At the foot of the Baransky volcano there is an "Old Factory" fumarole field. The Oceanskaya geothermal station was built next to it. Now there is a normal road leading here, which begins at the Kuril Fish Hatchery. The geothermal power plant is just over a kilometer from one of the main attractions of these places – the Boiling River.
The famous sources of the Boiling River Stream are the Cauldron and the Blue Lake.
Walking through the thickets of Kuril bamboo.
An old geothermal thermal power plant.
The boiling lake "Blue Eye".
"Island snack" (we can't say more about it – it's a surprise).
A walk along the Boiling River.
Evening relaxation in the thermal baths.
Dinner at the cafe.
Arrival at the hotel, rest.
Depending on the published departure time, the program will be adjusted. Iturup without changing the composition of the declared objects of visits. Before departure to O. Iturup guests have free time.

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Day 13 - Kasatka Bay. Thermal complex "Baths"
Breakfast.
Jeep tour of the Pacific coast.
Kasatka Bay is located on the Pacific coast of the largest island of the Kuril Ridge – Iturup.
On November 26, 1941, it was in the harbor on the Pacific coast of the island (Hitokappu Bay, now Kasatka Bay) that the Japanese aircraft carrier squadron and escort ships rendezvoused to strike Pearl Harbor. Here, the crews of the ships first learned about the purpose of the campaign, which delighted them, and they spontaneously began uncontrolled shooting at the island.
There was a naval base with an airfield on the seashore, where Japanese troops were based.
This place is also interesting for the Damn rock, in which the Japanese dug a tunnel for through passage through it. The tunnels have been preserved to this day, during the tour you will be able to visit them and walk through the rock.
Along the way, we will show you the most beautiful views of the island.
The beached tugboat "Corundum".
The mirrored beach of Kasatka Bay.
Walking along the coast of the Pacific Ocean.
"Journey into the past" – walking through abandoned Japanese tunnels.
A hot lunch on the shore of the Pacific Ocean.
Depending on the weather conditions, lunch can be moved to a cafe.
Every day there are new hot springs!
This time the thermal complex "Baths" on the shore of the Sea of Okhotsk.
Dinner at the cafe.
Arrival at the hotel, rest.

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Day 14 - White rocks. Black rocks and black sand
Breakfast.
Jeep tour along the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk.
The endless expanses of the Olya Bay.
Jeep tour along the White Cliffs along the Bay of Expanse.
White rocks are an amazing creation of the elements in nature.
The mountains stretched for 28 kilometers along the coast of the Sea of Okhotsk on the island of Iturup, consisting of soft pumice formed after a volcanic eruption, are striking in their beauty. The special charm of this place is given by the emerald greenery that framed the resulting composition.
Pumice stone has undergone severe erosion under the influence of storms of the Sea of Okhotsk, rains and numerous small rivers and streams, which eventually formed bizarre and amazing rock shapes.
The sand of the coastal strip is mixed: white quartz and black titanium-magnetite. Probably, its unusual dark gray color is formed from their connection.
A walk through the grand Canyon of White Rocks.
The coast, where all the sand is magnetic.
"Feel the difference between the sea and the ocean!" – an off-road trip through the cranberry fields to the narrowest part of the island.
"Echo of War" – a visit to abandoned fortifications.
Waterfall in the Sail Bay.
Hot lunch on the shore of the Sea of Okhotsk.
Depending on the weather conditions, lunch can be moved to a cafe.
Relax in the thermal springs in the middle of the "Hot Waters" forest.
Dinner at the cafe.
Arrival at the hotel, rest.

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Day 15 - Excursion to the Yankito lava plateau
Breakfast. An extract from the hotel.
Jeep tour to the Yankito lava plateau.
The Yankito Plateau is a frozen volcanic lava formed on the seashore as a result of a volcanic eruption. The bizarre shapes of the formed rocks give a special charm to this place.
A walk through the frozen lava. Photo stop.
Departure to the airport, check-in for the flight.
Departure to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (the time will be known after the publication of the summer schedule).
Arrival in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
Transfer to the hotel.
Free time.
Dinner on your own.
Depending on the published departure time, the program will be adjusted. Iturup without changing the composition of the declared objects of visits.

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Day 16 - Aniva Lighthouse. Gastrozhin on Lake Busse
07:00 Transfer to Novikovo village.
Snack, briefing, boarding boats and departure to the Aniva lighthouse.
A boat tour to the Aniva Lighthouse is carried out on inflatable rubber boats.
10:30 Arrival, inspection of the lighthouse.
The Aniva Lighthouse is a unique historical object, which is the most complex technical structure in the whole of Sakhalin and one of the most interesting achievements of the world practice of lighthouse construction at that time.
Built during the period of Japanese rule on Sakhalin and successfully carried out its task during the Soviet period, the Aniva Lighthouse is currently one of the main business cards of the Sakhalin region.
Let's tell you the best angles!
12:00 Departure to Cape Marble, inspection, snack. Photo stop.
15:00 Return to Novikovo village.
Transfer to Busse Lake.
15:30 Arrival at the lake.
Early dinner with oysters on the lake shore.
17:00 Return to the hotel.
18:30 Arrival at the hotel, free time.
The excursion to the Aniva lighthouse is carried out as part of a team group.
Depending on weather conditions, the time of arrival and departure from the lighthouse may vary.

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Day 17 - The bay is Quiet
Breakfast at the hotel.
09:00 Departure to Starodubskoye settlement.
I. F. Kruzenshtern, the famous Russian navigator, called the bay Quiet for a reason. It is located in the east of Sakhalin, and from the west it is covered by the Zhdanko ridge. This is a truly heavenly place.
The attraction of this place can be called a free-standing rocky island. It has a wide base and a flat top. There is no approach to the island. However, it stands out very much and is noticeable even from afar, which is why it received such an eloquent name — Noticeable.
Noisy seagulls have chosen this place, but apart from them, no one and nothing breaks the natural silence here.
On the way to the Bay, we make a stop on the coast to collect amber and visit the famous Torii Gate from the Seaside village, which during the Karafuto period turned the road into a Shinto temple.
Arrival in the village of Starodubskoye, stop on the Okhotsk coast, collecting amber.
Departure to the village of Vzmorye.
Arrival in the village of Vzmorye.
Stop, inspect the torii gate of the former Shinto temple.
Arrival in Tikhaya Bay.
Excursion — acquaintance with the bay.
Hot lunch with seafood.
Departure to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
18:00 Arrival at the hotel.
Dinner on your own.

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Day 18 - Departure
Breakfast at the hotel.
An extract from the hotel.
Visit to the fish market.
Transfer to the airport.

Difficulty

Involves moderate physical activity

Tour organizer's comments

The tour has planned quite long cross-country crossings.

Accommodation

Hotel

8 nights
Cabin on the boat

2 nights
Guest House

7 nights

Comfort

Upscale
Premium

The tour includes accommodation in hotels and in the cabin of the ship.

The cost of the tour:

double occupancy — 263,900 rubles/person.;
single occupancy — 331,490 rubles/person.

This hotel is located on the Far Eastern Sakhalin Island of Russia, at the foot of the Susunai Mountains. It offers an international restaurant, a spa and a nightclub. Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk city centre is a 15-minute drive away.

Mega Palace Hotel is a multi-storey building with modern rooms and apartments furnished with antique furniture. All rooms are equipped with cable TV, a safe and a minibar.

It offers a fitness center, a hot tub and a sauna. In the evenings, guests can visit the karaoke bar or a nightclub with a DJ.

A buffet breakfast is served every morning. The Marquis Restaurant serves Russian, European and Japanese cuisine. Serbian cuisine can be enjoyed at the Grill in the Sky restaurant. Asian cuisine restaurant "Asia" and Japanese restaurant Bambu are also available on site. Guests can relax at the Duke Karaoke Bar.

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Airport is a 30-minute drive away. Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Central Station can be reached in 20 minutes by car.

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Tour conditions

Group

up to 12 tourists

Minimum age

14 years old

Duration

18 days 17 nights

Group meets at

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk

Included in price

transfers according to the program;
3 meals a day on the Kuril Islands (Shikotan, Kunashir and Iturup), except for the period of stay on the ship;
excursion service on Sakhalin Island;
escort by a guide on the Kuril Islands (Shikotan and Kunashir);
habitation:
- Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk — double/single accommodation in the Mega Palace 4-star hotel (TWIN or DOUBLE room);
- Yuzhno-Kurilsk — double/single accommodation in the Kunashir Guest House (TWIN or DOUBLE room, room amenities);
- Malokurilskoye — double/single accommodation in the Zvezda Hotel (TWIN or DOUBLE, room amenities);
- Kurilsk — double/single accommodation in the guest house "Kamelia" (TWIN or DOUBLE room, room amenities);
accident insurance (coverage amount up to 2,000,000 rubles);
a visit to the thermal springs on the island Iturup.

Paid extra

flights to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and back;
a ticket for the ship on the route port Korsakov — port Malokurilskoye — port Yuzhno-Kurilsk — port Korsakov in a cabin of 3 categories (four—person accommodation, cabin amenities) - the cost is being specified;
flight Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk — Kurilsk — Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk — the cost is being specified;
meals not included in the program.

It's important to know

trekking shoes (preferably not wet) with good foot fixation;
sportswear is convenient for walking cross-country routes;
windbreaker;
change of clothes and shoes;
waterproof and windproof suit;
photo camera;
a remedy for mosquito and tick bites;
gloves;
swimsuit;
flip-flops;
trekking poles are optional.

Dates and Prices

The tour dates are not confirmed yet. Please, for clarification

$2,463

1 – 18 Aug, 2025 18 days 17 nights

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No need to pay now
$2,463

15 Aug – 1 Sep, 2025 18 days 17 nights

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$2,463

12 – 29 Sep, 2025 18 days 17 nights

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Reviews

E
Elena

1 Nov, 2024

about provider

This tour operator is great! I wish every tour company were just as awesome!

1 Nov, 2024

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