Classic Baikal Tour

If you are going to visit Baikal for the first time, then you will surely enjoy the "Classic Baikal tour ". The most interesting for guests of our city: Irkutsk, Circum-Baikal railway, Listvyanka village, Olkhon Island.

Tour features:

• An excursion "historical center of Irkutsk";
• A tour around " Circum-Baikal Express";
• A visit to the Baikal Museum;
• A visit to the Architectural and Ethnographic Museum of Taltsy;
• A water excursion to Ogoy Island;
• An excursion "Journey to the edge of the Earth"(Cape Khoboy);

 Dates for groups in 2019:

Dates of tours for groups of 5 tourists and more at your request.

Tour program “Classic Baikal Tour”:

Day 1

Gathering of the group at the train station or airport in Irkutsk from 8 to 9 a.m.

Accommodation in a hotel (Irkutsk).

Time to relax.

Lunch at the restaurant (at own expense).

Excursion around the historical center of Irkutsk (about 2 hours).

Dinner at restaurant.

Meals: dinner

Accommodation: hotel / apartment (Irkutsk)

Approximate route of the tour program in Irkutsk:

Historical origins of the city, construction of Ostrog, the town Square of Kirov, Spasskaya Church, the Epiphany Cathedral, veterans Boulevard, the Eternal Flame, the Regional administration building, the Roman Catholic Church, the Moscow gate, lower quay, Znamensky monastery, the Place of Kolchak execution, Kolchak Monument, the Museum of the Decembrists, a monument dedicated to the wives of the Decembrists, Karl Marx street, local lore museum, tourist monument, Okhlopkov drama theatre, White house, upper quay, the Monument to Alexander III, district 130, Sukachev’s manor.

Day 2

Breakfast.

Travel to the Circum-Baikal railway. You can choose an excursion on a boat, or on a train.

The beginning of an exciting trip around the Circum-Baikal railway (with stops at the most

interesting places.)

The tour takes all day, lunch included.

Arrival in Listvyanka village in the evening (at about 6 p.m.)

Accommodation in a hotel, supper.

Meals: breakfast, lunch, supper.

Accommodation: hotel (Listvyanka village)

Day 3

Breakfast.

We will visit the Limnological Museum that very clearly presents all the information about the Great Lake. Exhibitions are devoted to the history of the lake, the specifics of natural landscapes, seismic environment, the animal world of Baikal and the history of its studying.

The aquarium in which tourists can study Baikal fish, crustaceans and even cute and modest nerpas (Baikal seals) is everyone’s favorite exhibition.

On the second floor you will get acquainted with the tiniest inhabitants of Baikal. With the help of electric microscopes, it is possible to study tiny crustaceans, worms, fish eggs etc. in detail.

At the end of the tour you will virtually dive into pure Baikal water. You will have an opportunity to become real researchers!

The climb to the observation point "Chersky Stone" which offers a beautiful view: the entire Listvennichny (Larch) Bay, famous source of the Angara River and the legendary Shaman Stone.

Lunch at a café (at own expense).

We will also visit the Ethnographic Museum in Taltsy village. The unique park-museum under the open air, where you can see a collection of architectural artefacts that were doomed to drown during the construction of numerous hydroelectric stations on the Angara River.

You will have a unique opportunity to have lunch at a real “Tavern”!

Travel to Irkutsk in the evening.

Meals: breakfast, supper

Accommodation: apartment/ hotel (Irkutsk)

Day 4

Early breakfast. Travel from Irkutsk to Olkhon Island.

The trip will take all day. Lunch at the Yurt - cafe. Acquaintance with Buryat cuisine.

Ferry across the Olkhon Gates Strait. Travel to the camp site.

Accommodation at the camp site.

We will definitely visit the Museum of shamanism and go to the Shamanka Rock (Cape Burkhan).

Photos will not be able to convey all the magic of Olkhon Island, only being here you can fully feel it. Shamans all over the World consider this place sacred.

Meals: breakfast, lunch, supper.

Accommodation: tourist complex (Khuzhir village)

Day 5

Excursion "Journey to the edge of the Earth!" (will take all day, lunch included).

Cape Khoboy is the northernmost Cape of Olkhon Island.

When you stand on a rock at the very edge and below there are miles of water, it seems that this is the edge of the Earth, that brave explorers and fearless characters of Russian tales were looking for…

There our path lies. To get to the north of the island, you need to overcome: a steppe landscape with incredible ascents and descents, very similar to a roller coaster, a sandy tract and impassable taiga. During the trip you will be able to see the face of the wise father Baikal on the slopes of Primorskii ridge, fascinating ice caves and hummocks, admire the “Three Brothers Rock”, whose silhouettes were immortalized in stone by the mighty and fair father. You will see the edge of the Earth, make a wish at the Love Stone, learn a lot about the lake and its fascinating legends, get acquainted with traditions and customs of the local inhabitants. The impressions from today’s trip will be unforgettable!

Return to the hotel. Supper.

Meals: breakfast, lunch (omul fish soup), supper.

Accommodation: tourist complex (Khuzhir village)

Day 6

A water excursion to Maloye More (the Small Sea) (will take all day, lunch included).

We will visit of the biggest island on Maloye More, called Ogoy, where you can see the Buddhist stupa of enlightenment. As a sign of respect, we will go through the Goroo (circle) clockwise for purification from bad acts that were committed in current and past lives. The Goroo needs to be competed without any thoughts, doubts or anxieties. For full enlightenment and clarification of thoughts, a person needs to go around 108 times!

A visit to the mineral springs which are located on the west coast. Picnic at a picturesque Bay of Lake Baikal.

If you're lucky, you will meet nerpas (Baikal seal) on their favorite "beach rocks".

A small tip: on a water excursion take warm clothes with you: jackets, trousers, comfortable shoes.

Meals: breakfast, lunch, supper.

Accommodation: tourist complex (Khuzhir village)

Day 7

An unforgettable excursion that will take you to the world of local customs and traditions. We will go to the "Buryat village", where you will be welcomed according to all the rules. Locals will tell you about their culture, lifestyle and Buryat legends. They will also invite you to the table, where you will find delicious traditional Buryat dishes.

Time to buy souvenirs and say goodbye to Baikal.

Travel from Olkhon Island to Irkutsk. We will arrive in Irkutsk at about 7 p.m. (depending on changes)

Accommodation in hotel.

Meals: breakfast.

Accommodation: apartment / hotel (Irkutsk).

Day 8

Travel to the airport.

Meals: breakfast

Tour price: 44 000 / 52 000 rub/person

The price includes:

• Accommodation: economy or standard, according to chosen class – 7 nights;
• Entrance tickets to museums, excursions mentioned in the program;
• Meals according to the program;
• All transfers to and from various points on the tour, according to the program;
• Guide services;
• Payment of entrance fees to visit Pribaikalsky National Park;

The price does not include:

• Plane/ train tickets;
• Banya (sauna);
• Accommodation in Irkutsk before the start of the tour;
• Additional drinks and meals (other than mentioned in the program).