Lake Baikal: Ice, Sun, Snow & Fun

Once so remote that only the hardiest adventurers would make the gruelling 4,202km trip from Moscow to Irkutsk, capital of the Baikal region, now, a short flight and less than four exhilarating days are all you need to experience some of the most iconic sights and exciting activities that Lake Baikal winter tour offers, the “jewel of Siberia” has to offer. Don’t let the season put you off! Mid-winter is arguably when Lake Baikal is at its most visually stunning, completely covered in crystal clear ice that shimmers gem-like in the abundant winter sunshine.

The perfect combination of culture and adventure, this lake Baikal Winter tour packs in some of Baikal’s signature ice and snow-based activities and attractions, while offering downtime against a backdrop of some the most magical winter scenery imaginable.

Lake Baikal Winter Tour highlights:

• Cosy up in the lovely lakeside village of Listvyanka, affectionately known as the “Riviera of Siberia”. While it’s become a hub for tourists visiting the Baikal region, Listvyanka retains an authentic feel. Standing close to the lakeshore are many timber houses in the traditional Siberian style, intricately decorated with wooden lace, brightly painted shutters and picket fences

• Meet Siberia’s furriest and most lovable mascot, the loyal and adorable husky. In remote parts of Siberia, dog sledding is still a common form of transport. After a crash course with an experienced handler, you’ll get to try your hand at “mushing” a team of huskies yourself on a short but unforgettable ride through the snowy landscapes of the Baikal coast

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Lake Baikal Cruise - 6 Days Exploring Islands of the Sacred Sea

This Baikal Cruise will take you on a journey and show you that it is so big it makes its own horizon – little wonder it is sometimes mistaken as an inland sea!

Having formed some 25,000 million years ago, Baikal is the oldest and deepest body of freshwater on earth. Containing almost a fifth of the world entire unfrozen freshwater supply, the local people of southern Siberia have treated the ancient, life-giving Lake Baikal with deep reverence.

Covered in ice for much of the year, it’s during the balmy summer months that Baikal becomes a boating paradise, with brilliantly blue calm waters, shimmering azure bays and a shoreline hugged by dramatic mountain ranges, pristine forests and quaint ethnic villages. READ MORE

Trans-Siberian Odyssey Across Russia

The Trans-Siberian Odyssey is a journey of discovery. Russia is a mysterious country and many have tried to understand it, but even Lev Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoyevsky wrote about the Russian restless soul, torn between Oriental traditions and Western civilization. To understand Russia, one should get on a train and cross it from West to East.

The Trans-Siberian Railway is a perfect adventure — Being one of the most famous railways in the world — the path to the heart of Russia. Thousands of kilometres from the shores of the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean, you will hear the beating of the iron heart, what it is silent about, what it is inspired by.

Just trust in the road and the country will reveal its unexpected sides. You will see Russia in all its historical greatness, in the mixture of cultures and fortunes, in the architectural splendour and extravagance, diverse and united, unifying different people and religions.

Trans-Siberian Odyssey tour highlights:

• Spend a couple of days in Moscow  – one of the most vibrant and beautiful cities in Europe.
• Kazan: Our first stop will be the city on the Volga River known as the “third capital” of Russia. On a tour of Kazan, you’ll discover its intriguing Islamic influence and enjoy a Tartar folk performance with tastings of the local cuisine

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Lake Baikal: Two Shores, Four Cultures

One of the world’s oldest geographical features formed 25 to 30 million years ago, magnificent Lake Baikal, which is the highlight of Eastern Siberia, Russia. Ancient and mysterious, Baikal holds deep spiritual and historical significance for the four indigenous cultures that inhabit its shores. On this 9 day Lake Baikal tour, you’ll get acquainted with these long-surviving cultures as we visit the region’s most famous and picturesque places, both overland and across this majestic “inland sea”.

Lake Baikal tour highlights:

• Cruise to Olkhon Island, the largest of Lake Baikal’s islands and the “capital” of shamanistic culture. On a day tour of Olkhon’s natural wonders, discover untouched Siberian forests, soaring capes and cliffs, pristine sandy beaches and jaw-dropping sunsets

• Visit Ust-Orda village to experience the ancient customs of the Buryat people first hand. Feast on Buryati noodle soup and dumplings, hear extraordinary throat singers and participate in traditional games and dances

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Imperial Russia, Classic Trans-Siberian Journey

Lake Baikal Photography Tour

This Lake Baikal Photography Tour will grant intrepid photographers the honour of focusing their lenses on some of Siberia’s most famously beautiful frozen landscapes. Summer sees the bulk of tourist activity in the area, but it’s in winter that the most devoted photographers make the pilgrimage, hoping to capture once-in-a-lifetime images of the natural world at its most powerful and surreal.

Lake Baikal Ice Photo Tour Highlights:

• Enjoy a breathtaking panoramic view showing the true scale of Siberia’s “inland sea” from Khoboy Cape, which contains a labyrinth of grottoes where sunlight dances off ceilings jagged with icy stalactites

• Khorin-Igri Bay: an ideal spot to photograph the natural phenomenon of frozen bubbles under Lake Baikal, rising to the surface in perfect discs suspended in the clear, dark water

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Golden Eagle, Luxury Trans-Siberian Express

The world’s greatest railway journey, the Trans-Siberian Railway runs like a steel ribbon across Russia, connecting Moscow to the East over the Urals, the forested mountain range separating Europe from Asia. Skirting alongside the shore of the world’s largest freshwater lake, the rail line then crosses the Mongolian border into a land of baking deserts, majestic steppe country and vast grasslands where columns of smoke still rise from the nomad camps of the last of the Mongol horsemen.

To travel along this route is by far the best way to experience the vastness and grandeur of Russia’s rarely visited interior. This private 15 day Trans-Siberian Railway tour spans the entire 9,288km length of the world’s longest rail line, with a total of 12 days aboard the luxurious Golden Eagle, beginning in Moscow and ending in the Russian port city of Vladivostok, close to the Chinese and North Korean borders.

Trans-Siberian Railway tour highlights: 

• Moscow City Tour: Immerse yourself in the atmosphere of one of the world’s biggest metropolises on a guided exploration of Moscow, taking in the Red Square, the Kremlin, St Basil’s Cathedral, Lenin’s Tomb and the world-famous Moscow Metro tour

• Kazan is the epicentre of ethnic Tartar culture. Discover the city’s mediaeval Islamic influence, tour the grounds of the picture-perfect Kazan Kremlin and enjoy a private concert of the music of Feodor Chaliapin, Kazan’s most famous opera singer

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Naadam Festival - Trans Mongolian Express

One of the most celebrated events on the Mongolian calendar, Naadam Festival is the Mongol version of the Olympic Games and a source of deep national pride. Railway cruising on the Trans-Siberian Railway from Mongolia to Russia (or vice versa) is a fantastic way to absorb the rich culture of the Naadam Festival and the cinematic landscape of both countries. Our exclusive Trans-Mongolian Express tour through Russia and Central Asia combines first-class customer service and a romantic room with a constantly changing view from the Mongolian steppes to the Siberian taiga. On a private trip travelling aboard the luxurious Golden Eagle train, we’ll make numerous stops along the route, providing a memorable exploration of the cultures, customs and cuisine of each unique region we visit.

Trans-Mongolian Express and Nadaam Festival tour highlights:

• Nadaam Festival: For three days, Mongolians don traditional dress and celebrate games and sports derived from Mongolia’s proud warrior tradition. Witness the primal thrill of outdoor wrestling, impossible archery contests and horse racing across the vast Mongolian grasslands

• The Siberian city of Ulan-Ude lies at the crossroads of East and West, harbouring a unique Buryat Buddhist culture. It’s also a stronghold of the last of the Russian Old Believers, who we’ll meet on a village visit to discover the unique history and traditions of these proud, welcoming and deeply religious people

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Legend of Lake Baikal

Dive into the Legend of Lake Baikal on this glorious summer excursion to the glittering Blue Pearl of Russia. Plummeting to 1,642m at its deepest point, Baikal is also the world’s most voluminous lake. Its mirror-clear waters are a reflection of Siberia’s wildness, its vastness, and its beauty. Baikal is a place where shamans still speak to the spirit world, wildlife-rich virgin forests thrive and lake-living seals fish and frolic in freshwater. Surrounded by jagged mountains and taiga of pine, fir, and cedar, Lake Baikal is a protected World Heritage site. Unsurprisingly, it is the most famous attraction in Siberia, but Baikal’s sheer size means there’s always an escape from the crowds.

Legend of Lake Baikal Tour Highlights:

• The Taltsy Museum between Irkutsk and Listvyanka is a fabulously comprehensive open-air museum, set over 64 acres. Over 40 historical buildings from both the Russian and Buryat cultures of Baikal have been painstakingly reconstructed and authentically furnished. Wander through the streets of an 18th-century Siberian village and get a feel for life in a nomadic Buryat summer camp

• Cruise to Olkhon Island, the largest of Lake Baikal’s islands and the “capital” of shamanistic culture. On a day tour of Olkhon’s natural wonders, discover untouched Siberian forests, craggy capes, pristine beaches, and jaw-dropping sunsets

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Lake Baikal Ice Adventure

Our Lake Baikal Ice Adventure tour takes place during late February and March. The beginning of spring in the Baikal region, at this time of year, the temperature climbs above zero, but the surface of the lake is still largely frozen, covered by solid winter ice so clear you can see rocks and other objects at the bottom of the lake as far as 40m below. During spring, Baikal receives few visitors compared to the summer high season, allowing you to feel an inspiring sense of isolation and communion with undisturbed nature during this handcrafted 7-day tour. Be amazed by the frozen beauty of the world’s oldest and deepest lake and experience real-life walking on water. We’ve included a few activities exclusive to the cooler months such as ice skating snowmobiling to add a sprinkle of spills and thrills to this thoroughly enjoyable adventure.

Lake Baikal Ice Adventure Highlights:

• Embark on an over-ice expedition on and around Olkhon Island, the largest of Lake Baikal’s islands and the centre of shamanic energy for the Buryat people. Spend three nights on the island and discover pristine beaches, craggy capes, and untouched Siberian forests

• Enjoy over-ice hovercraft expedition to Ogoy island – one of the sacred places in the region.
• Enjoy one of the most popular winter activities – snowmobiling and dog sledding.

Lake Baikal - Frozen beauty of Olkhon Island

Lake Baikal winter tours are rightfully upheld as Siberia’s most famous attraction – its clear-as-a-mirror waters are a reflection of Siberia’s wildness, its vastness and its beauty. The crescent-shaped lake extends for 636km from north to south and is up to 1,637m deep, making it the deepest lake in the world. In fact, 20% of the world’s freshwater is contained within Lake Baikal. The vast Baikal region is home to unique indigenous cultures such as the Buddhist Buryat people. Traditional villages are dotted along the lake’s shore, interspersed with taiga forest and rocky steppes.

This tour takes place at the end of winter to provide guests with the unique opportunity to experience winter activities on the frozen surface of Lake Baikal and a trip to the region’s spectacular ice caves. READ MORE