Siberian Odyssey: Yenisei Cruise to the Arctic Circle with Bill Altaffer
From 1582, when Ivan the Terrible began sending officials into Siberia to collect furs from his new indigenous "subjects" down to the present day, as northern permafrost cities are transformed into bases for oil and gas development, Siberia has been an adventurous and challenging place to travel.
Days 1-4: Moscow, Perm
Begin just outside of Moscow at the first-class Monino Aviation Museum, wandering to your heart's content among Soviet MiGs and Yaks. Then join the slim ranks of bold travelers to visit the Perm 36 gulag, one of the only intact work camps left in Russia.
Days 5-13: Omsk, Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Krasnoyarsk
Tour Omsk, where Dostoevsky was exiled, and Krasnoyarsk, where the power of the water rushing over its huge dam keeps the Yenesei River from freezing for miles around. In Novosibirsk, explore the enormous Opera House, Lenin Square and the Ob River, which flows 3,500 miles from its source to the Arctic.
Days 14-20: Yenisei cruise to Yartsevo, Vorogovo, Turuhansk, Igarka, Dudinka, Norilsk
Cross the Arctic Circle just north of Igarka, where scientists bundled in Arctic gear study in frigid tunnels dug into the permafrost. Disembark at the mouth of the Yenesei, in Dudinka, frontier port town on the Arctic Ocean. Visit nearby Norilsk, the northernmost large city on earth, where almost 17,000 gulag prisoners died mining nickel in the harsh Arctic climate.
This Siberian Odyssey is not your usual Russia tour.
Trip Details
| Length of Trip: |
20 Days |
| Departures in 2009: |
1 |
| Dates: |
August 17 - September 5 |
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| Land Tour Cost |
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| 5-16 travelers |
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| Minimum tour group size of 7 passengers |
From $11,545 per person, double occupancy. |
| Tour group size of 6 passengers |
From $11,945 per person, double occupancy. |
| Partial Single Supplement |
$2,295* |
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MIR Signature Features
- Visit Moscow's world-class Monino Aviation Museum.
- Explore one of the largest cities in the world built on permafrost, Norilsk.
- Be among the few bold travelers to visit the Perm 36 gulag, one of the only intact work camps left in Russia.
- Cruise down Siberia's mighty Yenesei that crosses the Arctic Circle and reaches to the Far North city of Norilsk, stopping here and there at little villages that rely on river traffic for their supplies.
- Tour leader, Bill Altaffer is a seasoned traveler, travel company owner and reknowned photographer who was declared the World's Most Traveled Person in 2005.
About the Tour Leader: Bill Altaffer
Bill Altaffer, 64-year-old ski instructor, photographer and travel company owner from Mammoth, California, was declared the "World's Most Traveled Man" in 2005. This year he is in third place and running as fast as he can to catch up. Of the 757 countries, territories, autonomous regions, enclaves, geographically separated island groups, and major states and provinces counted by the MostTraveledPeople.com, Bill has been to 676 of them, with 81 to go. His favorites places are the obscure Russian oblasts, which he wrote about in his MIR Travel Log of the 2008 trip.
| Days 1-2: |
Moscow |
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| Day 3: |
Moscow,fly to Perm |
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| Day 4: |
Perm |
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| Day 5: |
Perm, overnight train to Omsk |
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| Day 6-7: |
Omsk |
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| Day 8: |
Omsk, drive to Novosibirsk |
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| Day 9: |
Novosibirsk |
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| Day 10: |
Novosibirsk, bus to Tomsk |
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| Day 11: |
Tomsk
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| Day 12: |
Tomsk, overnight train to Krasnoyarsk
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| Day 13: |
Krasnoyarsk
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| Day 14: |
Krasnoyarsk, drive to Yeniseisk, board the cruise ship
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| Day 15: |
Yenisei cruise: Yartsevo, Vorogovo
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| Day 16: |
Yenisei cruise: Bahta, Turuhansk
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| Day 17: |
Yenisei cruise: Igarka
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| Day 18: |
Yenisei cruise: Dudinka, arrive Norilsk
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| Day 19: |
Moscow
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| Day 20: |
Depart Moscow
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| Moscow |
Aviation Museum in Monino, Secured Command Post "Tagansky," dinner in the Cold War Museum. |
| Perm |
An overview tour of the city's highlights, Perm 36 Gulag, dinner at a local family's home. |
| Omsk |
Stroll along the scenic Irtysh river embankment, and observe the locals, History Museum and Art Museum, Nikolsky Church, Tarsky Gate, and the local market. Time permitting, a boat ride on Irtysh River. |
| Novosibirsk |
Krasny Prospekt and Lenin Square, the largest Opera and Ballet Theater in Russia, St. Nicholas Chapel in the oldest part of the city, the monument at the geographical center of Russia, Siberian wooden houses on Gorkovo Street, the Regional Studies Museum.
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| Akademgorodok |
The Geological and Mineralogical Museum, Trans-Siberian Museum. |
| Tomsk |
Resurrection Hill, White Lake, Resurrection Church, and see many examples of traditional Siberian wooden architecture. Lagerny Garden and Tomsk State University with its Museums of Archaeology and Ethnography. |
| Krasnoyarsk |
Peace Square, featuring an excellent viewpoint of the Yenisei River. Praskeva Chapel atop Watch Hill, Regional Studies Museum, considered to be one of the best history museums in Russia.
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