ADVENTURE / KARELIA Skiing to Kizhi
KARELIA
Skiing to Kizhi
- Beautiful ski discovery of the wooden domes of Karelia –
5 days / 4 nights
We will experience the Russian winter at its beauty. We will ski through the century old forests, ice-bound bays of the endless Onego lake towards old Karelian villages and wooden chapels carefully covered with snow by Winter. In the evening, after a day of skiing through the fairytale scenery, we will enjoy the coziness and comfort.
Tour type: cross-country skiing (with snowmobile support)
Duration: 5 days/4 nights
Length: 85 km skiing
Group size: up to 12 persons
Special requirements: none, but own winter outfit is a must
Season: February-March
Itinerary:
Day 1 | 9 AM – arrival in Petrozavodsk, the capital of Karelia, by overnight train* from Moscow (6.50 AM – from St. Petersburg), meeting at the railway station, transfer and breakfast in a local café. Select the skis. Transfer to the starting point of our tour - Tambitsy village located on the shore of the Onego lake, the 2nd largest lake in Europe (303 km). Walk around the village to see the samples of typical Northern wooden architecture and visit the Nikоlay the Miracle-Worker’s church. Lunch on the way. Dinner and overnight in a wooden guesthouse in Tambitsy, in rooms for 2-3-4 persons. |
Day 2 | Breakfast. Instructions, outfitting. Start the cross-country skiing in the fresh snow along the shore and across the white plain of the Onego lake towards old Karelian villages. The day route Tambitsy village – Potanevshina village on the Big Klimenetsky Island (24 km), with a stop in Vorony Ostrov (“Raven’s Island”) village to visit the John the Baptist Cathedral. Lunch on the way. Dinner. Russian banya and overnight in the comfortable Potanevshina guesthouse in rooms for 2-3-4 persons. |
Day 3 | Breakfast. Full-day exploration by skis of the Karelian gems located next to Potanevschina village (12 km). Ski to the Kizhi island, a UNESCO World Heritage site, an open-air museum of wooden architecture with an amazing creation of the XVII-XIX centuries’ masters of the Russian North – an ensemble of traditional wooden structures - chapels, mills, barns, and Russian houses (izbas), visit the cemetery and chapels. Depending on the group preference, visit is possible to some other villages of the Kizhi Necklace (a group of islands in the Onego Lake with beautiful old chapels, monuments of wooden architecture, surrounding the Kizhi island like a precious necklace), e.g. Podyel’niki village with its lovely wooden chapel of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa and Varlaam Khutinsky (XVII century). Lunch on the way. Return to the guest house in Potanevschina, time at leisure, dinner, optional sauna (extra cost), overnight |
Day 4 | Breakfast. Leave Potanevshina and ski through the vast whiteness of the lake adorned with rocky island crowns and snow-dusted trees to one of the oldest Karelian villages Yuzhny Dvor (28 km). Visit the Nikolsky Cathedral (XV c.) whose belfry towering over the lake is seen from far away. Lunch on the way. Dinner and overnight in the guesthouse or in a heated tent. |
Day 5 | Breakfast. The last day of enjoying skiing in the crispy air and endless spaces from Yuzhny Dvor village to Gorka village (20 km). Lunch on the way. Transfer from Gorka village to Petrozavodsk. Arrive in Petrozavodsk, dinner in a local café at your own expense. Transfer to the railway station for departure by overnight train to Moscow at 7 pm. (Free time for acquaintance with Petrozavodsk for those who leave for St Petersburg at 23 pm) |
* Time on train one-way: from Petrozavodsk 14.5 hrs to Moscow and 8-9 hrs to St Petersburg; comfortable night trains
The Tour Operator reserves the right to introduce changes in the itinerary due to weather conditions
TOUR PRICE per person, winter 2007-2008:
EUR 380
- valid for individuals in groups mixed with Russians for standard departure dates, English-speaking guide included
- valid for own groups of a tour operator / travel agent for standard departure dates (10 and more pax), English-, French-, or German speaking guide included. in case of group size 9 or less pax the price changes, extra charge for a guide-interpreter
The price includes the following: meeting at the railway station, transfers, ski hire, vehicle support (snowmobile), accommodation and meals according to the itinerary, Russian banya in the guest house, insulation mats and sleeping bags, a ski tour of the Kizhi museum, accompanying personnel (English-speaking instructors or an instructor and an English-speaking guide), insurance.
The price does not include: train tickets to/from Karelia (appr EUR 130 return from Moscow or EUR 90 return from St Petersburg in a 4-berth compartment), spirits
Accommodation on the itinerary:
- Tambitsy guesthouse – a wooden house on the shore of the Onego Lake, rooms for 2-3-4 persons, facilities outside (biotoilet in the building), no hot water but Russian Banya available, hospitable hosts
- Potanevschina guesthouse – a comfortable wooden house on the Big Klimenetsky Island in the Onego Lake, twin rooms, shared facilities, hot water available, dining room with a fireplace
Dates of departure for winter 2008: groups mixed with Russians, English-speaking guide
13 Feb – 17 Feb | 12 March – 16 March |
27 Feb – 2 March |
Or any other date upon request for your group (group size 10+ pax)
