Arctic Circle Steam Express with Author Paul Theroux
Join other adventurous travelers on a 4,200 mile journey - 75% of which is steam-hauled - through the Russian "White Nights" from Moscow to the Arctic Circle and back again. Discover Russia's Far North and experience the Arctic's 24-hour daylight. This unusual tour will be accompanied by virtuoso travel writer and novelist Paul Theroux, famed for his books about epic train rides, among them The Great Railway Bazaar, The Old Patagonian Express and Riding the Iron Rooster.
Days 1-2: Moscow
See the classic sights of Russia's capital, including Red Square and the Kremlin. Board the Siberian Tiger Private Train, hauled by Europe's largest steam engine, the P36.
Day 3: Pavlovsk, St. Petersburg
Visit baroque Catherine's Palace with its famed Amber Room, and beautiful St. Petersburg, its miles of canals laced together with graceful bridges.
Days 4-5: Novogorod, Petrozavodsk
Arrive in Pskov and tour its defensive kremlin. Next is Novgorod, one of Russia's earliest cities. Then it's onto Petrozavodsk, which was founded by Peter the Great as an iron foundry. Hydrofoil across Lake Onega to Kizhi Island to admire the 22-domed wooden cathedral.
Days 6-7: Arctic Circle, Nikel, Murmansk
Spend a relaxing day steaming northeast. Experience Nikel, its ecosystem devastated by acid rain from a smelting plant, and Murmansk, an ice-free Arctic port.
Day 8: Kem, Solovetsky Island
Board a boat to the UNESCO-listed Solovetsky Islands. Sacred to pre-historic peoples, Solovetsky was settled by monks in the 15th century. Stalin sent countless citizens here in the first camp of Solzhenitsyn's Gulag Archipelago.
Days 9-11: Archangelsk, Vologda
Explore Archangelsk, on the shores of the White Sea and spend a full day on board the train before touring Vologda's kremlin.
Days 12-14: Uglich, Moscow
Uglich is a lovely little Golden Ring town. Enjoy a vodka-tasting at the town's Library of Russian Vodka before continuing back to the capital. Check into a Moscow hotel for a farewell dinner before transferring the following morning to the airport.
Trip Details
Special Features
- Experience the czarist opulence of baroque St. Petersburg and the modern cacophony
of Moscow
- Relax in our comfortable "hotel on wheels" as it is pulled by the
mightiest steam locomotive ever built in Russia
- Watch the thick Russian forest thin and shrink as we head north toward the
permafrost zone
- Cross the Arctic Circle under the Midnight Sun
Map - Click to Enlarge
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| Days 1-2: |
Moscow |
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| Day 3: |
Pavlovsk, St. Petersburg |
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| Day 4: |
Novogorod |
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| Day 5: |
Petrozavdsk |
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| Days 6-7: |
Arctic Circle, Nikel, Murmansk |
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| Day 8: |
Solovetsky Islands |
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| Day 9: |
Archangelsk |
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| Days 10-11: |
On board, Vologda |
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| Day 12: |
Uglich |
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| Days 13-14: |
Moscow |
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Suggested Extensions
Extend your stay in either Moscow or St. Petersburg. Contact us for details.
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