1st Day: After your arrival our English speaking travel guide welcomes you at the airport Kiev Borispol. We transport you to the centrally located middle class hotel “Gintama” in the old town of Kiev. After your check-in you meet our travel guide for a cup of coffee and receive first information about Ukraine. The rest of the day is available to your own leisure activities
2nd Day: Our travel guide meets you in the morning for a sightseeing tour through Kiev. Places of the tour are the momument of the founders of Kiev, the grave of Ascold, the Parc Slavy, the Boulevard of L. Ukrainka, the Bessarabian Square, the Shevshenko-University, the Volodimir-Cathedral (incl. visitation), the Opera, the Golden Gate, the Sofia Square and the Michaelmas Cathedral. This tour lasts about 3 hours (1 hour transfer and 2 hours by foot). In the afternoon we pick you up for a sighseeing of the Kiev Monastery of the Caves Lavra. This Monastery is one of five holy monasteries of Russian-Orthodox Church and is inscribed since 1990 to UNESCO World Hertitage Site. The rest of the day is available to your own leisure activities. In the evening our travel guide brings you to the main station of Kiev and guides you to the night train to Odessa. Before you depart our travel guide from Kiev says goodbye.
3rd Day: In the morning you arrive at the train station of Odessa where our English speaking travel guide from Odessa waits for you with our transfer. We drive you to the hotel “Odesskiy Dvorik”. You check into your room and have the possibility to have breakfast in the hotel. During the morning you can relax after the train ride from Kiev. In the afternoon you meet our travel guide for a sightseeing tour through Odessa. On your walk you get to know the most important historic architectural monuments, the nicest corners of the formerly free Hanseatic town Odessa. Here, history comes to life again. You visit the famous Potemkin Stairs as well as monuments of famous personalities and find out the history of this unique town. The tour will be done on foot. It lasts about three hours and contains a coffee break. The rest of the day is available to your own leisure activities.
4th Day: After breakfast we wait with our transfer at the hotel for guiding you through the Catacombs of Odessa. Odessa has from the time of the construction of the town in the 18th century a net of subterranean ways which apply under the whole town. During the Second World War they served as a hiding place for partisans. You get from us a controlled tour through a part of the catacombs. The whole guidance including the transfer is about two hours.
In the evening hours we meet in the Opera of Odessa. The opera of Odessa is called in a breath with the opera-houses in Vienna and Milan one of the nicest opera-houses of the world. You receive a half-hour guidance through the opera and visit afterwards an opera performance (according to the opera programme). In case the opera should be closed due to summer holidays we offer an excursion as replacement.
5th Day: Most of people don´t know that the region of Odessa is a wine area. We wait with our transfer at your hotel for driving you to the Winery “Shabo” in the region of Odessa. There you visit the wine production, take a tour through the wine culture centre and take part in a wine tasting. This excursion includes the transfer to and from the winery which is located about 70 km close to Odessa and takes in total about 5 to 6 hours. In the winery you have the possibility of having lunch (not included in travel price). The rest of the day is available for own leisure activities.
6th Day: After breakfast you check out of the hotel. In the morning you meet our travel guide for a guidance through the Churches of Odessa. The international culture of Odessa is stamped by religious openness. After the breakdown of the Soviet Union this culture revived again. You visit an orthodox convent with a church museum, a synagogue, the Arabian cultural centre, a Catholic church and the German Protestant church which is under reconstruction. This guidance takes up about three hours and contain the transfer to the single church sites.
In the early afternoon our travel guide goes with you to visit the Art Museum. ou enter with us the town palace which was established according to the concept of the Italian architect Francesco Boffo in 1823. This cultural monument is a masterly achievement of classical architecture. More than 10,000 exhibition pieces are situated in more than 26 rooms on two floors. In the cellar of the building there is a grotto which was opened for sightseeing as a part of the catacombs. This guidance is planned for two hours duration. In the later afternoon we transport you to the train staion of Odessa for your trip to Crimea. After our travel guide attended you to get into the train, he says goodbye to you.
7th Day: Our English speaking travel guide on Crimea welcomes you at the train station of Simferopol and gets you with our transfer to hotel “Sevastopol” in Sevastopol. After check in and breakfast you meet our travel guide for a Sightseeing Tour through Sevastopol. Sevastopol, during Soviet Union times “forbidden city”, impresses today people by his interesting places and museums. Once a fortress against British, French as Ottoman and later German conquerors Sevastopol was place of many battles. During 2nd World War the city was nearly completely destroyed and after war it was rebuilt by Stalin within only 5 years. In Soviet Union Sevastopol was base of the Soviet Marine and is until today base of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
After it, you visit the Panorama-Museum which reports about one day of the 349 days of defense of Sevastopol during the Crimean War of 1855. The famous painter of the picture “Panorama”, Franz Rubo (1856 – 1928), created a painting of 900 m2 size. The building of the museum was drafted by the famous archtitect, S.W. Beljaew, and the engineer, F.-O. Eiberg. This excursions last about 3 hours. The rest of the day is available for your own leisure activities.
8th Day: After your breakfast you check out of the hotel. Our travel guide meets you with our transfer for a daily excursion to Bachtshissaray on Crimea. Once Bachtshissaray was the capital of the Crimean Canat and for 300 years the centre of Islam in Ukraine. In the Tatarian Chan-Palace the famous Fountain of Tears is located which is the theme of one famous poem of Pushkin.
Afterwards you visit the Cave City Tshufut-Kale which was founded during 10th century by Alans. Moreover, a Cave Monastery founded by munchs in the 8th century is located on the plateau of Tshufut-Kale. This excursions takes about 8 hours.
In the evening we drive to Yalta where you check in the hotel “Levant”. The evening is available for your own activities.
9th Day: After your breakfast we pick you up for an excursion to the Botanical Garden of Nikita. After its opening, 180 years ago, the Botanical Garden of Nikita is still one of the most popular places in Yalta. About 10.000 different kinds of plants from the whole world are here cultivated and can be discovered by you. You find here plants from North and South Amerika, New Zealand and South Afrika. The Botanical Garden offers its visitors with 1,600 kinds of roses one the biggest rose collections of the world. Among the plants you will find a 1,000 year old pistachio tress, a 110 year old redwood tree and many more rare plants. Enjoy this unique nature and beauty of the Botanical Garden close to the Crimean coast. This excursion takes about 3 hours.
In the afternoon you visit the Palace of Massandra. Look at the former residence of the Tzar, Alexander III, which is located at the Upper Massandra. The palace was built in French style during 17th century. After revolution the palace was nationalized. During Soviet times the palace was used as a strongly guarded datcha by the Central Committee of Soviet Party and Josef Stalin spent here his summer holidays. Since collapse of Soviet Union the palace including its parc is opened for public.
Following, you go for a visit to the famous Winery of Massandra and take part on a wine tasting. This excursion in the afternoon takes about 4 hours.
10th Day: You spent the second daily excursion with us on Crimea. After breakfast we take you to the Liwadia Palace. The settlement Liwadia was founded by the Polish Aristocrat Duke Potozkiy. In 1830 it was sold to the Tzar´s family. In 1910 the palace was built up and served as a summer residence of the Tzar´s family. During that excursion you view the Liwadia Palace which contains two themes. The groud floor is dedicated to the Yalta Conference. It was one of in total three conferences of the Allies during World War II. The first floor gives you an impression of the Tzar´s family life. The palace is surrounded by a parc where you can discover many rare kinds of plants.
The tour continues in driving to the Palace Voronzov. The palace of the Govenor of New Russia, Duke Voronzov, was built up in Alupca from 1830 to 1848 following a design of the British architect Eduard Blora. The building was adpated to the mountain landscape and has an British Style with orietal influence. The garden of the palace was created by the talented gardener, Karl Kebach. Since 1921 there is a museum in the palace. The collection of the museum consists of more than 11,000 works of Russian and European artists. The excursion during this day takes in total about 6 hours.
11th Day: This day is available for your own leisure activities. You have the opportunity to spend a day on the beach, to take a walk on the water front or to visit one of the numerous restaurants in Yalta. The hotel offers a SPA area for relaxing times.
12th Day: It is the day of your departure. We pick you up in time from your hotel “Levant” and drive you to the airport of Simferopol from where you start your flight back home.