Russia was everything we dreamed of.

We went back to Red Square 3 times ... Just the vastness of the place and huge old buildings ... and all those domes.

Again we walked forever. At least 4 to 5 hours a day! I came home thinner! The boat was great ... we really got to see the beautiful landscape, little towns on the way and the locks were always interesting.

Food was great ... 4 courses for lunch and supper. Then we stayed the extra days in St Petersburg. Also a nice hotel, but my favourite was still the one in Moscow.

We saw them lifting the bridges at 2:30 in the morning and oh, the ballet was just so special. I included the one photo of me at the ballet ... I felt just like Julia Roberts in the movie Pretty Woman!

Also went to oldest Catholic Church in Russia, which was special for me! 

We got back on Monday evening according to our itinerary.

Everything went exactly as planned. We had no problems anywhere. We found people extremely friendly - even at the Metro ticket offices and supermarkets away from the tourist routes.

The weather was good too. As I mentioned to you, it was raining when we arrived in St Petersburg but then we had sun till we left. It rained again as we were on the train to Moscow.

One evening while we walked around it was -2 but we were prepared. We even had a few flurries of snow the day after we arrived. Moscow was sunny and cloudy but only a little rain one evening. We saw Giselle in the Bolshoi and that was fabulous (even for me who doesn't like ballet that much).

It was a wonderful holiday and Russia is a truly terrific place to visit. We never felt unsafe or uncomfortable. The food was good everywhere and we actually felt very much at home. There was nothing strange or unusual for us about the country.

Thanks again for arranging everything.

We're definitely going back...so if you hear of crazy airfares, let me know!

1. Our driver was at the Moskow airport on time and met us very courteously and we drove the quite lengthy drive to our hotel in pleasant circumstances.
In general, the Russian part of our tour was excellent, with all pick-ups mostly early, rather than late, excellent guides and very good hotels.

2. The Garden Ring Hotel accomodation in Moscow was very good, with good internet available in rooms and other areas.
Food in their restaurant was very good, both at breakfast and the first evening when we had dinner there.
Room was very nice and staff very helpful and pleasant.
After a couple of days, we realised that it could probably have been even more convenient if our hotel was situated closer to the Kremlin and Central Square, but we eventually got used to using the Metro even with the line change in between, without even getting lost.
It obviously does make it difficult if you can not even read the names of the stations, let alone pronounce them Good instructions from our guide was a great help and she even did a “practice run” with us on the underground right up to our closest station one evening, just to make sure we understood and would not get lost.

3. The show that we were booked for was out of this world and we even had the Minister of Culture in the audience handing out prizes to some of the cast and conductor.
We also booked for and attended a performance of Swan Lake at a theater next to the Bolshoi, one evening.
Obviously very special!
 
4. Our Russian guide in Moskow was fantastic with good knowledge, a good sense of humour and perfect command of the English language.
On the last day in Moskow, during our visit to Sergiev Posad, she even invited us to her summer home nearby to enjoy a lunch with her.
This was a very kind gesture and really appreciated by us.
She should definately be commended for her professionalism and willingness to walk the extra mile with us, just to make our visit even more enjoyable.

5. The transfer to the station for our trip to St Petersburg was on shedule and the overnight train journey a special experience.
Obviously the train departed and arrived on the sheduled minute and was clean and luxurious!
Although a day trip would have given us a better idea of the countryside, we had chosen to do the overnight trip.

6. We were met on the platform outside our compartment by our St. Petersburg guide as the train pulled into the station on the sheduled minute.
She is a very attractive, knowlegeable young person and we thoroughly enjoyed her company for the next couple of days in St. Petersburg.
With her pleasant nature and her knowledge of the history and art of the beautiful city, she contributed greatly to our pleasant memories of that city and its people.

7. In summary, we would definately recommend all our drivers and guides to people from South Africa visiting Moscow and St Petersburg.

8. Our hotel in St Petersburg , the Crowne Plaza, had pleasant accomodation and was conveniently situated opposite a large shopping mall and in close proximity of the Nevski Prospect to enable us to walk to pleasant restaurants and shops.
Their restaurant where we had breakfast and a late supper one evening, was superb.

9. Our driver met us on time for the drive to the airport for the flight to Berlin and assisted us with our luggage.


Lara, once again, thank you very much for arranging a wonderful trip for us.
We will definately recommend you to all our friends who might be planning a trip to Russia.

Kind regards,

Russia was everything we dreamed of.

We went back to Red Square 3 times ... Just the vastness of the place and huge old buildings ... and all those domes.

Again we walked forever. At least 4 to 5 hours a day! I came home thinner! The boat was great ... we really got to see the beautiful landscape, little towns on the way and the locks were always interesting.

Food was great ... 4 courses for lunch and supper. Then we stayed the extra days in St Petersburg. Also a nice hotel, but my favourite was still the one in Moscow.

We saw them lifting the bridges at 2:30 in the morning and oh, the ballet was just so special. I included the one photo of me at the ballet ... I felt just like Julia Roberts in the movie Pretty Woman!

Also went to oldest Catholic Church in Russia, which was special for me!

We got back on Monday evening according to our itinerary.

Everything went exactly as planned. We had no problems anywhere. We found people extremely friendly - even at the Metro ticket offices and supermarkets away from the tourist routes.

The weather was good too. As I mentioned to you, it was raining when we arrived in St Petersburg but then we had sun till we left. It rained again as we were on the train to Moscow.

One evening while we walked around it was -2 but we were prepared. We even had a few flurries of snow the day after we arrived. Moscow was sunny and cloudy but only a little rain one evening. We saw Giselle in the Bolshoi and that was fabulous (even for me who doesn't like ballet that much).

It was a wonderful holiday and Russia is a truly terrific place to visit. We never felt unsafe or uncomfortable. The food was good everywhere and we actually felt very much at home. There was nothing strange or unusual for us about the country.

Thanks again for arranging everything.

We're definitely going back...so if you hear of crazy airfares, let me know!