Tour Itinerary

Day 1. Irkutsk – Listvyanka – Baikalsk (lunch, dinner)
Meeting at the airport or railway station in Irkutsk.
Citytour of the city of Irkutsk: historical center – eternal flame – monument to pioneers – Moscow Gate (lower embankment of the Angara River) – Znamensky Monastery – monument to Admiral Kolchak – st. Karl Marx – Monument to Alexander III (upper embankment of the Angara River) – 130 quarter – dam of the Irkutsk hydroelectric power station – icebreaker Angara.
Drive to the Baikal tract to the open-air ethnographic museum "Taltsy'', which has absorbed the entire history of the Baikal region (travel time is about 45 minutes). Lunch at a cafe on the territory of the museum. Transfer to village Listvyanka, a visit to the Baikal Limnological Museum, acquaintance with the flora and fauna of Lake Baikal (an aquarium with a Baikal seal). Transfer to the Baikalsk city. Accommodation in the guest house " Northern Slopes '' (see the " Description '' tab).
Dinner.

Day 2. Baikalsk – Mount Sobolinaya – Ski resort – Utulik (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
Breakfast. Excursion around the Baikalsk city, a visit to the Sobolinaya mountain ski resort, ascent to the observation deck on a chair lift with views of the taiga and winter Baikal.
Alpine skiing (for beginners – a master class in alpine skiing from an experienced instructor).
Lunch at a cafe.
A visit to the village of Utulik, communication with amazing husky dogs. Husky sledding tour in the winter forest or Lake Baikal. Return to the hotel.
Dinner.

Day 3. Baikalsk – Tunkinskaya Valley – Arshan (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
Departure for an excursion to the Tunkinskaya valley to the villages of Arshan and Zhemchug. You will have a 3-hour drive through a picturesque valley bordered by mountain ranges. Arrival in the village of Arshan, mineral water tasting. Walk along the gorge of the Kyngarga river to the frozen waterfall.
Lunch at a cafe of Buryat cuisine. Visit to the village of Zhemchug with thermal springs.
Return to the hotel in Baikalsk. Dinner.

Day 4. Baikalsk – Circum-Baikal Railway – Listvyanka – Bolshoye Goloustnoye – Irkutsk (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
reakfast. Snowmobiling from Baikalsk to the Circum-Baikal railway to the opposite shore of Baikal.
Excursion, inspection of tunnels and other objects of architecture of the Circum-Baikal Railway. Transition from the Circum-Baikal Railway to Listvyanka. Lunch at a cafe. Visit to the Limnological Museum. Trekking to the village of Bolshoye Goloustnoye, where snow is usually blown out by the wind and you can observe pure Baikal ice with famous bubbles.
Transfer to Irkutsk in the evening.

Overview

Visa: citizens of 58 states that hold all types of passports are eligible for visa-free entrance to Russia for a period up to 14 days (you can see the list on the official website), citizens of the 52 countries will be able to obtain a single e-visa of up to 16 days (you can see the list on the official website)

Accommodation: Guest House Northern Slopes* in the Baikalsk city (shower, toilet, TV in the room)

Accompaniment: Experienced guides, guides

If you are planning to travel by rail, it would be more expedient for you to consider purchasing a ticket directly to the Baikalsk station. Thus, you will exclude unnecessary transfers and will be at the hotel much faster.

* Guest house "Northern Slopes" – this small but very cozy mini-hotel, which is located in the Baikalsk city, a 5-minute walk from Lake Baikal. Spacious double rooms include a dining area equipped with everything necessary for self-catering, Wi-fi, pull-out sofa, TV, bathroom / WC with shower.

Schedule

Fees

The price of the tour per pax (without airfare), USD:

Children under 5 years old without a separate seat.

Payment schedule: 5% – at booking, 95% – 15 or 30 days prior to arrival.

Payment methods:
- bank transfer in USD, EUR, GBP, JPY, AED, ILS, DKK etc.
- credit/debit card online on our website

Fees include

- accommodation (see below)

- meals according to the program

- transfers specified in the program

- excursions specified in the program

- rent of the necessary equipment (skis, boots, glasses, snowmobiles)

- escorting tour guides and guides

- necessary permits to visit specially protected natural areas

- ski lift pass (1/2 day)

- the language of excursions is Russian but the guides speak English.

Accommodation :

- mini-hotel " Severny sklony '' – these are fully furnished log cottages for accommodation in Baikalsk. Each room has a separate bathroom / node. Autonomous heating, heated floors, parking for cars.

Fees exclude

- airfare to Irkutsk city and return

- meals not specified in the program

- insurance of the risk of cancellation or interruption of the trip (we have approximately 3% of the cost of the contract, if desired)

- personal spending

- early check-in or late check-out in hotels

- accommodation in Irkutsk hotels before and after the end of the program

- not included in the program or indicated as additional excursions

- personal English/Spanish guide: 100 USD per required day.

Travel tips

The best time to visit Baikal zimy – from February 10 to March 8. In January, the ice finally hardens, gains strength, becomes transparent, and in early February (usually in the 2nd week) the official ice crossing is opened at island Olkhon . Earlier these dates, the ice is not guaranteed strength, and later snowstorms begin, it warms up, and the ice grows dull.
The period of freeze-up is on average from January 9 to May 4. Baikal freezes as a whole, except for a small, 15 – 20 km long, section located at the source of the Angara. The shipping period for passenger and cargo ships is usually June to September; research vessels begin navigation after the opening of the lake from the ice and end it with freezing of Lake Baikal, that is, from May to January.
By the end of winter, the ice thickness on Lake Baikal reaches 1 m, and in the bays – 1.5 – 2 m.In severe frost, cracks that have the local name " back cracks '' break the ice into separate fields. The length of such cracks – 10 – 30 km, and width – 2 – 3 m. Fractures occur annually in approximately the same areas of the lake. They are accompanied by a loud crackle, reminiscent of thunder or cannon shots. It seems to a person standing on the ice that the ice cover is bursting just under his feet and he will now fall into the abyss. Thanks to cracks in the ice, fish on the lake do not die from lack of oxygen. Baikal ice, in addition, is very transparent, and the sun's rays penetrate through it, therefore planktonic algae, which release oxygen, develop rapidly in the water. On the shores of Lake Baikal you can see ice grottos in winter.

Map

Irkutsk city

Listvyanka village

Baikalsk city