DAY 01 ISTANBUL AIRPORT – ST. PETERSBURG
Meeting at 05:30 in front of the Turkish Airlines counter at Istanbul Airport International Terminal. After passport, ticket, and baggage procedures, departure to St. Petersburg at 08:10 on Turkish Airlines flight TK401. Following arrival in St. Petersburg at 11:50 local time, passport procedures and meeting with our guide. Then departure by our private vehicle for the "St. Petersburg City Tour." On the panoramic city tour, we will have the opportunity to see the streets where the finest examples of the world’s most famous architects and artists are displayed, as well as the city’s historical and touristic sites. The famous Nevsky Prospect featured in the books of renowned writers, Old Port Lighthouses, Mint, Clock Tower, Peter the Great’s Statue, Winter Palace, Palace Square, Admiralty Building, and the Aurora Battleship are among the places to be seen. After our city tour, transfer to our hotel. Free time and accommodation at our hotel in St. Petersburg. At the end of the tour, guests who wish may join the "Russian Night Tour" organized as an extra by our guide. Do not miss the opportunity to have dinner at Troika Restaurant, one of St. Petersburg’s finest restaurants, and watch magnificent dance shows. Return to our hotel after the tour. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.
DAY 02 ST. PETERSBURG
After breakfast, free time. Guests who wish may join the extra "Hermitage, Peter and Paul, and Canal Tours." Located beside the Neva River, the Hermitage Museum is one of the largest museums in the world and in Russia, housing approximately 4 million works from the Tsarist period; because it has the largest collection of paintings, it has also entered the Guinness Book of World Records. Then, accompanied by our guide, we will start our canal tour, seeing St. Petersburg from the canals and extending to the Neva River. After the tour, we will continue with Peter and Paul Fortress. Built by Peter in St. Petersburg in the 1700s, this fortress, the first structure in the city, is located on the Neva River. The cathedral inside the fortress contains the tombs of the Romanov Dynasty. At the end of the tour, transfer to our hotel. Overnight at our hotel.
DAY 03 ST. PETERSBURG
After breakfast, free time. Guests who wish may join the optional "Peterhof and Pushkin Tsar Village Tours." On this tour, we will have the opportunity to see the summer palace located in the Gulf of Finland, which Peter designed himself and then had built by the Italian architect Rastrelli. It is a magnificent palace complex rivaling Versailles in Paris, with gardens decorated by 150 monumental fountains and 4 waterfalls. Although it suffered great damage during World War II, it has been restored in full splendor, faithfully preserving its original architecture. Then, the park, palace, and building complex built by Catherine in the 18th century and known as Tsar Village, whose main building is Catherine Palace, covers an area of 600 hectares. Although the Amber Room here is extremely interesting, it may not be visited by many tourists due to heavy crowds, especially in the summer months. In this famous town where the Tsarist-era aristocracy met the tsar family, there is also the school where the famous poet Pushkin was educated. At the end of our tour, transfer to our hotel.
DAY 04 ST. PETERSBURG – ISTANBUL AIRPORT
Free time after breakfast. Transfer to the airport at the time determined by our guide. Following arrival, after passport and check-in procedures, departure for Istanbul at 12:50 on Turkish Airlines scheduled flight TK 402. Arrival in Istanbul at 16:55 local time. We hope to meet again on our next tour.