Travel All RussiaReviews of travelallrussia.com

The arrangements made by Travel All Russia were spotless! Everything went according to the plan, which in my opinion is the key to successful travel. I really value the time spent in Russia this summer and will definitely use this company if I ever come back to see more of dazzling Russia and for touring other countries too. Cheers!

Our trip to Russia was an amazing experience - one because of the awesomeness of Russia itself and the other because we had Travel All Russia organise our tour. We chose a private tour for my husband and myself. From the first email, then phone call and subsequent planning with Evelina our travel specialist to the final airport drop off, the professionalism and quality of service was exemplary. We started our tour with the three days in the Golden Ring area, then back to Moscow for 5 days and the fast train to St Petersburg for the last 6 days. We had a guide and driver each day except for one day in Moscow where we had a free day. Having said that, we did have plenty of free time in the afternoons and evening to explore the cities and towns by ourselves. The tour staff were excellent, Serge, Alexi, Natalya and Ivan, our witty driver in St Petersburg, were friendly, full of information and fabulously generous with their time. The hotel accommodation was everything that we expected. The meals provided were interesting, varied and delicious. The only negative, if it is one, would be that if you're not into churches then just try to arrange an overnight tour to Suzdal and don't bother about doing the whole Golden Ring area. But there is a lot of beautiful forest area you see along the way and the towns are slightly different.

We went on this river cruise just to see what Russia was like. Overall, you spend 2 nights in St Petersburg in a 5 star hotel, 6 nights on a 5 star boat, and end in a super super 5 star hotel (we were in St Regis) in Moscow. Wow, what a trip! Nice, relaxing cruise. Not a lot to see on the cruise cause this part of Russia is very rural and not many people. Would I recommend this trip to other people? Definitely, you got to see Russia, and this is a great way to do it. Monika at Travel All Russia (TAR) was great in getting it set up for us. Review the Volga Dream cruise ship, river cruise itinerary at TAR to get details of the sites it visits I would recommend going from St. Petersburg to Moscow vs the reverse direction. Primarily cause things get better as you head to Moscow and you end on a really high note in a super 5 star hotel in Moscow. We used the airline rebate and made our own plane reservations since we could get a non stop flight on Singapore Air from Houston to Moscow. We flew into Moscow, then to St Petersburg on Siberian Air (counter #106 at the Moscow airport counter). There must be150 airline counters so make sure you know what counter number your return airline is while there to make life better when you show up to go home. Even though we made our own air reservations, TAR still met us and shuttled us to the hotel. After a 16 hr flight, that was so great and what a relief to see a friendly face (or rather sign)! We arrived a day early just to hit some sites, hang out on our own and shop. You start out the tour by spending two nights in a 5 star hotel in St. Petersburg. Cool. The first day you tour a few sites and the Grand Palace and then on the second day, you tour the city and another palace then end the day at the Volga Dream river boat for dinner. As you board the ship, you get a glass of champagne and meet the captian Now this is a really 5 star river boat. It is just so nice. The crew were super service oriented. Ready to help out with anything. Now the food, it was something else, it was excellent and tasted oh so great (that make sense?). Breakfast was buffet style with the chief cook making country theme omelets to order. A very wide selection of items from pastries to fresh fruit to hot items, were available, as you would expect at the 5 star level. Lunch again had an excellent selection of items with the main course meal choices changing every day and such a selection of deserts to chose from. But, Dinner now that was special. Each entrée was an art presentation. Did I say the food tasted great, well, I will say it again, and the food service was outstanding. Tables were listed by language, English, Australian, German, etc. Dinner always turned out to be such a fun time that it ran exceedingly long as we enjoyed the conversations of people from different countries. Overall, the food had numerous Russian food themes for those who want to eat the local type menus. The days cruising were filled with activities and lectures and just relaxing. Russia is very rural around the river route, not a lot to see till you get close to Moscow. Really enjoyed the Russian history lectures from Professor Ludmilla Selezneva, a very good and energetic speaker. She took each time period starting way back and going all the way to President Putin, explained how Russia developed. Since we were seeing monasteries and churches built by various Kings and Princes, it was nice to know how they fit into the Russian puzzle of development to enjoy what we were seeing. We also had classes on the Russian Language. I was not a very good student, only learning two words, toilet and thank you, but did learn to sing a song, well sorta. I found our stop at KirilloBelozersky Monastery was interesting in that we got to see the “lake of youth”. Washed my face in the lake but it did not help, still look old and it sure didn’t help the ducks in the lake either. They looked pretty old. My favorite city tour on the cruise was Yaroslavl City. Just a lot there to see. The guided tour of the Governor’s house was very enjoyable. Don’t want to miss that. I was not too interested in the other stops Our last night on the cruise, we entertained the rest of the passengers with our song, sure not going to win any awards. At Dinner, we danced around the tables after a vodka tasting session. Did we ever have a good time! We departed the ship on the last cruise morning for a tour of Moscow, the Kremlin and Red Square, ending at a super 5 star hotel. We were in the St Regis. Wow. Now that is a real uptown hotel. Well naturally, it WAS at the Red Square! The next day consisted of continue touring the highlights of Moscow. The first night in Moscow, we were given the opportunity to see a great Russian dance show “Kostroma” listed as the Folk Show. It was a “Vegas” quality show in the Moscow main musical auditorium. I highly recommend attending whatever Folk show is on when you are in Moscow. That alone is something to experience. The following morning ended a very enjoyable 5 star Russian adventure as we left for the airport. Notes. I would advise bringing medicine for a head cold and cough. I caught a cold and was pretty miserable for part of the trip. There are no ATM machines between St Petersburg and Yaroslavl. You may not have time to utilize the one at Yaroslavl. There is one computer on board with WiFi capability, free to use to check emails. It was free most of the time. There was free WiFi at Yaroslavl square that I logged in to send some emails and both hotels had free WiFi.

We enjoyed our trip very much. We had excellent weather and I'm sure that helped a lot. While the company of our fellow travelers on the boat was wonderful I was disappointed by the shore excursions. They were always short and always rushed. I understand that the old town of Yaroslavl is a world heritage site and we went to see a church. Why not both? Also, I don't think our guide in Yaroslavl liked western tourists. She pined for the old Soviet Union and she was impatient with us. Our lecturer on the boat was excellent and her lectures were very informative. St. Petersburg was unfortunately very crowded. If I could do it again I would go maybe in late September or early October. The crew on the boat was outstanding and all the other guides were enthusiastic. I can recommend this tour company.

From the first time we booked to when we met our tour guides ever thing worked like clock work nothing was too hard for our guides When we wanted a laundry they found one we even had a mongolian spa which I would recommend to everyone In Russia the guides where excellent there knowledge of history was amazing. I would advise anyone planning on doing a tour of Russia that this is the only company to book with . Jenny from Nelson bay Australia

The Imperial Russia Train trip and my extension in Moscow and St Petersburg was a a fantastic experience!! I just reviewed my 1500 or so photos and it reminded me of some of great moments we had during this adventure. First of all, I found Russians to be very friendly, the countryside beautiful, and the cities clean, modern and cosmopolitan. Most young Russians spoke at least some English and everyone we encountered was more than willing to assist us in any way possible. The train was quite comfortable, though getting a good night's sleep was a little difficult at first. There were several small disasters during the trip, such as flooded showers or, in one case no water in a car for about 12 hours, but the crew got to it right away and fixed things as they occurred. The food throughout was great, with meals and the bar car the highlights.. The entertainment provided, a pianist and violinist, were great, especially the latter. One improvement would be providing more information as to when things would happen and what the daily schedules were. The crew was outstanding as well. Most spoke no English, but we always managed to get our points across and they fulfilled our needs and requests as quickly as possible in a smiling and friendly manner. Laundry service was provided upon request. Tours: Tour time was always welcome. Some were better than others. One of the things I learned to appreciate was how difficult it must have been to coordinate the logistics for a trip like this. We were dependent on train arrival times and since we were usually part of the regular trains-sib trains, flexibility was limited. The best tours were the longer ones, especially Vladivostok, Lake Baikal, Irkutsk, and Kazan. The picnic on the shores of Lake Baikal was a highlight as well. At first we were a little disappointed at the lack of free times during tours, but that improved later. Off-train meals were also great, and we got to feast on a lot of local cuisine. My Moscow experience was wonderful as I was able to see a lot of the city on my own as well as during the provided tour. St Petersburg is a beautiful city and my guide Katya and driver Vladimir were with me for all three days. She seemed to know everything about Russian history and the places we visited, so I couldn't have asked for more. The hotels provided were high quality in great locations, especially in Moscow and St Petersburg. The staffs were friendly and helpful and would provide anything you needed at a moments notice. Safety: Anyone who says Russia is not safe has never been there. I never felt uncomfortable and except for guarding my personal items more carefully in crowded places (which I do everywhere), I never thought about it. On the train we could leave our compartments unlocked and had no fear anything would be taken. Coordination: The overall coordination for the trip was excellent. I was met and picked up on time when I was scheduled to be. In most cases, drivers and tour guides arrived early. Overall, this was a trip I will never forget. Many thanks to Travel All Russia for their hard work.

I thought that the ride between cities would be boring but in truth I could not take my eyes off the scenery. Siberia is not entirely forest but mountains, rivers, small villages and large cities. Books I brought with me went unread. The train personnel from cook staff, waiters and porters was first rate. Day trips were excellent. I felt very much at home. Food and drink was plentiful. I have no complaints. I will recommend the Golden Eagle to everyone who has an interest in trains and Russia.

I was extremely happy with all arrangements made during the tour. They exceeded my expectations. I would not hesitate to recommend Travel All Russia to anyone. Rodney