Land Tour vs Russian River Cruise | Russia Travel Guide

Land Tour vs Russian River Cruise

Land Tour vs Russian River Cruise

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Last updated:
19.10.2020

When it comes to your precious vacation time and finances, a little time spent researching tour operators and tour options will ensure you have the best time possible in one of the most intriguing and fascinating countries - Russia.

Travel all Russia has been operating for more than 10 years and Russia is the main destination of which we happen to know every detail. We've put a lot of hard work and thought so that you can enjoy a carefree vacation. That’s why both land tours and cruises of Travel all Russia are designed to provide travelers with truly enriching programs at the best overall value and, of course, to pamper in luxury and comfort.

If both options are equally good, how do you choose? We name a few things to consider when choosing between a land tour and a cruise.

1. Is this your first time traveling to Russia?

Russia land tour. If this is your first time traveling to Russia, a land tour is an excellent and culturally rewarding option for you. We have a bucketload of advice for first-time-travelers, prepare the best possible day-by-day itineraries and take care of such time-consuming processes as visas, transfers, hotels and tour activities. Our travelers can choose from numerous small group tours to Russia or plan a customized private tour to Russia.

Russia Tour Happy Travelers

Russia land tours usually include from 3 to 5 main cities (e.g. Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Suzdal, Yaroslavl), numerous guided tours to the most stunning sights and enough time saved for your free time to explore the places on your own. A land tour is a perfect and indeed convenient way to absorb the grandeur of Russia as it can be fully customized, any selected tour can be tailored by adding preferred cities, sights and optional activities (theater events, museums, guided tours).

Tour guide in a car

Travelers can choose to go out to dinner every evening, see performances at The Bolshoi Theatre, a historic theatre in Moscow, or even enjoy special treatment at the hotel’s spa and beauty complex. Our land tours are top quality - for private tours instead of buses we use personal drivers, instead of one tour guide we use multiple local professionals that are the best in the industry and most importantly, we make sure that after an exciting day you can relax at 4-star or 5-star downtown hotels.

Land tour includes:

  • Guided city tours of the most famous attractions
  • Free time to explore on your own
  • Excellent hotels 4 or 5-star in the center of the cities
  • Private drivers instead of buses
  • Multiple professional local guides
  • Optional evening cultural program - theter events, ballets, museums, etc.

Russia cruise. If you want to have a relaxing tour and get authentic Russian experiences, or if it’s your second visit to Russia, you should definitely consider going on a Russian river cruise. Russia is the largest country in the world, so there is still so much to discover even if you are returning for a second or a third time

Cruising through Russia’s rivers is an excellent choice for everyone. Some travelers are concerned that the Russian river cruise option would be less cultural and comfortable as compared to the luxury of a carefully planned land tour. This is not the case when cruising with Travel all Russia tours. Our cruise programs are perfectly balanced so that you could both, indulge in the beauty of Russia with our tour guides and planned activities, and enjoy no-worry leisure time on a 5-star cruise ship with unique onboard programs.

Russia Tour Happy Travelers

Moreover, the Volga and other rivers of Russia are gifted with numerous unique villages and panoramic views on their shores, so just imagine yourself quietly sailing through rural areas and feeling this unique atmosphere. To top it all, you also get a chance to not only visit the main cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg quickly in a rush but actually explore them with local guides for 2-3 days each.

River cruise includes:

  • Guided tours of villages and main citys along the route
  • Free time to relax and enjoy the panoramic views
  • Excellent accommodation 4 or 5-star ships and hotels in main cities
  • Multiple professional local guides
  • Cultural program on ship
  • Authentic feel of rural Russia

2. What kind of traveler are you?

Russia land tour. Do you like to immerse yourself in a place completely and explore new cities taking all it has to offer? Then both, a land tour and a cruise with Travel all Russia will be great options for you. Nevertheless, a land tour is usually a more exploring adventure while cruising keeps a balance between explorative and a leisure tour.

If you’re looking for a more active yet relaxing tour, choose one of the Russia Land Tour programs that include guided tours and culturally enhancing activities. The advantage of a land tour is that if you want, all the evenings could include different activities and you can choose to have more free time if you want to explore the cities on your own, and even visit unique places that are not on the itinerary. Land tours are really flexible and are put together like puzzle pieces by our destination specialists, therefore, you just need to name the cities or sights that interest you the most and everything could be arranged for you.

Russia Tour Sightseeing Travelers

Often travelers visiting Russia have some heritage roots there and want to explore their ancestry, for example, a dream of visiting a rural village their grandparents grew up in, with a private tour to Russia even that is possible. All of our private tours could be customized according to your preference. Your tour program could be from 7 to 14 days and may be extended to a month or more, you can visit selected 3-5 cities or include more than 15 destinations, everything is up to you and your imagination. Our destination specialists have experience in planning short and “to the point” tours as well as long explorative adventures including many different connections and various transportation like trains and cruises.

Flexibility
Land tours are really flexible and are put together like puzzle pieces by our destination specialists, therefore, you just need to name the cities or sights that interest you the most and everything could be arranged for you.

Russia cruise. The benefit of a cruise is that you can have a more relaxing experience, enjoy carefully planned land activities in the main capitals and even various villages that you meet on the way. The Volga journey usually starts from Moscow or St. Petersburg, all Travel all Russia cruises are arranged in a way so that our travelers could have at least 2-3 days to spend at these capitals and relax at 5-star downtown hotels.

Russian Volga river

Cruising is exciting if you want to visit not only the main cities but also unique places and authentic villages. When taking a cruise everything even onboard activities and meals are planned for you, you can choose to relax on a sundeck sipping your drink, reading a book or, to watch a movie, attend a lecture or a special performance. Cruises usually have fixed dates and fixed day-by-day itineraries, nevertheless, cruises from Russia can have personal land extensions to other parts of Russia, the Baltic countries or Scandinavia.

Authenticity
Cruising is exciting if you want to visit not only the main cities but also unique places and authentic villages.

3. Looking for a no-worry vacation?

Russia is the largest country in the world so even if you are visiting it for the 100th time it may still not be enough to see all of its treasures and historic heritage. That’s why careful planning and professional assistance is something that could save you a lot of time, energy and most importantly, leave you in awe. All Travel all Russia tours and cruises have carefully prepared day-by-day itineraries and take care of everything from airport transfers and transfers to hotels to tours and entertainment activities. Travel all Russia land tours of 10 days usually have around 45 logistic points (hotels, transfers, tours, etc.) which are thoroughly planned and implemented by our in-house logistics department, moreover, we not only provide you with a visa invitation but actually take care of all paperwork and make sure your visa is issued on time.

If it is a cruise, we take extra care in arranging your transfers, cultural and onboard activities. Nevertheless, if you want to plan some parts of your tour by yourself, our destination specialists are always there to make arrangements and bookings for you. Land tours are fully customizable. With a personal land tour, you can customize your itinerary to suit only your preferred dates and include the cities and activities of your interest.

Unlike our competitors, we include complimentary full visa processing or comprehensive visa assistance for our clients. That means that you don't have to bother getting required documents, such as Russian visa invitations and etc. Our professional in-house destination management team will take care of everything and make sure you get your documents on time.

Itinerary & Visa
Land tours of 10 days usually have around 45 logistic points (hotels, transfers, tours, etc.) which are thoroughly planned and implemented by our in-house logistics department. We also make sure your visa is issued in time.
TRAVEL ASPECT TRAVEL ALL RUSSIA CRUISE TRAVEL ALL RUSSIA LAND TOUR OTHER COMPANIES*
OVERALL VALUE Excellent Excellent Good
EXCLUSIVE OFFER Exclusive Suites offer Exclusive Classic tour No
AMAZING HOTELS Luxury Ararat Hyatt and Astoria 5 star Intercontinental and Anglettere Staying onboard only, or 3-4 star hotels
VISAS TO RUSSIA Complementary full visa processing Complementary full visa processing No visas, invitation only
PROGRAM DURATION 11-14 days Flexible 13-14 days
PRICE from $2,548 from $2,498 from $4,000
GROUP SIZE Up to 14 travelers only Up to 14 travelers only Up to 40 people in the bus, 1.5 hour ride from river port
EXPERT RATING 4.8 4.7 4.4
CUSTOMER RATING 4.88 4.95 4.5

* We compare our programs with cruises/tours organized by other leading companies.

We hope this comparison will be helpful for you and will help you understand the overall value of the product better. Perfection always hides in the smallest details and we do our best to make sure any of our trips are seamless, comfortable and memorable for our valued customers.

View all: award-winning Russian river cruises

View all: award-winning tours

Our destination specialists are always happy to help you plan an amazing journey. So whenever you are ready, don't hesitate to contact us.