How much does it cost?
The price is 11,500 DKK. You pay
a non-refundable deposit of 3,000
DKK when you sign up.
The remaining 8,500 DKK is due
15 September.
The Russia Tour
A student trip to Moscow
and St. Petersburg
Experience Russia’s two capitals, St. Petersburg and Moscow
Embrace the magnitude of The Red Square, walk in the footsteps of Tsars and party with the locals in St. Petersburg.
Russia is a country at the crossroad between a fascinating past
and a challenging present. The tour offers an intensive learning
experience, intercultural exchange and a chance to meet new
people and maybe make friends for life!
When does the tour take place?
The tour takes place from Friday, 11
October thru Sunday, 20 October 2013.
When and how can I sign up?
You can sign up now by writing to the
organizers at: [email protected]
There is no deadline for signing up,
but there are a limited number of spots
available in the tour group, so we do encourage you to sign up as early as possible.
Who can sign up?
All students can sign up for the tour, also
students who do not study at The University of Copenhagen, so you can invite friends
to participate, also if they want to fly in to
Russia from other countries than Denmark.
The tour is conducted in English.
What is included in the price?
The price covers non-stop flights
with Scandinavian Airlines to and
from Russia, accommodation in
three star hotels in twin rooms,
bus transfers, overnight train
from St. Petersburg to Moscow,
a ten day long, intensive cultural,
academic and social program,
with a strong emphasis on social
interaction with students from
Russian universities, access to all
sights mentioned in the tour program, all guided tours described
in the program, all tips and fees
for guides, drivers, etc.. Finally,
half board through the whole tour
is included in the price, i.e. breakfast every day and either lunch or
dinner every day.
You pay for your own use of
public transportation (a metro
or bus ride in Russia costs less
than 1 USD). You also pay for
your Russian visa. The cost of a
Russian visa varies, depending on
your citizenship. Citizens of some
countries (among them Brazil,
Israel, Chile, Hong Kong and
Singapore) do not need a visa to
travel to Russia. The organizers
provide you with the papers you
need to obtain the visa at the Russian visa center in Copenhagen.
The tour is operated by Akademisk Rejsebureau/Academic Travel, Copenhagen, and
hosted by The University of Copenhagen.
Akademisk Rejsebureau/Academic Travel is
Denmark’s largest organizer of group tourism into Russia. Akademisk Rejsebureau is
registered with the Danish National Travel
Guarantee Fund and is licensed to operate
tourist groups out of Denmark. Visit Akademisk Rejsebureau/Academic Travel at
www.akademiskrejsebureau.dk
The University offers more than 200
study programmes in health sciences,
humanities, law, life sciences, pharmaceutical sciences, science, social sciences, and
theology. Visit the University of Copehagen
at www.ku.dk/english
With over 37,000 students and more than
7,000 employees, the University of Copenhagen is the largest institution of research
and education in Denmark. The diversity of
academic environments and scientific approaches is the University of Copenhagen’s
distinguishing feature and strength.
Program
Day 1
Day 2
Departure for St. Petersburg with Scandinavian Airlines morning flight, arriving early afternoon (note St. Petersburg and
Moscow time is Copenhagen + 2 hours).
After check-in at the hotel we have time to rest at the hotel and discover the local area before we depart together on a first
sightseeing tour of the city that was Russia’s capital for more than 200 years. Today, St. Petersburg is Russia’s cultural capital
and remains one of the most beautiful cities in the world. We end the day with a Russian welcome dinner with typical Russian food and, of course, a glass of vodka.
This morning we meet in the lobby to go for a sightseeing tour of Saint Petersburg. We see the reason why St. Petersburg
is considered by many the most beautiful city in the world and marvel at the Peter and Paul Fortress, the famous, colorful
Cathedral on Spilled Blood and the Bronze Horseman statue of Peter the Great. We have hored our own boat instead of a
bus for the first part of the sightseeing program, so that we see the city from its famous canals and the Neva River.
The Peter and Paul Fortress is the original citadel of St. Petersburg, founded in 1703 by Peter the Great, and completed in
1740. The fortress includes the Peter and Paul Cathedral where the remains of the Russian tsars rest, six bastions and other
buildings. The fortress was built during the Great Northern War (1700-1721), but during the 19th century it mainly served
as a prison for political prisoners, including Russian 19th century writer Fyodor Dostoevsky.
A shared Russian lunch in central St. Petersburg is included in today’r progran.
Tonight we meet the locals! A group of students from St. Petersburg take us out to their favorite cafes and clubs in St. Petersburg.
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Day 8
Day 9
Day 10
Today we explore the world famous Winter Palace with the Hermitage Museum. First we get a guided tour, then we have
time on our own in the Palace and the museum.
The Hermitage is one of the largest and most important museums in the world. It consists of six magnificent buildings and is
situated in the centre of St. Petersburg by the banks of the Neva River. The main building is the Winter Palace, the residence
of the Russian tsars, designed by Italian architect Fransesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli, and built in 1754-62.Founded by Catherine
the Great in 1764, the Hermitage collection has continued to grow ever since, and now represent more than 3,000,000 items
and works of art from the Stone Age to the 20th century. We strongly encourage you to stay at the museum after the tour
has ended and marvel at the huge collections and splendid museum interior.
Tonight we share a dinner in one of St. Petersburg’s many Georgian restaurants. Georgian cuisine is extremely popular
among Russians – tonight we learn why!
Today we take a day trip to the tsars’ summer residence in Pushkin, formerly known as Tsarskoe Selo, south of St. Petersburg.
Pushkin is world famous for Catherine’s Palace with the Amber Room – a gift from the Prussian king to Russia’s imperial
family. The park that surrounds the palace is an impressive example of European 18t century park architecture.
A rich, Russian lunch in the countryside outside St. Petersburg is included in today’s program.
This evening, or one of the other evenings, a visit to a Russian ballet will be organized. Tickets for the ballet are not included
in the tour cost and will be sold individually.
We begin the day by dividing ourselves into smaller groups and then we go ”Behind The Facades”. On this walking tour of
St. Petersburg you will experience the less touristy, more everyday and perhaps darker and poorer side of St. Petersburg.
A local journalist takes us around the hidden corners and backyards of the city and tells us about everyday life in Russia
before and after 1991. After a shared lunch in a typical Russian working class cafeteria we go to a homeless shelter we learn
about the situation of homeless people in Russia today. How do people end up on the street in contemporary Russia and
what are their rights and options for help?
Today we divide ourselves into interest groups. Students of business and economy have an academic meeting with a Russian
business leader. Another group looks at Russian politics today, meeting with political activists. Others go to an art gallery and
study the Russian art scene or meet with a writer and walk in the footsteps of Dostoevsky, talking about Russian literature
today. If there are medical students in the group, we organize a visit to a hospital. Lunch during the day.
Just before midnight we leave with an overnight train to Moscow. We have reserved a whole wagon in the train just for our group.
Morning arrival in Moscow. After breakfast our bus will take us directly to The Red Square, where we also see and go inside
the famous St. Basil’s Cathedral.
The Red Square is Moscow’s main square. In medieval times it served as the city’s marketplace, but in the 20th century it
has mainly been the stage for Soviet military parades, cultural events and concerts. At noon we check our Moscow hotel.
In the late afternoon we meet with local Moscow students. The local students take us out to see their favorite places in the
city and afterwards we spend the evening with them in their homes. We go grocery shopping and prepare dinner together.
Dinner is sponsored by the tour.
We start the day with a guided tour of The Kremlin.
The Kremlin is Moscow’s fortress. The site is known to have been inhabited since BC, but the Moscow Kremlin was founded
in early 14th century by a Moscow prince. The town quickly rose to become the centre of a principality within the Mongol
empire. By the end of the 14th century the Metropolitan seat of the Russian Orthodox Church had been moved from Kiev
to Moscow, stating Moscow’s significance. Over the next few centuries, until Peter the Great made St. Petersburg the capital
of Russia, the Moscow Kremlin served as the central stage for the magnificent and at times horrific history of the Russian
Czars. After the shift of power to St. Petersburg, Moscow and the Kremlin declined. However, the Bolsheviks’ choice of Moscow as their capital in March 1918 returned it to its former significance, and during Soviet rule the Kremlin experienced
its second life as a great centre of power. Although the Soviet state certainly left its mark on the Kremlin, the fortress very
much retains the aura of medieval Tsarist Russia.
After a shared lunch near the Kremlin we divide ourselves into smaller groups and explore central Moscow. Although Moscow
is the largest city in Europe, it is easy to find your way in if you use a map. The organizers have laid out a walking route
for each group with information and challenges that help you to learn about and appreciate the different neighborhoods in
Russia’s capital.
Today is our sightseeing day in Moscow. We see all of Moscow’s main sights, see the Poklonnaya Gora WWII memorial and
the famous viewpoint in the Sparrow Hills by the Moscow State University. We also visit the Cathedral of Christ the Savior,
which has been re-erected just across from the Kremlin after Stalin took it down in 1991. Recently, a female punk group
made the cathedral world famous after they performed a ”punk prayer” in this building. We end the day with a visit to to
Russia’s largest market, which is located right next to our hotel. In the evening we organize a farewell dinner for the group,
to which the Russian students we met the day before yesterday are also invited.
Breakfast at the hotel. We check out from our rooms and return to Copenhagen with arrival late afternoon, flying Scandinavian Airlines.