Third Capital: Travel to Kazan

4 days / 3 nights                                                                                                                                                                   

DAY 1

❖ Meeting at the airport. Depending on arrival time - transfer to the hotel

❖ 14:00 - 15:00 Time for lunch on your own.

❖ 15:00 - 17:00 City tour. You will see modern buildings and modestly standing passages, drive along modern avenues and ancient streets of Kazan. A feature of the city is the tolerant attitude between religions. Here silhouettes of bell towers alternate with silhouettes of minarets, and the chime echoes with the azan. During the excursion you will see the central squares named after Gabdulla Tukai, May 1 Square, Freedom Square, Sultan Galeyev Square. You will drive along Kremlin str, Tatarstan str, Gorky str, Karl Marx str and other streets. You will admire beautiful parks and appreciate the beauty of the city from observation platforms, where you can make photos. During the tour you will be introduced to the culture of the Tatar people and its traditions.

❖ 17:00 - 17:30 Transfer to the Korston Royal Hotel.

DAY 2

Breakfast

❖ 09:50 Meeting with the guide at the hotel lobby

❖ 10:00 - 11:30 Walking tour of the Kazan Kremlin, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You will see the ancient white stone walls and towers, including the falling tower of Suyumbike, the Governor's Palace built on the site of the Khan's palace, as well as the Mausoleum of the Kazan khans. The tour includes a visit to the Annunciation Cathedral and the pearl of Kazan - Kul Sharif Mosque, which combines prayer halls and is also a cultural and educational center.

❖ 12:00 - 13:30 Visit to the exhibition and entertainment complex "City Panorama". Expositions dedicated to Kazan, its architecture, history and stages of development are waiting for you. A world of amazing multimedia exhibits about the history and modernity of Kazan, created by scientists, artists, designers, engineers using the latest digital technologies. A place of vivid impressions, where the past and present meet the future. Unique models and panoramas, virtual tours, interactive stands, educational games and unforgettable impressions await both adults and children.

❖ 13:45 - 14:45 Time for lunch on your own

❖ 15:00 - 16:00 Walking tour of the University Campus. University Town is a special realm of science, culture and students. It has its own square, streets, buildings that remember the rector of the Kazan Imperial University N.I. Lobachevsky, who gave many years of his life to this institution. Walking along the streets of the university campus you see immortalized names of great people, remember their merits. The design of the square of the University campus is unique: benches of different faculties, as in "Hogvards", an alley of heroes, a bust of the former student of the university Leo Tolstoy. The botanical garden in front of the anatomical theater building attracts attention. You will find out what is the "frying pan" at the main building and what is the meaning of the owl sitting on a knight's helmet with an open fence at the main entrance to the university.

❖ Free time in the city

DAY 3

Breakfast

❖ 09:50 Meeting with your guide at the hotel lobby.

❖ 10:00 - 11:30 Visit to the chak-chak museum with a tea party

❖ 11:30 - 12:30 Walking tour of the Old Tatar Settlement. The heart of the Tatar part of Kazan can be considered today's Old Tatar Sloboda. The echoes of active social and merchant life here are in plain sight. You will be taken on an excursion with a story about the life and life of the local Tatar population. You will see the characteristic features of Tatar architecture, learn about the "sign of hospitality" and why Tatar merchants addressed Catherine II - "grandmother - tsarina", why Kazan ichigas are still popular in France, where you can be photographed in the "window of Kazan". You will see the oldest stone mosque of the city, get acquainted with its history and peculiarities of Muslim life.

❖ 12:30 - 13:30 Time for lunch on your own

❖ 13:30 - 14:00 Walk to Bauman St.

❖ 14:00 - 15:00 Walking tour along Bauman Street, or the so-called "Kazan Arbat". This is the first merchant part of the city, formed at the end of the 17th century. The history of its origin is very interesting, and its appearance was formed for centuries!

During the excursion you will see:

- Oriental clock with figures of characters of Tatar fairy tales

- the world's first monument to the great opera singer Fyodor Chaliapin

- sculptural compositions in the form of fountains

- the building of the Drama Theater, founded more than a hundred years ago

- an exact replica of Empress Catherine the Great's carriage

- monument to the Kazan Cat

- The Zero Meridian of Kazan memorial sign and the Alley of Stars

You will also learn:

- About underground passages and Russia's gold reserve

- What the height of the Epiphany Bell Tower is connected with

- what building resembles an unfolded book and why.

Additional: you will be able to visit souvenir stores and get acquainted with handicrafts.

❖ Free time in the city center

DAY 4

Breakfast

❖ Check-out

❖ Free time

❖ Transfer to the airport

Rates and availability need to be reconfirmed!