Suzdal and Vladimir are part of Moscow's Golden Ring, a chain of ancient towns and cities located to the North-East of the Capital. The Suzdal and Vladimir tour enables you to discover treasures of Russian history and culture, masterpieces of ancient art and unique monuments of Old Russia.
This tour has an 8am start. Meet your guide and driver in the morning, then it's a 3 hour drive to the medieval town of Suzdal, which dates from the 11th century. Suzdal is a well-known and popular tourist destination. It has many remarkable riverside churches and monasteries dating from the 11th - 13th century, some of which are included in UNESCO World Heritage List as fine examples of ancient Russian architecture.
The town, once an important religious centre, has the look and feel of a provincial village with its beautiful landscape, rustic houses and unpaved roads. The tour includes visits to the beautiful ancient churches in the town, the Kremlin, its grounds, Cross Chamber and the Wooden Architecture Museum.
Lunch in a local restaurant is included.
In the afternoon, after lunch, we visit Vladimir, one of the medieval capitals of Old Russia and also part of Moscow's Golden Ring. The town has three monuments on the UNESCO World Heritage List
- The magnificent five-domed Assumption Cathedral was designed as a sepulcher of grand princes and dedicated to the holy icon Theotokos of Vladimir, which had been brought to the city by Andrew the Pious. The cathedral was constructed in 1158–1160, expanded in 1185–1189, and includes major frescoes by the great artists Andrei Rublev and Daniil Chyorny.
- St. Demetrius Cathedral (end of the C12) is notable for its noble forms and ideal proportions. Its walls are decorated with beautiful stone fretwork - it has more than 600 bas-reliefs.
- Golden Gate (1164), a combination of battle tower, over-gate church and triumphal arch, is considered a remarkable monument of Russian fortification architecture.
Return to Moscow late evening.