Ukraine by Land & River Cruise

Enjoy a full day tour to Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi in the company of a private vehicle and English-speaking guide. Situated 85 km from Odesa it is one of the oldest towns in Ukraine. Visit the fortress - a priceless medieval historical and architectural monument. Located on the high bank of the Dniester River estuary and on the foundations of the antique town of Tyra (5th century B.C.) the fortifications were renovated in 1433-1454 by the Turks and the round towers were connected with high ramparts to form an enclosed citadel with inner courtyards. After 1812 the fortress continued to be one of the strongholds of the south frontier defence system of the Russian Empire. Enjoy your time with your own vehicle and English Speaking guide and drive along the vinyards and Black Sea Coast before being dropped back at your hotel at the end of the day.

Enjoy a private airport transfer by vehicle in Odessa.

Welcome aboard!
Take some time to get settled in to your stateroom and explore the length of the ship. Tonight's welcome dinner will provide an ideal opportunity to meet some of your fellow cruisemates.

Port charges are included in your multi-day itinerary.

After breakfast, enjoy a half-day tour of Odessa, an elegant city of terraced hills and landscaped parks. Travel along Primorski Boulevard to the Opera House and Potemkin Steps. You have the rest of the afternoon at leisure to further explore enchanting Odessa on your own.

Optional:
Addtionally, you can choose to join an optional Art Gallery Museum or Jewish Odessa tour. If you would like to participate in an optional tour, please contact your Travel Consultant.

Today you have a full day at leisure to explore the city of Odessa on your own. See the rows of baroque sculptures that line the Pasazh Shopping Mall, visit the ornate Cathedral of the Assumption, or take in the beauty of the early 19th-century buildings while traversing the famous Prymorsky Boulevard.

Optional:
Additionally, you can join an optional tour to Akkerman Fortress in the ancient town of Bilgorod Dnistrovsky, or to the man-made catacombs of Odessa. If you would like to participate in an optional tour, please contact your Travel Consultant.

Enjoy lectures and cultural activities as you sail on the Black Sea. This afternoon, arrive in Sevastopol, base of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Tour the city center and see St. Vladimir Cathedral and Admiral Nakhimov Square.

Optional:
Explore a little more on your own, or join an optional archeological tour of the ancient Greek city of Chersonese, founded in the 6th century B.C. near today’s Quarantine Bay and designated one of the Seven Wonders of Ukraine. The evening is free, or you can attend the optional Black Sea Choir concert. If you would like to participate in an optional tour, please contact your Travel Consultant.

This morning’s tour goes to the Tatar city of Bakhchisarai. Tour the Khan Palace, built in 1519, and see the many different architectural styles within the complex. Visit the courthouse, harem and mosques, then stroll the beautifully landscaped grounds.

Optional:
After lunch, explore Sevastopol, site of the famed “Charge of the Light Brigade” during the Crimean War, on your own—or take an optional tour to Balaklava to visit the Panorama Museum and submarine tunnels. If you would like to participate in an optional tour, please contact your Travel Consultant.

Awaken this morning in Yalta and enjoy a morning tour. Travel along Lenin Embankment to Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and Livadia. Visit the White Palace, site of the 1945 Yalta Conference between Roosevelt, Stalin and Churchill, and take a guided tour through official halls and private apartments of the czar’s family.

Optional:
Explore on your own this afternoon; or join an optional excursion—a wine-tasting excursion to Massandra, or the Nikita Botanical Garden featuring 20,000 species of plant life. If you would like to participate in an optional tour, please contact your Travel Consultant.

This morning you are free to explore Yalta at your leisure. As you depart this afternoon, gather to enjoy the majestic scenery of the Crimean peninsula.

Optional:
Alternately, spend a delightful morning at the beautiful mid-19th-century Aloupka Palace and gardens, or visit one of Anton Chekhov’s homes in Yalta, now a museum about the famous playwright. If you would like to participate in an optional tour, please contact your Travel Consultant.

After a morning of scenic cruising and a Ukraine language lesson, arrive in Kherson midafternoon. Disembark for a tour of this small city, founded in 1778 by order of Catherine the Great and named after the nearby ancient Greek colony of Chersonesos Taurica. Walk along the river embankment, see the monument to Prince Potjomkin and visit St. Catherine’s Cathedral, decidedly Mediterranean in design.

After lunch, arrive in Zaporozhye, ancestral home of the Cossacks. Drive along Lenin Street; see the Lenin Monument, the city’s dam and massive hydroelectric plant. Then visit the Cossack Museum of Khortitsa. Later, enjoy a special Cossack horsemanship show including folkloric music and dance. Depart early evening and cruise through the night.

Enjoy a full day of scenic cruising, taking in the Dnieper’s landscape of rolling hills, ancient forest groves, historic villages and wide lakes. A series of onboard activities are available to help you continue to familiarize yourself with the history and culture of Ukraine.

Cruise toward Kiev this morning. After lunch, tour Kiev, one of Europe’s oldest cities, with a heritage of Viking, Cossack and Ukrainian peoples. Explore its historic buildings and monuments, and take a guided tour of the lovely domed St. Sophia Cathedral, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Monastery of Caves, an extensive complex of churches and museums founded by monks in 1051.

This morning, you'll disembark from your ship and bid farewell to your fellow cruisemates. Your discovery cruise of the Dnieper has come to an end.

Enjoy a private airport transfer with your own vehicle and driver in Kiev.

Enjoy a half a day tour to the Ethnographic Museum in Kiev, located in the suburbs of the town of Pirogivo. Three hundred ancient rural huts, collected from all over Ukraine can be seen in Pirogovo. The majority of them were moved to the museum and then reconstructed. Huts, wooden churches, water and wind mills, clothes and kitchen utensils, dating back to the period of the 17th century to beginning of the 20th century, give a realistic impression of this era. During the tour you will gain a better knowledge of how local inhabitants lived in the past. The entrance fee to the Museum is included in the tour cost.

Enjoy a private airport transfer with your own vehicle and driver in Kiev.