When it comes to holidays, it's
always best to inject variety. Sometimes my wife Kay and I are attracted
by an area's stunning scenery or its fascinating history - and at other times we go to a place for pure rest and relaxation.
This
break - 11 nights in Russia which included a river cruise from Moscow
to St Petersburg on board the Volga Dream - appealed to us because it offered sightseeing opportunities, culture and also some time to relax.
Lifting the spirits: Members of the famous Mariinsky Ballet in action
We booked the break through
Cox & Kings and I particularly liked the fact that I was able to
talk to an adviser who had previously experienced the trip.
This
was our first visit to Russia, although we used Cox & Kings about
five years ago when we went on a tailor-made holiday to Rajasthan in India. Our last major break was to Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
We
enjoy river cruises, and Kay is particularly fond of ballet and wanted
to see the Mariinsky - one of the world's leading companies and still called the Kirov by many - at its home in St Petersburg. An excursion to see a performance is offered as an optional extra.
We also liked the concept of having
hotel bases in the centres of Moscow and St Petersburg - long on our
list of must-see cities - rather than spending all the time on the ship and having to 'commute' to the city's attractions each morning.
There were plenty of memorable moments; the Kremlin, for example, was spectacularly beautiful and a total revelation.
Our
tour included visiting Cathedral Square and the Armoury Museum, which
holds so many treasures collected by the Russian state and church.
Meanwhile, the palaces of St Petersburg,
including the Summer Palace and Pavlovsk Palace, were all stunning. The
visit to Catherine Palace was another among many unforgettable experiences.
Spectacularly beautiful: A visit to the Kremlin was a memorable moment
The Hermitage, one of the biggest
and oldest museums in the world, is unique but the time allocated to
walk around it was too short - Kay and I could easily have spent weeks there. Overall, we thought the architecture of St Petersburg was amazing.
One
highlight was walking back to our hotel along Nevsky Prospekt, the main
avenue in St Petersburg, after seeing a performance by the Mariinsky dancers.
As
for negatives, an excursion to Mandrogi, a reconstructed Russian folk
village, was disappointing. It had the atmosphere of a theme park and exists only to sell trinkets to tourists.
In contrast, the staff on our ship
could not have been more helpful or friendly. There wasn't a Cox &
Kings tour rep as such, but there were staff
members to look after tourists in the various language groups. The
English-speaking rep was very good, and our guides in Moscow and St Petersburg were also excellent.
Our cabin on board the 56-berth Volga Dream wasn't especially large but it was comfortable and had a good view of the river.
The food was superb - a barbecue one evening was fun, and there was a traditional Russian meal on another occasion.
During the day, a number of lectures,
doll-painting classes and Russian lessons were staged, while in the
evenings there was entertainment.
I
wouldn't say this was a holiday for young families. Most of those
aboard were couples, but it would also suit solo travellers who have an interest in music, art and architecture.
My
advice would also be to arrange an extra few days in St Petersburg
because the time included in the standard tour was not enough for us.
We'd
been told to do this by friends and we would have been disappointed if
we had not followed their recommendation. This was perhaps the most enjoyable
holiday we have had - we would award it at least nine out of ten. And
we would certainly travel with Cox & Kings again.
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