Day 1, Friday (April, 25)

Arrive in Kyiv. Meet and greet at the Boryspil airport

Transfer from the airport to the hotel in Kyiv

Check-in to the hotel

Overnight: Hotel in Kyiv

Transport: Transfer

Day 2, Saturday (April, 26)

Breakfast at the hotel

Kyiv city tour including inside visit of St. Sophia Cathedral (UNESCO protected monument)

St Volodymyr's Cathedral (also known as the Volodymyrsky Cathedral, Vladimirsky Cathedral, or St. Vladimir's Cathedral) is one of the city's major landmarks and the mother cathedral of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyiv Patriarchy, one of two major Ukrainian Orthodox Churches.

St. Andrew's Church was constructed in 1747–1754, to a design by the imperial Russian architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli. The location of the church is attributed to the place where the Apostle St. Andrew arrived and erected a cross. According to the chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years," St. Andrew came to the Dnieper (Dnipro) River's slopes and erected a cross in the first century, where he prophesied the foundation of a great Christian city in what was then a sparsely inhabited area. His prediction later became true: the city of Kyiv arose and became the centre of the Eastern Orthodox faith. The beginning of the currently standing St. Andrew's Church began with the arrival of the Russian Empress Elizabeth. She decided to construct a summer residence for herself, consisting of a palace and a church.

St. Sophia Cathedral (1037) is the most vivid example of the Old Rus architecture and monumental art for this place, was built and decorated when the state of Kyiv Rus was living through the peak of its prosperity. Here grand princes were crowned and buried, formal ceremonies and receptions of envoys were held, the first known library in ancient Rus and the first school for boys and girls were founded by Yaroslav the Wise. The Cathedral was known as a seat of Kyiv Metropolitan. The interior has survived from the 11^thcentury and there have been practically no alterations. Mosaics and frescos of the 11^th century, executed with a unique technology, which depict Scriptural scenes, individual figures of Church Fathers, Apostles, warriors and maidens, are of a great value.

Time for lunch

If time permits inside visit to St. Cyril’s Church, an outstanding monument of spiritual and cultural life of Kyiv Rus and Ukraine. It played a big role for Kyiv Christianity development and also for Ukrainian Orthodox Church. St. Cyril's Church is an important specimen of Kievan Rus architecture of the 12th century, and combining elements of the 17^th and 19^th centuries. However, being largely Ukrainian Baroque on the outside, the church retains its original Kyivan Rus interior. St. Cyril's Monastery was founded in 1140 by Vsevolod Olgovich, the Prince of Chernihiv, in the Dorohozhychi neighbourhood of Kyiv and named after his heavenly protector, Cyril of Alexandria. In the second half of the 12^th century, Princess Maria, Vsevolod's widow, built the stone church of St. Cyril, which served as an ancestral burial  place of the Olgovichi family.

Transfer to Kyiv Cave Monastery for Easter service

Kyiv Cave Monastery (Kyievo-Pecherska Lavra) is an orthodox monastery in Kyiv. It was founded by Saint Anthony of the Caves in the mid-11th century in a cave. The Kyivan princes and boyars generously supported the monastery, donating money, valuables and land in building fortifications and churches; some even became monks. Many of the monks were from the educated, upper strata, and the monastery soon became the largest religious and cultural center in Kyivan Rus’. Twenty of its monks became bishops in the 12th and 13th centuries. For a few years after the 1596 Church Union of Berestia the Uniate Catholics fought the Orthodox for control of the monastery, but the Orthodox retained control. Prior to the Revolution of 1917 there were over 1,200 monks and novices at the monastery. It was one of the most famous centers of religious life in the Orthodox world and attracted hundreds of thousands of pilgrims

Overnight: Hotel in Kyiv

Transport: 2 transfers + 6 hours + 1 service hour

Guide: 6 hours

Day 3, Sunday (April, 27)

Breakfast at the hotel

Time at leisure

Excursion to Vydubychi Monastery

Vydubychi Monastery was established between 1070 and 1077 by Vsevolod, son of Yaroslav the Wise. It was a family cloister of Vsevolod's son Vladimir Monomakh and his descendants. The monastery, and the neighbourhood in present-day Kiev where it is located, was named after an old Slavic legend about the pagan god Perun and the Grand Prince Vladimir the Great of Kiev. The word "Vydubychi" comes from the word Vydobychi which means "to swim up", "emerge from water". From the 1596 Union of Brest the Monastery was an official seat of the first three metropolitans of the Greek Catholic Church in Ukraine - Mykhailo Rohozha, Ipatii Potii and Yosyf Rutskyi. In 1635 it was returned to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Only a few churches of this monastery have survived over the centuries. One of these is the Collegiate Church of Saint Michael, which was built on behest of Vsevolod I and partly reconstructed between 1766 and 1769 by architect M. I. Yurasov. The Ukrainian baroque structures include the magnificent 5-domed St George Cathedral, Saviour Church, and refectory, all dating from 1696-1701. A bell tower, commissioned by the Hetman Danylo Apostol, was erected in 1727-33 and built up in 1827-31.

Return to the hotel

Overnight: Hotel in Kyiv

Transport: 4 hours + 1 service hour

Guide: 4 hours

Day 4, Monday (April, 28)

Breakfast at the hotel

Check-out from the hotel

Time at leisure

Transfer to the airport

Transport: Transfer

Tentative price per person for Orthodox Easter in Ukraine tour*:

Economy (Rus Hotel)	1 - 2 pax	3 - 6 pax	7 - 14 pax	15 - 25 pax	26 - 45 pax
Total p.p in Twin, USD	615	555	383	314	289
Single supplement, USD	-	150	150	150	150
Luxury (Premier Palace Hotel)	1 - 2 pax	3 - 6 pax	7 - 14 pax	15 - 25 pax	26 - 45 pax
Total p.p in Twin, USD	1080	1020	848	779	754
Single supplement, USD	-	561	561	561	561

* Please be advised that prices are subject to reconfirmation closer to the dates of arrival.

Above price includes:

·         Accommodation at the hotel in Kyiv for 3 nights

·         Breakfasts at the hotel

·         Transport services according to the itinerary

·         Guide services according to the itinerary

·         Entrance tickets according to the itinerary

Above price does not include:

• ·         Lunches and dinners

We would be happy to provide any additional services or to change the above mentioned itinerary upon your requests to make this trip an unforgettable tailor-made journey for you.