I am home from a wonderful and exciting trip! The riverboat cruise from St. Petersburg to Moscow was a beautiful experience. Just what I wanted. Had lovely accommodations on board.. ..two bed with a large windows. The shower was an EXPERIENCE! . .. ..pull the spray faucet out of the sink, pull a curtain around the toilet, and shower! Tiny but efficient! You can get used to almost anything (for a short time of course) Russian food was more than what I expected. it was adequate. And of course we drank Vodka! My favorite new drink is the Balalaika (like the instrument).The little towns that we visited in between were charming and colorful were a trip back to the past history of Russia.. ..the women in babushkas, the little gardens, dirt roads, etc. We stopped in one little town and were served tea and pastries. All the houses in bright colors. Catherine the Great wanted to make her winters a little more cheerful so she ordered that her palaces and buildings be painted in colors. The tradition continues. There is color all over Russia. Busy days. There was so much to see, to do, (sore feet) and then relaxed cruising the calming waters of the Volga, enjoying the wonderful entertainment aboard. We had wonderful shipmates. Our table partners were lovely, and we lucked out with their company.

St. Petersburg was historical, and the Hermitage breathtaking! Palaces and art everywhere. We saw paintings that were the originals of paintings that we have only seen in copies, or in books. For me, it was very emotional to see original paintings by Van Gogh, Monet,Picasso, Mattise, Gaughan, Rembrandt, Goya, etc and other artists that hadn't been exhibited here in the US, or even in the Louvre. Hard to convey all the excitement.

Moscow was the biggest surprise, and my favorite experience. It is so magical, the buildings something out of a storybook. The architecture, and the colors unbelievable. We toured Moscow during the day, and at night. Moscow at night was incredible. The biggest surprise was the shopping. The upscale shops.. .. . Tiffany, St. John, Mercedes and Jaguar.. ..the gamut of expensive dealerships.. ..the mall and the fashions incredible and all very expensive. The have become Capitalists! We just whizzed through.. ..an interesting contrast to the average salary of $1500. a month.
The frescos and icons in the churches were breathtaking, so many churches to see. The Russian Orthodox church does not have seating. Congregants stand for hours during services, we were told that some faint. The architecture outstanding. The Armoury Museum was an extraordinary experience. We experienced the Metro.. ..it gave new meaning to the word subway. It is an underground experience in art!
Our guides were excellent.

Oh yes, no matter what cruise line you take, between St Petersburg and Moscow, they all go to the same places. At night, when we docked, the ships are not docked perpendicular to the shoreline, but parallel, or stacked.
So, at times when we awoke, there was another ship's railing almost touching ours. Interesting concept. Our ship, the Mayakovski was renovated a few years ago, so it's interior is relatively new.

Cruising the Volga was an incredible and fascinating experience. I will definitely recommend to any one that wants to experience Russia in all its aspects.

Jaime, I'm looking at the same Value World cruise to Russia for June 2005 that you took and recommended. Also am looking at a land-based tour by Great European Tours. It seems that all the Russian cruise ships have small cabins. Am accustomed to taking Grand Circle Travel's rivercruises. They have beautiful boats with comfortably-sized cabins. So my concern about Value World is cabin size and quality of food. Would appreciate any further thoughts that you may have. Marie

Marie

All Russian ships were built the same - cabins on all are what you see with Value World - unless you get a suite. Grand Circle European ships are more luxurious as are those of Viking and Amadeus - but nothing yet comparable in Russia. You want to look for the program and activities that are included in the price - and Value World does a great job with lectures, concerts, entertainemnt. Right now their June dates are on sale too - Affordable is offering discounts on June dates - June 8 is a great time - summer festivals in Russia do to daytime going for 20 hours!

Marie, We recently took a Vantage Travel river cruise from St. Petersburg to Moscow. The cabin was small, but very adequate. The mattresses were a little thin for my husband who is heavier, but okay for me. The bathroom was as previously described, but again, not at all bad. The experience -- the vacation -- was by far the best we have ever had and we have been all over the world. The food was wonderful, the entertainment on board was good (not fantastic like ocean liner - but okay), tour manager was marvelous, bus transportain was outstanding, ship crew was professional and efficient, sights, tours, etc., were unbelieveableFrom the time we left home until we returned home, we spent nothing for food or entertainment other than what we originally paid Vantage. We did tip as suggested by Vantage, the crew (one sum which was to be divided amoung entire group), and tour manager. We exceeded the suggested tip amount because we were so well pleased. The trip was so good that we would have liked to turn around and do it all over again.

We had friends that did a land tour a couple years ago -- they did not recommend that way.

I cannot fault Vantage in anyway!