No Ordinary Trip

The Trans-Siberian is the world's longest journey – 9001 kilometres from Moscow to Beijing... or 7865 km if you take the short-cut via Mongolia. Even if you don't stop at all, it takes a week to complete the route – the train never halts for longer than 20 minutes en-route (except at the Chinese border to adjust the wheels to Chinese-gauge rails). But of course – you will want to stop. Especially because the train-route takes you through astounding destinations that are almost entirely unserved by any international flights. The Trans-Siberian unlocks a hidden world of little-visited locations you can't otherwise reach. More than an epic train journey – it opens the secret domains of Siberia and Mongolia. Follow in the footsteps of the great explorers like Sir Aurel Stein or Sven Hedin, who took the Trans-Siberian to reach the locations of their audacious expeditions. There may be no roads along much of the route – but your comfy 2-berth or 4-berth compartment offers stupendous views of the Siberian steppes or the Mongolian Southern Gobi desert – as you trundle through awe-inspiring unpeopled landscapes with a cold drink in your hand, or smoked salmon in the buffet-car. Pinning the tail on the donkey is fun at parties – but it's not recommended for trip planning. We won't claim every halt is a picture-postcard – quite a few are grubby industrial conurbations with little to detain you, and our in-depth on-site experience helps you weed-out the duds. Our Chairman has taken the Trans-Siberian numerous times, checking-out what's new in the famous locations along with the little-known gems – we've plodded the grotty bits so you don't have to. Instead, we've pioneered unique en-route stops that others have copied, but failed – because we go ourselves, and have local staff continuously developing great new itineraries based on in-depth expertise. Our staff have set-up travel documentary films and ridden alongside BBC and ITV camera-crews.

Itineraries come together out of available train connections – our suggested Classic Trans-Siberian itineraries aren't group trips (we offer group trips in our Rail Cruise and Luxury Rail Cruise section) but worked-out versions that meld different stop-combinations into no-fail itineraries. You don't need special abilities or active sport skills for our trips – although there are options for these (horse-trekking, light rafting, country walks, jeep treks or lakeside hikes) if you're bursting with energy!

What is this life if – full of care – we have no time to stand and stare?

Russia Experience has been offering surface travel routes for the past two decades. We're committed to Responsible Travel ethics – not despoiling the destinations, offering fair pay and conditions to local people that benefit the local economy. Rail travel's carbon footprint is entirely minimal. But there's much more to it. Instead of flying over content-rich locations at 10,000 feet, you have the chance to “stand and stare” at Lake Baikal, at hidden villages of the Old Believers, at Altai mountains and rivers, at Genghis Khan's only known encampment, at St Basil's Cathedral, the Winter Palace of the Romanovs, at Ural villages from the C19th, or at the Forbidden City? Most of the good stuff isn't right there on the rail station concourse – you often need to head into the distance. We're there to get you to the remote Lamasery, the deserted Gulag, the summer palace or the wildlife reserve – because the buses don't run there. Come Off The Rails with us – and we'll show you the hidden gems you'd have missed otherwise.