10 Days Capitals of Ukraine and Georgia Tour

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DAYS

DATES

All Years

DEPOSIT

US$50

PRICE FROM

St. Sophia Cathedral and Related Buildings (UNESCO)

Motherland Monument Statue and WWII Museum

Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant

Kakheti- center of wine production

Ancient towns of Georgia

Impressive Ananuri Fortress

Tour includes

ACCOMMODATION

9 Nights

MEALS

9 Breakfasts
1 Lunch
2 Dinners

ENTRANCE TICKETS

as per the program

TRIP STAFF

Local Guides

GROUP SIZE

1-10 person

TRANSPORT

Comfortable air-conditioned minivan, Airplane

Day 1

Arrival in Kyiv

Day 2

Kyiv Sightseeing

Day 3

Kyiv Sightseeing

Day 4

Chernobyl Tour

Day 5

Kyiv Free Day - Tbilisi

Day 6

Tbilisi Sightseeing

Day 7

Tbilisi - Gori

Day 8

Tbilisi - Mtskheta - Ananuri Fortress

Day 9

Tbilisi - Signahi - Gremi - Alaverdi

Day 10

Departure from Tbilisi

Itinerary

Day 1

Arrival to Kyiv

Welcome to Kyiv. Arrival, meeting and transfer to a hotel. Check-in, free time for rest. Walk to a restaurant.
Welcome dinner (if you arrive on time), now you are a part of JC Travel team

Hotel – Ukraine Hotel
Included Meals – Welcome Dinner

Day 2

Kyiv Sightseeing

Our walking tour will start from exploring ancient part of Kyiv city center.
Why Kyiv is so impressive? Because it combines the styles of different epochs. Walking along one street will lead you through the history of the city from the moment of foundation to the world nowadays.
Enjoy discovering churches and cathedrals, hear the stories about life of locals and explore hidden areas. Learn the history of modern Ukraine just from one central square and stroll along the shortest and the widest main street in Europe!
Main attraction:
– Golden Gates
– St. Sophia Cathedral (UNESCO)
– St. Michael Golden-Domed Church
– Maidan Nezalezhnosti square

Local Experience:
– Local Oldest Bessarabskyi market

Optional tour:
– Local street Food Tour

Hotel – Ukraine Hotel
Included Meals – Breakfast

Day 3

Kyiv Sightseeing

Your tour by minivan will start with exploring one of the most important religious sites located on the hills right above the Dnipro river. You will be impressed with the beauty of this Orthodox monasteries complex, which is included to the UNESCO Heritage List. Then we are going to see the “iron woman” who protects Kyiv and Ukraine – the Motherland Mother statue and the complex.
Learn the history of Ukraine during the Second World War at the local museum and finish your tour by taking the ride on a metro – just as locals do!

Main attraction:
– Kyiv Pechersk Lavra
– WWII Museum
– The Motherland Statue complex

Local Experience:
Take a metro ride from the deepest metro station in Europe to one of the most beautiful world’s metro station

Optional:
– Mezhyhirya Tour
– Pirogovo open-air museum

Hotel – Ukraine Hotel
Included Meals – Breakfast

Day 4

Chernobyl Tour

Prepare to get the experience you will never forget.
This day you will take a ride to one of the most mysterious and interesting Ukrainian places – Chernobyl Nuclear Power Station. The guide will lead you into the history of the disaster and show you the effects of it.
You will explore the ghost town of Pripyat, where life stopped in April 1986. Now nature dictates its own rules there. The tourists have to make their ways through the bushes and little trees which grow from the roads and pavements of the abandoned city center.

Main attraction:
– Chernobyl Nuclear Power Station
– Amusement park and the Ferris wheel
– The ghost town and villages
– Duga Radar

Hotel – Ukraine Hotel
Included Meals – Breakfast, Lunch

Day 5

Kyiv Free Day - Tbilisi

Enjoy your free day in the Ukrainian capital to explore it on your own or take any of our optional tours!
Take a flight to Tbilisi in the evening. Arrival to Tbilisi and check-in at the hotel.

Optional:
– Tunnel of Love Day Tour
– Chernihiv Day Tour
– Varenyky master-class

Hotel –
Included Meals – Breakfast

Day 6

Tbilisi Sightseeing

Enjoy your city tour in Tbilisi – the ancient capital of Georgia. During the tour, you’ll find out why the foundation of Tbilisi is related to Tbilisi Sulphur baths. According to the legend, King Vakhtang Gorgasali discovered these sulfur baths while hunting. So the name Tbilisi derives from the Georgian word “Tbilisi”, meaning warm.
Discover the history of the fortress, which was built in the 4th century. It was occupied by Iranian, North Caucasian, and Byzantine, Arab conquerors in various periods of time. Nowadays Church of St. Nikoloz built in the 13th century is now located within the castle.
Get impressed with breathtaking views of Old Tbilisi from the Metekhi church and explore the Trinity Church – the biggest cathedral not only in Georgia but also in the whole Caucasus region. Lots of specimens of the cultural heritage of Georgia are kept in the Tbilisi National Museum. One of the most amazing exhibits is the prehistoric human remains/skulls found in the Dmanisi region.

Main attraction:
– Old Tbilisi and Sulfur Baths
– Narikala fortress
– Metekhi Church
– Trinity Church
– Tbilisi National Museum

Hotel –
Included Meals – Breakfast

Day 7

Tbilisi - Gori

This morning we start exploring the county and our first ride is going to be to the Gori town, which is one of the oldest towns in Georgia and also known as the birthplace of the Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Stalin’s association with the city is emphasized by the Joseph Stalin Museum in downtown Gori and, until recently, the Stalin monument in front of the Gori City Hall.
Continue to the ancient rock-hewn town – Uplistsikhe. It is identified by archaeologists as one of the oldest urban settlements in Georgia. The cave complex has been on the tentative list for inclusion into the UNESCO World Heritage program since 2007.

Main attraction:
– Joseph Stalin’s museum
– The Virgin Mary’s Christmas Cathedral of XIX century
– The Gori Fortress
– A cave town of Uplistsikhe

Hotel –
Included Meals – Breakfast

Day 8

Tbilisi - Mtskheta - Ananuri Fortress

Explore one of the oldest cities in the world, with its scenic beauty of churches, synagogues, mosque as well as famous 19th-century houses with wooden latticed balconies. It will literally take you on a journey into humanity and kindness. Mtskheta is the old capital and one of the most ancient cities in Georgia, located very close to Tbilisi.
This complex of Ananuri Fortress on the Aragvi River is one of the best-protected monuments in Georgia. The walls of the fortress are kept in excellent condition. There are several towers, temples and a tower with a pyramidal roof on the territory of the fortress. The towers have stairs and floors. One of the main attractions on the territory of Ananuri Fortress is the Jinvali water reservoir. In summer it is allowed to swim there and sunbathe on the beach.

Main attraction:
– Svetitskhoveli
– Jvari Monastery
– Samtavro Monastery
– Armazis Tsikhe-Bagineti
– Ananuri Fortress

Hotel –
Included Meals – Breakfast

Day 9

Tbilisi - Signahi - Gremi - Alaverdi

Continue exploring Georgia and its wine culture. Drive to Kakheti – the most famous wine region in the country. First, stop in the town of Signahi. The town is walled with the remnants of 18th-century fortifications. There are two Georgian Orthodox churches in the town itself – one dedicated to St. George and the other to St. Stephen. Explore the town and enjoy the views of the Alazani valley.
Learn the history of winemaking at the museum and try delicious and aromatic local wine during the degustation!
Continue with a visit to a high hill Georgian Orthodox Church – Gremi. The complex of historic Gremi represents a museum-preserve since 1975.
At the end of the day, you will visit Alaverdi Cathedral and Monastery. The temple is one of the largest church buildings in Georgia. Its height including dome is above 50 meters. It was one of the most outstanding chapels of medieval Georgia.

Main attractions:
– Shumi Georgian Wine Museum
– Bodbe Monastery
– City walls of Signahi
– Gremi Church
– Alaverdi Cathedral

Hotel –
Included Meals – Breakfast, Dinner

Day 10

Departure from Tbilisi

Our great adventure is ending. It was a wonderful time together. See you next time in Ukraine or Georgia!

Included Meals – Breakfast

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Reviews

mitch s

2019-11-22

JC Travel arranged a two week tour of the Ukraine. They worked with us in establishing the itinerary, selecting hotels and arranged all transportation, guides and sights within the cities selected. Everything was most professional from knowledgeable guides, to excellent drivers, to hotel locations and all transport to and from hotels and airports. Julia, the owner, is personally involved in arranging all aspects of the tour and everything was well organized and ran like clockwork. Couldn't be more pleased and recommend highly.

Lynnarella

2019-11-10

We booked with JC Travel for a tour around Belarus Moldova and Ukraine for 11 nights and had the most wonderful trip. From the onset, Julia was extremely helpful and responsive via email. She was also so patient when I had an irrational number of questions (just FYI, Ukraine is completely safe to visit! And you are in good hands with JC travel). The booking process is easy and Julia managed to make a beautiful customised itinerary for us. She also helped us with the Ukrainian and Moldovan visas. The guides from JC travel were all wonderful and informative. We especially liked our guide and driver Alex who was nice and friendly! He never complained about the long drives or if I wanted to stop at additional places and was always early to pick us up. We hope we can visit Ukraine again, it’s such a lovely country and an underrated destination.

Nancy F

2019-11-06

We were in Ukraine for nine days as part of an international environmental education exchange, conducting seminars and meeting with colleagues in Kyiv, Kamianets-Podilsky, and Lviv. JC Travel handled our transfers from Kyiv to K-P, and then on to Lviv. Communication with Julia and Lina was excellent, which made planning easy. Our drivers were prompt and navigated the lengthy drives (often on rural highways) with great skill; the Mercedes minivans were perfect for our group of three travelers. When we noticed areas of special interest along the routes, the drivers were patient about detouring briefly to let us look around. They also were great about allowing for rest stops and knew good places for lunch. On our second leg, from K-P to Lviv, Julia kindly provided for a stop in my grandfather’s home village, just outside Lviv. The driver helped us locate the remains of the Jewish cemetery in the town. As requested, Julia provided Russian-speaking drivers for ease of communication. Regarding payment, we paid the first installment by bank card, and the remainder in cash (US$) once we arrived in Kyiv. Julia’s assistant, Lina, picked up the second payment in person, in a convenient location. All in all, we commend JC Travel for excellent service and a high level of professionalism. We rode in comfort, arrived at our destinations on schedule, and felt safe at all times.

Mike

2019-09-26

Both my mother and father hail from Western Ukraine. They grew up in different villages about 120 kilometres apart near Lviv, Ukraine although they met and married in Canada. They are both gone now but it has always been my dream to go to Ukraine to the villages where they lived and to take my wife and grown kids along so we could experience it together. Our friends and family were worried that we were taking a chance going to Ukraine right now as there is conflict in the eastern part of the country. We can tell them now that Western Ukraine is safe and very tourism friendly -- especially in the larger cities. The infrastructure is in place with the exception of small villages. The small village folks are friendly but you really need the language skills and driving skills to access them. Enter JC Travel Ukraine! We were able to put together a custom tour with JC Travel Ukraine for just the 4 of us. We could not have been happier to do so. From the first email contact to the end of our tour, we had nothing but smiles and thumbs-up! Our tour was loosely based on their Fantastic Western Ukraine offering but we customized it to our liking. Probably 50 emails back and forth with owner Julia Kulik got us to exactly the destinations we wanted including an extension to Odessa. She helped us pick hotels, sights and even figured out how to fit in the local villages we wanted to visit on a tight time schedule. You can see recent reviews for them here on Tripadvisor. We had to admit we were suspicious of only "Excellent" reviews for them (been doing the review analysis for travel companies for quite a few years and someone always complains, right) but after having dealt with them we now understand that they are just that "Excellent"! Before we left Canada, we received a WhatsApp group invite from Lina at JC Travel who would be our first line of contact from start to finish on our tour. She was responsive at all hours of the day and really was a touch-point we appreciated the whole time we were there. We started out with tour manager and guide, Stacy Lazo who was with us in Kiev through to Lviv. Stacy was not just knowledgeable about what we were seeing and doing (I'm sure lots of guides know "the facts"), she quickly figured out our preferences and personalized our tour with places and information just for us. It was apparent from our first day in Kiev where she shared with us her personal connections to the terrible tragedies of the 2014 Euromaidan Revolution, that she loves her country and treasures it’s independence. We met our driver Sergei the next day who took us to Kamianets-Podilsky where Stacy introduced us to Max, our city guide. Max literally took us back in history with his stories of the city and fortress in Kamianets-Podilsky and, the next day, the Khotyn fortress. Not only is Max knowledgeable but he is personally just one of the funniest and nicest guys ever. He knew how to bring ancient history to life for us. From there, we arrived in the breathtaking Carpathian Mountains and the lovely Koruna resort. The next day Sergei was somehow able to navigate his van through the challenging roads up the mountains so we could visit two Hutsul homes. The first was to visit a lovely woman named Helinka who has an embroidery museum. She dressed us in traditional Ukrainian costumes and explained the significance of their designs. Then we were off to visit Mykola who is a wonderful musician and has a traditional Ukranian musical instrument museum. He is knowledgeable and funny and he and his wife fed us one of the best Ukranian meals we have ever had. He also drives a mean Soviet-era jeep up the mountain to his house and back down again. Before we went, we thought these visits would be kind of awkward the way some tours are to “authentic village life”. Not so – Helinka and Mykola and his wife made us feel welcomed and comfortable. Good choices, JC Travel. We were sad to say goodbye to Stacy and Sergei in Lviv. We traded contact information and thought how lucky we were to have been guided by these wonderful people. The next morning, we met our Lviv guide, Julia Kardash. Of course we were impressed and loved her guiding in Lviv. The city is as beautiful and cosmopolitan as any other European city we have visited. However, where Julia really showed her stuff was the next day when we piled in with driver Maxim to go to the family villages of Budyliv (for my father) and Zhovtantsi (for my mother). We had had no real contacts in either of those places – family members who could have provided names were long deceased – so we thought a visit to the local church and cemetery and some pictures were all we could expect. Well, Julia worked miracles! In those villages, she acted as our personal family heritage guide and interpreter. We will forever be in debt to her for her determination in making the connections required to uncover long-lost relatives in places we never would have reached on our own. In Budyliv, she and the local babushka ladies helped find my aunt’s husband – who just happened to be the oldest man in the village -- and his family. It was a surprising and touching meeting. Julia arranged contact information for extended family who could speak English that we could contact after the trip. Then in Zhovtantsi, she got the name of the parish priest of the church where my grandparents were married and my mom and her siblings were baptised. That parish priest gave us a wonderful tour of the church and has promised to find records we never thought we would have access to. We have people now that we are already in contact with in the hopes of building a family tree with new-found family members. Julia went over-and-above her role as guide that day. After an exhausting day, Julia hugged us goodbye and Maxim took us to the train station for the overnight train to Odessa that had been perfectly pre-arranged by Julia (Kulik). Everything went off without a hitch. After a transfer to a lovely hotel in downtown Odessa, we met the next morning with Natalia. Believe me when I say that she was dealing with 4 very exhausted tourists that day. She pulled it all off beautifully! Odessa is a beautiful city with lots to see and she was able to wonderfully tailor our experience to our tired feet and minds. She left us with wonderful restaurant suggestions and a walking map to the beach. Just what we needed. All these guides are self-employed and contract to JC Travel Ukraine on a tour-by-tour basis and you would be fortunate to have them guide you through this beautiful and friendly country. Julia really knows how to find and retain only the best guides and drivers for her clients. So, you can see why we give an excellent rating to Julia Kulik and her team at JC Travel Ukraine. We have already recommended them to friends. Thanks for filling our Bucket List, JC Travel Ukraine.

Connie D.

2019-09-24

I contacted JC Travel looking for a custom visit for a group of 3. We wanted to visit Lviv, Kiev and Odessa. They responded immediately and provided a great itinerary. All transportation was arranged - pick up and drop-offs and train rides between Lviv and Kiev and Kiev to Odessa. Our hotels were superior establishments located near town centers making it easy to walk to restaurants, markets and shops. They arranged for rooms that accommodated the 3 of us. In Lviv, we stayed in the old town and had a 3 hour walking tour of the historic center. Perfect. Kiev is a wonderful and beautiful city and we enjoyed half day walking and driving tours each day as there's a lot to see. Our visit to the reconstructed old village of Pirogovo was wonderful. The full day tour to Chernobyl was fascinating. We found Odessa a very pleasant and charming city. All the tour guides in each city were highly engaging and knowledgeable. Overall, we had a wonderful and memorable visit. I highly recommend JC Travel.

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