Tours to Valaam

Tours to Valaam from St. Petersburg are undoubtedly the most popular destination in Karelia. The island receives a large flow of tourists and pilgrims every year. In this regard, it is necessary to plan a trip to Valaam in advance, there are very few hotels on the island and there are not enough places for everyone. And during the holidays, hotels are booked almost six months in advance.
Annually, about 200,000 pilgrims and tourists go on tours to Valaam. For the most part, this stream is organized, since there are no accommodation facilities on the island, except for monastery hotels. It is not recommended to set up tents on the island. However, no one forbids you to come to Valaam and walk for half a day on your own.
The easiest and cheapest way to tour Valaam is from St. Petersburg. In the morning, the group takes a bus at the indicated place and goes to Priozersk (in summer). The journey takes about 2.5 hours. Further, in Priozersk, tourists change to the hydrofoil Meteor and in one hour and twenty minutes arrive on the island. If the trip is one day, then in the evening the group returns by the same route. The bus arrives in St. Petersburg at approximately 23.00 – 00.00.
You can also take a similar route to Valaam from St. Petersburg for a few days, but this is somewhat more difficult, since there are relatively few hotels on the island, as we have already mentioned. Therefore, organizing a multi-day trip should be taken care of in advance.
The second option for tours to Valaam from St. Petersburg refers to independent tourists. Many people go to Karelia in their cars and make stops in Sortavala or Priozersk. Again, from these cities you can go to Valaam on the same Meteora. It will be cheaper than going by bus from St. Petersburg, but you will need to leave your car somewhere.
The third option is designed for tourists who are used to more comfort and are in no hurry. Cruise ships leave St. Petersburg for tours to Valaam almost every day. Travel time to Valaam takes about 12 hours. Back the same amount. A motor ship leaves for Valaam almost every weekend. On Friday evening he leaves St. Petersburg, and on Sunday morning he unloads tourists at the port. The ship has more comfortable cabins, food and more options for entertainment, but this pleasure is also worth more.

Tours to Valaam 2022

In 2022, nothing special is required to get on a tour to Valaam. As elsewhere, you need a PCR test or a certificate stating that the tourists have been ill. However, the situation is changing rapidly, so it is better to check all the details with our managers. In 2021, there were no special changes in tours to Valaam, since Karelia tries to receive as many tourists as possible for the tourist season and, therefore, makes the conditions for their arrival and stay on the territory of the republic the most optimal.
Tours to Valaam from St. Petersburg are still divided into secular and pilgrim tours, although the difference between them is not very big. There are practically no services on secular ones, but on pilgrims they are present, but no one forces them to attend – this is voluntary. In the same way, as during secular tours to Valaam from St. Petersburg, no one bothers to attend the service. The tourist routes are the same. The only difference is the contingent of the group that will travel on the bus. The secular tourists will talk about the secular, and the pilgrims about the pilgrimage. Therefore, if there are no places, for example, for a tour to Valaam from St. Petersburg with a pilgrimage group, you can safely purchase it in a secular version.
Pilgrimage tours to Valaam from St. Petersburg are also one-day and multi-day. However, it should be borne in mind that on church holidays, places for such tours are sold in advance. For example, for the Transfiguration (August 19), all the places were bought out in May.

Pilgrimage tours to Valaam from St. Petersburg

They differ from excursion tours in essence only in that the transfer from Priozersk is carried out by boat, and not by Meteor, and the program also includes visits to the services of the Transfiguration Monastery.

Valaam tours from Moscow

Unfortunately, so far, tours to Valaam are not organized directly from Moscow, if you want to go as part of a combined group to Valaam from Moscow, you will have to get to St. Petersburg or Priozersk on your own. For ready-made groups of 5 or more people, we can offer an individual tour from Moscow with a guide at an affordable price.

Tours to Valaam prices

Prices for tours to Valaam from St. Petersburg, as already noted, can vary greatly. If you wish, you can pick up a fairly cheap tour to Valaam – as a rule, the most budget options involve accommodation in multi-bed rooms.
In recent years, the service on Valaam has noticeably improved, so you can go on a tour to Valaam with relative comfort. For example, there are junior suites with private facilities. There are helicopters and transport, there are speed boats. However, the prices for a tour to Valaam with such requests are, of course, higher than for standard trips as part of a group.