Tour “Contribution of Belarus to the World Cultural Heritage”
Itinerary: Minsk – Polotsk – Vitebsk – Minsk – Slutsk – Minsk
Duration: 6 days/ 5 nights
Day 1
Arrival at “Minsk-2” International Airport.
Transfer to the hotel with guide assistance
Check-in a hotel in the center of the city.
Time at leisure
Dinner
Day 2
Breakfast
Sightseeing tour of Minsk. The city offers the view of its 17th century
Cathedral of the Holy Spirit & Sts. Peter & Paul Church; the 19th century
Trinity Suburb, Red Catholic Church of Simeon & Helen (the 19th cent.)
Visit to the Arts Museum or to the Museum of Ancient Belarusian Culture
Dinner.
Evening performance of the world famous Belarusian ballet
Day 3
Breakfast
Departure for Polotsk (252 km) – the oldest city in Belarus (founded 862),
historical & cultural center of Old Slavic culture
Sightseeing Tour of Polotsk including St. Sophia Cathedral (the 12th cent.)
– the masterpiece of Belarusian architecture, Museum of Book printing,
Museum & library named after famous Simeon of Polotsk (the 17th cent)
Belarusian writer, the tutor of Peter I, the Russian Tsar; places connected
with life & work of outstanding Belarusian scholar & humanist Francisk
Skorina, who printed the Bible in Belarusian first in 1517 – 1519 in Prague;
the famous Holy Saviour Church (the 12th cent), with beautiful frescoes
connected with life & activity of St. Ephrosinia of Polotsk, a benefactress &
matron saint of Belarus And here you can see the symbol of Belarus – the
famous Cross of Ephrosinia made in the 12th century (During World War II it
vanished & in 1997 the new duplicate was made). Organ performance in St.
Sophia Cathedral
Departure for Vitebsk (112 km) – the city of the famous world-over artist
Marc Chagall who was born & worked in Vitebsk at the beginning of the
20th century
Arrival at Vitebsk
Check-in at very good private “Eridan” hotel
Dinner
Day 4
Breakfast
Sightseeing tour of Vitebsk with accent on Marc Chagall’s places: the
House Museum & Art Center of Marc Chagall Departure for Minsk (280 km)
Check-in at the hotel
Dinner
Day 5
Breakfast
Departure for Slutsk (100 km) – the city is famous for its Slutsk Belts –
really the masterpieces of weaving in Belarus in the 18th century. The silk
basis with the combination of gold & silver threads made them invaluable.
For the whole period of their production all in all there were only 10000
Slutsk Belts made Today some works of Slutsk weavers are displayed in
some museums of Europe, but the majority of them perished during World
War I & II.
Sightseeing Tour of Slutsk including visit to Local museum, where one can
see genuine Slutsk Belts completely & in fragments
Departure for Nesvizh (70 km) – a former residence of the Radzivills –
medieval Belarusian magnates, who were the owners of lands & towns in
Belarus since the 16th century Slutsk including
Sightseeing tour of Nesvizh including the Radzivills Palace founded in the
16th cent. and built by Italian architect Jan Maria Bernardoni, Corpus Dei
Roman Catholic Church (the 16th cent.) built also by Bernardoni, a
patrimonial burial-vault for the Radzivills, Slutsk Gate (the 16th cent.), Town
Hall (the 16th – the 17th cents.), Benedictine Monastery (the 17th – the 18th
cents.)
Departure for Minsk (130 km)
Time at leisure
Farewell dinner with folk-show or the famous Belarusian ballet evening
performance
Day 6
Breakfast
Transfer to the airport for your departure flight