Belarus Summer Tour

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Summer Holidays in Europe’s most Soviet-like state!

On this tour, we’ll ride tanks, visit the KGB Building and see where the 1^st Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Liberal Party met, but there’s more to Belarus than just its spectacular Soviet history which has been so well preserved. We’ll also hang out on a graffiti street, have a tasting at a brewery and ride a children’s railway. August is buzzing in Belarus, with locals enjoying the short, but beautiful summer, and we’ll get to really soak in that atmosphere when we spend a day at one of their favourite holiday spots outside of Minsk.

August is rife with festivals and events, which of course aren’t planned very far in advance, but we’ll have our ears to the ground to see what we can go to. A couple we’ve got our eyes on are Vulitsa Brazil, a festival where Brazilian/Belarusian graffiti artists paint new murals on October Street and around the city, and the other is A-fest organised by Alivaria Brewery.

ITINERARY

Day 1 Tuesday 21^st August

Arrive in Minsk.
Our first destination today will be the Azgur Museum. This huge room used to be the workshop of Soviet sculptor Zair Azgur, and there are still hundreds of different sizes busts of Soviet leaders staring down at you as you walk around.
After lunch we’ll visit the Alivaria Brewery and Museum, where you’ll have the opportunity to taste their finest brews.
Beginning at Lenin Square, take a Soviet walking tour of the centre of Minsk, strolling the length of Independence Avenue past the KGB building and many other iconic Soviet landmarks.
Visit Tsentralny, a famous local drink-and-have-a-bite place where you can buy supplies for the train trip the following day, and experience the hustle and bustle of one of Minsk’s most popular spots.
Tonight we’ll visit the iconic Rakovsky Brovar, a local institution.
Overnight at Hotel Belarus.

Day 2 Wednesday 22^nd August

Breakfast at Hotel Belarus (included).
Leave first thing in the morning to catch the train to Brest.
On arrival in Brest we’ll have take a walking tour of the quaint, very European-feeling old town. After passing through Lenin Square, we’ll meander down the Alley of Lights, a street lined with unique lanterns all designed by local artists, and every one of which is totally unique, from a nose wearing a suit, to a shoe-polisher whose chair you can sit on, to a horse and carriage. You can even put your foot in a giant boot!
After exploring the cobble-stoned, cafe-lined streets, we’ll finish the tour with the daily lighting of the lamps – a famous Brest tradition.
For dinner we have the option of Tractir, a local restaurant famous for authentic Belarusian cuisine and homemade flavoured vodkas. The horse-radish one will definitely put hairs on your chest!
After dinner we’ll get a taste of Brest’s wild nightlife at Coyote Bar. Yes, you got it, a tribute to the movie Coyote Ugly!
Overnight at Hotel Bug, a delightful little hotel covered in Soviet art and murals.

Day 3 Thursday 23^rd August

Begin the day with breakfast at one of Brest’s many cafes.
Our first stop will be at the Brest Fortress, or Hero Fortress as it is often known.
A 19^th Century Russian Fortress, this spectacular example of Soviet architecture is now a war memorial commemorating the first battles of WWII featuring two of the most amazing Soviet monuments in the former USSR.
The next stop will be at the train museum, an open-air museum featuring locomotives from throughout the 20^th
Free time in the centre of town for lunch.
After lunch you can continue your free time, browsing the many shops and cafes, or simply taking in the vibe of the town.
Optional activity: visit the Confiscated Items Museum, a small museum full of religious icons that have been confiscated at border points, with an interesting display about the nearby Polish land border crossing.
Head to the train station in the evening to catch the night train back to Minsk.

Day 4 Friday 24^th August

Arriving in Minsk early in the morning, we’ll stop for breakfast at a cafe near the train station.
Leaving Minsk we’ll visit Nesvizh Castle.
Lunch in Nesvizh.
Go as a group to the Jewish cemetery in Mir.
Free time to explore Mir Castle (presenting options of audio guide etc.) and also town.
Return to Minsk and have free time in the evening.
Overnight at Hotel Belarus.

Day 5 Saturday 25^th August

Breakfast at the hotel (included).
Leaving Minsk again, we will visit Belaz, a factory which produces industrial vehicles. Here you’ll see with your own eyes how the world’s biggest dump trucks are assembled, and you’ll even have the opportunity to ride one!
Stop at a supermarket to buy supplies for the rest of the day. There are plenty of barbeque spots, but no shops at our final destination.
Arrive in Plescenitsy and experience summer life like a local, relaxing lakeside for the rest of the day, surrounded by forest.
Free time in the afternoon and evening, during which you might like to use the sauna, or play some volleyball or badminton. You could also take a boat out on the lake, or just sit in a gazebo and find some locals to drink vodka with.

Day 6 Sunday 26^th August

Leave Plescenitsy in the morning and start driving back towards Minsk.
Visit Khatyn, a breathtaking complex of monuments devoted to the village of the same name which used to inhabit the space, but of which all 156 inhabitants were massacred in 1943.
In the afternoon we’ll visit Stalin Line, a huge open air museum of military technics, including tanks, rockets, artillery, cars, helicopters, aircrafts, bunkers, and much more.
And if you behave, you might even get to shoot a Kalashnikov (AK 47) and ride atop a tank. (Just kidding, you don’t need to behave to get to do this!)
Dinner in the Old Town before a night of debauchery at the Moulin Rouge bar – Minsk’s unique and indescribable mixture between a brothel, a shisha bar, and a professional dance show.
Overnight in Minsk.

Day 7 Monday 27^th August

Breakfast at the hotel (included).
Start the day with a trip to the new WWII Museum, an important part of any trip to Belarus.
Visit October Street where there are a couple of options for lunch.
After lunch, take a walk down October Street; an incredible insight into Minsk’s modern hipster scene and the gentrification of the city, this is a street in an industrial area where the brick factory walls are covered in graffiti and little hipster cafes are popping up between old factories.
During our tour of October Street, we’ll visit the Y museum, a small contemporary art museum run by local artists.
We’ll continue with a driving tour of Minsk, including visits to the Former Residence of Lee Harvey Oswald, the House of the 1^st Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Liberal Party, and the famous KGB Building.
You won’t miss the Belarus National Library, a spectacular and bizarre building that resembles a futuristic cosmo station, and of course we’ll make a trip to the huge observation deck on the top floor.
Take a ride on the Children’s Railway. It’s not a miniature railway like you might think of with that name, but instead it’s a fully functioning, yet small, railway run completely by children.
Farewell dinner and drinks.

Day 8 Tuesday 28^th August