Nöbetçi Eczaneler
Turkey’s pioneer of cultural travel since 1985, FEST Travel, has departed on a private Trans-Siberian Express charter journey with 55 guests aboard a dedicated composition, traversing the line’s original 1916 Moscow–Vladivostok–Moscow route in its entirety. The journey is personally guided by Faruk Pekin, founder of FEST Travel and widely regarded as the originator of cultural travel in Turkey. In addition to being the first Turkish charter to cover the full route in the post-pandemic era, the programme is currently the only charter operating this complete route anywhere in the world.
FEST Travel’s private Trans-Siberian Express charter departed from Moscow on 9 July 2026, embodying more than four decades of the company’s cultural travel expertise. The composition, dedicated exclusively to FEST Travel’s 55 guests, traverses the classic Moscow–Vladivostok route —the original alignment of the Trans-Siberian Railway completed in 1916— before returning from the Pacific coast to Moscow, completing a 9,288-kilometre journey. Spanning eight time zones and crossing an entire continent, the itinerary follows the world’s longest continuous railway line.
The World’s Only Operator: FEST Travel from TÜrkİye
The programme also occupies a singular position in the current global environment. Following the imposition of Western sanctions on Russia, a significant number of European and American travel operators have suspended their programmes on Russian routes. Even London-based Golden Eagle Luxury Trains, the company that established the Trans-Siberian Express as a luxury travel brand worldwide, has withdrawn from Russian operations and redirected its portfolio toward Central Asian and Silk Road itineraries. Against this backdrop, FEST Travel is currently the only operator anywhere in the world running a charter programme covering the full Moscow–Vladivostok–Moscow route. The company’s operational backbone rests on direct partnerships with Russian Railways and local operators, sustained continuously since 2006.
More Than Two Decades of Experıence
FEST Travel’s expertise in this field is further reinforced by its role as the official Turkish representative of Golden Eagle Luxury Trains. FEST Travel took Turkey’s very first group aboard the Trans-Siberian Express in 2006, and by the onset of the pandemic had carried 386 guests along this iconic line. This two-decade accumulation of experience forms the operational foundation of today’s charter programme.
A TranscontInental Journey of Culture
FEST Travel General Manager Zekeriya Şen underlined that the journey reflects the company’s cultural travel legacy of more than four decades: “Since 1985, we have offered our guests a way to travel that seeks not only to see the world but to understand it. We took Turkey’s first group to the Trans-Siberian Express in 2006, and until the pandemic we carried 386 guests along this iconic line. What makes today’s programme distinctive is that we traverse the true route —from Moscow to Vladivostok and back— from one end of the line to the other, in its entirety. I would also like to address a common misconception: a journey concluding in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, is not on the Trans-Siberian Express route; that is the Trans-Mongolian line. The true Trans-Siberian route connects Moscow to the Pacific along this 9,289-kilometre line. To be the only operator in the world currently running a charter over this full route under the present international sanctions regime is a position we hold with a sense of both responsibility and pride. To traverse a continent from one end to the other is, at the same time, a geographical and cultural reading of it — and it is a privilege to offer this experience to our guests from Turkey once again.”
about the Trans-SIberIan Express…
The Trans-Siberian Railway, whose construction began under Tsar Alexander III and was completed in 1916, connects Moscow to Vladivostok on the Pacific Ocean over 9,288 kilometres. While several southbound branches diverge from the mainline — notably the Trans-Mongolian line, which turns south from Ulan-Ude toward Beijing via Mongolia — the true Trans-Siberian route remains the classic Moscow–Vladivostok alignment. FEST Travel’s charter programme covers this route in its entirety, calling at Moscow, Kazan, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Irkutsk, Lake Baikal, Ulan-Ude and Khabarovsk.
- The Trans-Siberian Express charter is among FEST Travel’s flagship programmes for the 2026 season, with preparations already underway for a 2027 edition.