Baikal Explorer - Tour to Listvyanka on the shore of lake Baikal
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Travel to Baikal - Listvyanka tour

Tours to baikal: Tour to Listvyanka: Lake Baikal in February 2004. View on the highway to Listvyanka.

View to the lake from Listvyanka
Lake Baikal can be visited in a one day trip by the highway from Irkutsk. The route runs through the taiga forest as far as Listvyanka village - a small Russian settlement on the shore of the lake - the best destination for the first acquaintance with Baikal.

The distance between Irkutsk and Listvyanka is 70 km / 44 ml.

Listvyanka is also the site of the Limnological Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences. The village is situated on the shore of Baikal in Listvenichny bay - the place where Angara river, the only outlet, flows out of Baikal.
Tours to baikal: Tour to Listvyanka: On the only way to Listvyanka. Baikalsky Trakt highway after snowfall.

Highway Irkutsk - Listvyanka
Tours to baikal: Map of Listvyanka
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours: Sunset in January. View from the Listvenichny cape at the end of the highway. Listvyanka.

Angara river outlet
Activities: sightseeing excursion; cultural & ethnographic sights.

Winter activities: Dog-sledding, snowmobiling, down-hill skiing.

The duration of the tour to Listvyanka depends on the places you are going to visit. It can be from 5 hours to 1 day. One can stay there for a night or to spend several days enjoying the sunsets and home-cooked omul specialties, a famously flavorful salmonoid lake fish.

Transfer to Listvyanka  |  Accommodation in Listvyanka
Tour to Listvyanka
Meet guide and driver in Irkutsk (hotel/airport) and drive 68 km to Listvyanka on the southwestern shore of 637 km long Lake Baikal, the world's largest and deepest freshwater lake. En route visit the Museum of Wooden Architecture. Lunch in Listvyanka at the "Restaurant" of omul specialties, a famously flavorful salmonoid lake fish. Tour the area and visit the Baikal Limnology Museum. Return to Irkutsk in the evening;

Visits & Excursions:     (see the detailed description below)

- Ethnographical museum of Siberian history
- Baikal Limnological Museum + Fish & Seals Aquariums
- Saint Nicholas Church
- Main stops near the Shaman stone, Local fish market at the open-air
- Observation spot (Chersky mountain) by chair-lift

Price: directly depends upon the number of participants and can vary from 3500R to 7500 Rubles per person.
Places to visit:
Tours to lake Baikal: Listvyanka tours: one day trip to Baikal  The Museum of Wooden Architecture

On the way to Listvyanka there is a place called Taltsi. This is the ethnographical museum with the stop at the 47th km of Baikalskaya highway. Taltsi is translated as 'spring'. A few kilometers from the highway, on the shore of the Angara river, there is a museum of Wooden Architecture. It consists of several exhibit areas which hold interesting ethnographical collections. The variety of Siberian wooden izbas, churches, living houses and Buryat wooden yurts were brought together from different parts of Siberia.
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours: View to the church from the backyard of the old wooden livinghouse which was build in 17th century

Backyard. View to the church
Lake Baikal travel: Listvyanka tours: Baikal museum  Baikal Limnological museum / The Museum of Baikal

Baikal Limnological museum is located at the beginning of Listvyanka village. The museum is engaged in collecting and storage the materials and analysis of the information bound with the lake. Tourists will learn much about the origin of the lake, historical investigations, the surrounding area (maps, the samples of rock and minerals, flora and fauna). Together with the explorers of Baikal group members will be omitted on its maximum depth of 1637 m.
Tour to Baikal - Listvyanka tours: visit the Baikal musuem with aquariums of Baikal endemic fish and seals

Aquarium with Baikal fauna
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours  Aquarium with Baikal Seal - Nerpa

The aquarium with Baikal endemic seal 'Nerpa' now is situated right at the Baikal museum. Amazing view of trained seals singing and dancing for you! It is said that Nerpa is the only fresh water seal in the world. However, the Saimaa freshwater lake in Finland is also inhabited with ringed seals called "Norppa". It is still a great mystery how nerpa appeared in the centre of the Asian continent, if its relatives live in the northern arctic regions.

Tours to baikal: Tour Listvyanka - Baikal seal - Nerpa

Aquarium with the seals
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours:  Shaman Stone or Rock / Shaman Kamen'

There are two worth to visit open-air spots in Listvyanka. The only one ledge of Angara rapids, situated at the place where the river flows out of Lake Baikal, is famous for the Buryat legend.
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours: Baikal - Shaman stone at the middle of the Angara river outlet

Angara outlet: Shaman rock
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours  Fish or Souvenirs market

The other place called fish or souvenirs market is situated at the end of Listvyanka right on the main town pier. After visiting the museums group members will try local home-made delicacies - Baikal endemic fish (omul, sig, harius) - smoked, salted, dry ...
Baikal tours - Listvyanka tours: Hot smoked Omul - a famously flavorful salmonoid lake fish

Hot smoked omul - $1
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours:  The end of the highway

A few kilometres ahead from the fish market the highway turns into the bumpy road and ends behind the Listvenichny cape. There is a beautiful view from that point to the open lake.
Tours to baikal: Listvyanka tours: View from the end of the road in February

The end of the highway
baikal travel and tours - Listvyanka tours  Saint Nicholas Church

On the way back a short stop will be done to visit the Saint Nicholas church which is situated 500 metres away from the lake. It was build at the 19th century by a russian merchant Ksenofont Serebryakov. According to the legend he was saved by St. Nicholas while crossing the lake in a terrible storm.

Tour Baikal - Listvyanka tours: Saint Nicholas Church

Saint Nicholas Church
You can ask a question or reserve the tour on our Request Form page.
History / Facts:

Listvyanka received its name because of the larch trees, that grow on the neighbor cape "Listvenichny".

1645: first Russians appeared in Listvyanka. It was a group of Cossacks headed by Ivan Galkin. Unlike other local villages founded by colonization, Listvyanka became important from economical point of view. At that time Listvyanka did not have a single house.
1701: the first structure was built in Listvyanka. It was a chapel constructed on the spot of the modern Nicola Village.
1716: people began to settle around it. They were mostly fishermen and sable hunters.
1725 - 1730: many of the Irkutsk middle class residents moved to Listvyanka. Soon it became the main point of trade and communication with Asia.
1843: Listvyanka became the most important among neighboring villages.
1860's: the village grew up very quickly because of the shipping company of Hamesnov and Russanov.
1873: Listvyanka was a village in Irkutsk province with a population of 195 people.

Dear Guests: here you can read some comments of travellers who travelled to Olkhon island using one of the packages above:



baikal  TRIP ADVISOR REVIEWS: click here



baikal trip  Having arrived in Irkutsk without a plan, we phoned Baikal Explorer in the morning and at 12:00PM had one of their guides, Leonid Batorov, pick us up from the hotel for a day tour to Lake Baikal. In perfect English, Leonid explained every landmark within Irkutsk and on the way to the lake, showed us around the lake and the significant spots of Listvyanka, the Museum of Wooden Architecture and even recommended a really genuine Russian restaurant (the best in Irkutsk, the diner next why told us) when we returned to Irkutsk after dark. It was a most enjoyable experience. Thank you Leonid.

Graca & Mike (14 October, 2015) / AUSTRALIA



baikal  We used Baikal Explorer for our trip to Baikal. Alexey was our guide and spoke English very well. He knew just where to take us and showed us around Lake Baikal. We enjoyed his commentaries about the places we visited and appreciated that he geared the trip to us taking note of our interestes. I love Russian windows so he stopped often for photo ops. We also had him take us around Irkutsk for a few hours and that was great. The cost is reasonable and he knows the area and history well. We highly recommend Baikal Explorer to travelers who want to see the Baikal, Irkutsk area.

D.jones (18 September, 2015) / U.S.



baikal  Great service, had a fun trip. Everything was planned, worked out on time. Nice and friendly tour guide, was great and helpful.

Marcus Haerder (15 March, 2014) / Germany



baikal  We are back to Brazil and would like to thank you for your support on our trip to Irkutsk and Listvyanka. Everything was perfect and the trekking to Bolshy Koty was amazing with guide Valeri. We will recomend your service and thank you very much!

Margot Fisch (11-13 June, 2013) / Brazil

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