Private guide in St.Petersburg, Russia Private shore excursions in St.Petersburg, Russia Private guided tours in St.Petersburg, Russia

Hello! My name is Ekaterina (Katya) Chelpanova. I have been arranging private tours in Russia and St Petersburg for more than five years. Before I worked as a tour guide for other companies. I arrange all types of tours in St Petersburg in English, Spanish, Russian and other languages upon request. Visa-free entrance for cruise passengers is provided. Check my regular and smart programs for cruise passengers here:

Smart Shore Excursions and here Standard Shore Excursions

Why should you choose my company if there are so many offers of private tours in St Petersburg? Here is the answer:

Before I started my own company, I worked as a tour guide for other companies, among them were big and well-known ones. I saw that when the company is big, usually, it has a stable good profit and the management does not have a need and desire to think about the need of each client as well as the strengths and uniqueness of each employee. A huge company is like a huge factory, which produces a standardized product. Myself I like products, which exceed the category of standard. I like tailor-made clothes, tailor-made food. That is why my company is smaller and I have time and desire to be aware of uniqueness of my employees, be very selective in my choice of guides, drivers and vehicles. In my company, be it a driver or a guide, you will meet people who are bright and gifted in what they do. Each of my employees is unique both as a person and as a professional. You can meet my team here: My Team
In my offer of the tours, I rely on my experience of guiding tours for many years, as well as on my passion for art and history. I should acknowledge that the sights, which are the most advertised, are not necessarily the best choices in high season. I will be more than happy to offer you a tour to the places which everybody knows, such as the Hermitage or Catherine’s palace, while, on the other hand, if it is the peak of the season or if you prefer something unique, I would also suggest visiting Pavlovsk palace, or Cottage palace reminiscent of Italian countryside villa, or Gatchina, a castle-type palace. Or maybe it will be the Hermitage tour but with the focus on the topic you are interested in. I am very good at hearing people’s needs and their characters. As a result, my tours are personalized.
Do I guide tours myself? Yes, I sometimes do but now I focus on managing tours. Besides tourist business, I work in academic field: I am a literary and film scholar.

Contact me and I will send you the customized offer within 24 hours!

BOOK THE TOUR

					  Joined another couple on our cruise for a wonderful 3 day tour with guide Elena and driver Dimitrie.   All four of us had visited St Petersburg before, visiting... read more the highlights.   This visit we wanted to see other attractions which the wife of the couple we were with had organised with the the help of TJ Tours.

We couldn't have had a better guide and driver, they were both charming, very easy to get on with and spoke excellent English.

While we were driving around Elena would talk about what we were going to see with a great deal of very interesting historical information.    

My husband and I had a wonderful 3 days in splendid company.   Though we had not met our fellow cruisers or our guide and driver before we had such a good time it felt like all six of us were friends.   Fantastic experience.   Thoroughly recommend TJ Tours.				
John N
7/11/2017 

					  Our cruise ship stopped at St Petersburg for two days, and our family of four and two of our friends from China had a very impressive and enjoyable 2 day... read more tour guided by Katya (Ekaterina). Katya is very knowledgeable of Russian literature, history and art. She can tell a story in front of every painting, sculpture and building. The tour was organized very efficiently and we enjoyed it very much.				
SeeWorld
7/18/2018 

					  We had a group of 10 family members on a cruise ship, and the highlight was to tour St. Petersburg for two days. We all know that the excursion package... read more offered on board would be expensive for us, while the visa process for Russia's visa would be complicated and costly. So I did some research on trip advisor site, and found Ekaterina (Katya) Chelpanova.

A few months prior to our trip, I sent an inquiry to Katya, and got a response right away. After a few email exchanges, she sent us an itinerary that included the major attractions, but but at much lower cost. After we had booked our flights and cruise tickets as well as EU visa (for some of us), we send Katya the required information for tourist "visa" for Russia. Within a week, Katya had all the entry documents (a document issued by the government agency) generated and sent to us. When we noticed a typo in the document and reported it to Katya, she immediately worked with the agency and sent us the correct one within two days. The whole process was hassle free and we did not have to pay anything in advance (we paid the tour guide by the end of the first day in St. Petersburg). 

After we got through the Russian Boarder Control at the Port, we saw a tour guide holding a sign with my name. We had a mini-bus for our group.

Raisa, the tour guide, was great. She teaches English at a local university, and her choice of English words was precise and lively. Her knowledge of Russian history was extraordinary. Some members of our group were very knowledgable of Russian history and literature, and asked some very detailed questions. Raise had no problem to provide us with good answers.

Raise also took us to two decent Russian restaurants for lunch. Although the food was a little pricy, they were really good. We had a Russian night on the ship the first night, which served famous Russian soup and beaf dishes. We felt luck that we had tasted Russian food at local restaurants. The so-called Russian food on board was junk. I felt bad for those who had not tried the local food in St. Petersburg.

Two days at St. Petersburg went by fast. The arrangement with private tour had saved us not only money but time. We had a great experience in St. Petersburg. And I highly recommend Katya.				
Ligang Z
7/05/2015

Shore excursions and other private tours in St. Petersburg with Ekaterina Chelpanova

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