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:
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!
I had found Katya through this site. I emailed her with the type of tour the 4 of us were looking to do and the experience we were looking to... read more have. Katya emailed me back within hours she asked a few more questions and built us an itinerary for our review. We loved everything she suggested and asked for a tweak or two and to her it was no problem at all. the price was extremely reasonable AND she didn't require payment until the day of! WOW!! She handled the Visa paperwork, all the admissions for the palaces and we never ever waited in a line. The day before we were going to meet she reached out with all instructions and to let us know our guide would be Maria and our Driver would be Max. Let me tell you what we did.
all major palaces, all churches, as chefs we wanted great meals and she found the best places for lunches, for dinners we did a progressive dinner on Rubenstein Street. Great places Great Bars!! Maria hung out with us as we had asked that she "Babysit" us as we could have too good of a time and get a bit silly. They were always on time, they fulfilled everything, even gong to buy caviar- best place. the supermarket to buy the Vodka we liked...THE BEST!!! Look NO FURTHER THAN THIS COMPANY!!
Anthony M 10/01/2019
We ( my wife and I) contacted Ekaterina ("Katya") about two months before our cruise on NCL stopped in St. Petersburg. We wanted to see the city on a less-crowded... read more excursion than the ship offered.
First off, there are NO visa issues. While the ship might want you to think otherwise, Ekaterina is licensed by the government, and uses that license to provide you with a temporary visa. She sends this visa document to you a couple of weeks before your cruise, so you have it in hand when you disembark in Russia. Simply show it to customs along with your passport, and everything is fine. It really is that simple. And, because you are in a private car, they get you back to the ship at any time you choose.
We contracted for two days, and were met by Maria, the tour guide and Dimitri, the driver. We were very pleased with both Maria and Dimitri. There were no communication problems, as both spoke English.
Our email correspondence prior to the tour was very easy. Katya did not require any deposits in advance. By email, we discussed the sights which we wanted to see, she offered her recommendations and we agreed upon a schedule. This was easy to do and this private tour (and driver) was actually less expensive than the ship's excursions.
Maria was charming, as was Dimitri, and she held degrees in both history and art, so her guidance was appreciated through Peterhof's Palace, Pavlovsk Palace, St. Isaak's Cathedral, the Hermitage, City Tour by boat, Church on the Spilled Blood, lunch at a local restaurant, etc. We learned a good bit about Russia's history.
In addition, Maria handled all necessary entrance tickets, the cost of which were included, with the exception of the cost of lunch.
Best of all, everything went smoothly, we had no worries and a lovely luxury ride which dropped us off at the front door of all of these attractions, and we skipped the lines.
Do consider this approach to touring St. Petersburg. We really enjoyed it and I believe that you would also.
Bluffton 9/30/2018
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.
I had found Katya through this site. I emailed her with the type of tour the 4 of us were looking to do and the experience we were looking to... read more 