Overview

Russia is a huge country, covering nine time zones. In Chukotka – the north-eastern most region of Russia, they have a saying “God is a long way up there, but Moscow is even further away” that is true in so many respects. The Russian Far East is unique, the culture, the climate, the history, the wildlife; it is a world away from the Russia you might have explored.

At Heritage Expeditions we have had a long association with the Russian Far East. Since 1993 when we began chartering our ship from this region, we listened to our crew’s accounts of the magnificent wildlife and wilderness so eight years ago decided to see the Far East of Russia for ourselves. The stories were true! The Russian Far East is an incredibly amazing place and we are eager to share it with like-minded adventurers. Travellers who are looking for a genuine experience, a journey not a tour, a destination which hasn’t been organised and commercialised, a wilderness where we must travel on nature's terms and not on timetables. We pioneered Expedition Cruising to the Subantarctic and Antarctica. Expedition Cruising is also the perfect style of travel for the Russian Far East, where there are virtually no roads and very little infrastructure. We have developed strong relationships with individuals and organisations that make our expeditions possible. We have made a conscious effort to ensure that the expeditions benefit the local communities. We use local services and employ local people where possible.

Here, you will find very unique expedition wilderness cruises, all exploring a different part of the Russian Far East from the Kuril Islands in the south, to Wrangel Island in the north. It is impossible to single out one expedition as being better than the other. If you are not sure which is the most suitable expedition for you, please check our website for this past season's expedition logs for an idea of what we accomplished.

Explore the Pacific Ring of Fire on Russia's Ring of Fire, the volcanic Kuril Islands are rich in seabirds and cetaceans. Travel north up the Kamchatka Coast on our expedition, Siberia's Forgotten Coast. Past expeditions were wildlife packed with walrus, brown bear, beluga whales, steller's sea eagles, spoon-billed sandpiper sightings and much more. On our Chukotka expedition we will have the great opportunity to celebrate with the local people as they hold their 'Beringia Arctic Games', before heading north towards Wrangel Island. Our Across the Top of the World expedition to Polar Bear denning capital of the world Wrangel Island continues to get rave reviews from amazing Polar Bear encounters and offers the rare opportunity to stay on the island with the rangers on our 2-night Overland Traverse and 10-night Ultimate High Arctic Expedition. Our Jewel of the Russian Far East expedition returns and provides the perfect way to see the autumn colours as we cruise from Anadyr to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy.

Heritage Expeditions operates charter flights from Nome, Alaska for The Northern Sea Route, otherwise there are connections via Moscow and Asia. View our list of suggested flight options here.