Royal Plaza, Unit 8, 10 Paisley Street, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1H2N6

Phone: (519) 826-4077 / Fax: (519) 826-5244 / 1-877-683-5742 (N.A.)

/

Ukrainian Bread Basket Croppingand Dairy Tour

September 16 – 24, 2012

Day 1 –Saturday, Sept. 16, 2012 – Toronto – Kiev, Ukraine

Departure from Toronto’s Pearson International Airport – overnight flight to the Ukraine.

15:50Check in for direct flight to Kiev, Ukraine.

18:50Departure for Ukraine – overnight flight.

Day 2 – Sunday, Sept. 17 – Kiev, Ukraine – Capital of the Ukraine(L, D)

11:30Morning arrival to “Boryspil” airport in the outskirts of Kiev.

  • Meet our guide and transfer to Kiev known in Ukrainian as Kyiv.
  • Because we arrive too early to check in to our hotel, we will take a tour of Kiev/Kyiv – a city tour that includes the Golden Gate, Saint Sophia Cathedral, Sophia Square, B.Khmelnuckyi monument, lunch in Kiev’s historic district, Andriivska church, National Bank of Ukraine, feudal castle, Chocolate house, Klovskyi Palace to name a few of the highlights.
  • Transfer to the hotel - Check in the hotel Autograph” Dinner at a local restaurant or in the hotel.

Ukraine in relationship to its Neighbours.

Pictures above

Pechersk Lavra one of the oldest

Monasteries in Eastern Europe in Kiev

and theGolden Gate, original entrance tothe ancient city and part of the wall

which once surrounded the city of Kyev.

Day 3 – Monday, Sept. 18 – Kiev - Regional Tours – Kiev (B, L, D)

07:00Breakfast at the hotel.

08:15Depart for Agrofirm Mayak ltd. For a travel day to visit to large-scale farming operations in the region around Kiev. No need to pack as we return to the same hotel this night.

11:30Visiting Agrofirm Mayak, LTD- Land area of this farm is 7600 ha, including arable area 6700 ha; a cattle operation with over 2850 heads; Dairy herd size of 1000 head; Breed Ukrainian Red-and-White and Ukrainian Black-and-White. Cattle in the Ukraine in many cases are dual purpose, bred for beef and dairy. Beef production is often combined with dairy operations as a result.

13:00Lunch on the way

14:00Transfer to the second farm of the day, a modern dairy operation with Holstein Cattle.

16:00Visiting "Ukrainian Milk Company" LTD & Biogas plant (14,000 ha of land; Herd size 6,653 heads, Dairy herd size 3,200 heads; Breed: Holstein; Average milk yield per cow/year 9,000 kg; Fat 3.8 %; Protein 3.2 %; SCC 160,000; Bacteria count 40,000; Milkings per day 3; Milking parlor - Parallel 2x36, Delaval – 2 parlors; Days in milk 174; Number of cows per milker 40; Pregnant cows 40%; Semen dozes per conception 2.65; Milk price 3.60; Ingredients: Maize silage 18, Alfalfa haylage 10, Barley 1.5; Grass hay 1.0; Maize 5.5; Oats 1.5; Soybean meal 1.0; Sunflower meal 2.0; Rape meal 0.5). Biogas plant - 400 tons of liquid manure per day humidity 93%, manure extraction "flesh-flow", 2 cogeneration units: 625 kWh electricity + 686 kWh heat, 330 kWh electricity + 395 kWh)

17:30Transfer back to the hotel to freshen up before our evening dinner.

19:00Dinner at a local restaurant

Day 4– Tuesday, Sept. 19 - Kiev - Zhashkiv (Distance – 150 km)(B, L, D)

07:00Breakfast at the hotel

08:00Check out from the hotel

08:15Travel south to the farm, eventually ending in the midst of a large agro-industrial region in Zhashkiv (click city name link to see map of the region).

10:00Today we visit the large agro-industrial company Myronivsky Hliboproduct (MHP), and their mixed farm Agrofort PrJSC. In 2006, MHP started up a multi-product enterprise to diversify sources supplying raw materials to the group’s processing businesses, as well as to test new varieties and breeds. The enterprise’s core activities include crop cultivation of corn, winter wheat and rape, sunflower and cattle breeding - raising breeding bulls and cows. The area of cultivated land amounts to 1162 hectares, half of which is planted in corn.

11:30Departure

12:30Lunch on the way

14:00Visiting pig farm “Elita” Ltd (4000 pigs, breed: Cora, Optimus, Big White; 500 sows, 1300 ha)

15:00Visiting dairy farm “Terezyno” Ltd (2795.5 ha of land; Herd size 1662 heads, Dairy herd size 825 head; Breed: Red-and-white and Black-and-white Holstein; Average milk yield per cow 20 kg; Fat 4.25 %; Protein 3.35 %; 2 Milkings per day; Milking equipment 2 x16 Parallel; Days in milk 347; Lactations in the herd 4.5; Cull rate 27%; Semen dozes per conception 3)

18:00Check in the hotel “Parade Allure”

19:00 – Dinner at the restaurant in or near the hotel.

Day 5-Wednesday, Sept. 20 - Zhashkiv – Mankivka - Odessa (Distance - 375 km)(B, L, D)

07:00Breakfast at the hotel

08:00Check out from the hotel

08:15Departure to the farm

09:00Visit arable farm owned by Dutch “Kyschentsi” Ltd (10.000 ha of land, Crops: Winter wheat, Winter barley, Lucern, Maize, Soy, Rape, Sugar beet, Onion; Tillage: no-till, mini-till; Machinery: Tractor: Case 500 (2), JD 8330, JD 8320 (2), JD 6930 (4), New Holland w190, JCB 53170, CAT, Combine harvester: JD S690i (6), Seeding-machines: JD 12, HORCH ATD 18.35,Spraying machine: AGRIFAC CONDOR, DUBEX P/N12500 (4), Seeds: Pioneer, Monsanto, Lemken, Strube, Maribu)

12:30Lunch on the way

14:30Departure to the farm

15:00Visit arable farm named after Posmitnogo (8.000 ha of land, Crops: Winter wheat, Winter barley, Maize, Winter Rape, Sunflower; Tillage: mini-till)

18:00Check in the hotel “Black Sea”

19:00Dinner at the restaurant

Day 6 – Thursday, Sept. 21- Odessa– Simferopol (by train overnight)(B, L, D)

07:00Breakfast at the hotel

08:00Check out of the hotel.

08:15Transfer to our first visit.

09:30Visit theSea Trade Port of Ilyichevsk. This port is one of the largest in Ukraine, is situated on the coast of Sukhoy Liman (estuary). The port can admit vessels of up to 13 m draft and lifting capacity more than 100,000 t. Port Illichevsk is a component of the European Community’s 9th International Transport Corridor, and also a component of the Baltic Sea – Black Sea Corridor. Agricultural commodities and industrial products are shipped from this port on the Black Sea.

13:00Lunch

14:00Guided visit of Odessa including the Opera House, which is the second best in Europe, the massive Potemkin stairs, beautiful palaces and churches, monuments to Deribas, Catherine the Great, The Duke de Richelieu among other important landmarks in Odessa.

17:00Dinner at a local restaurant near the train station.

18:30Transfer to the train station- Tonight will not be spent in a hotel, but rather in a sleeper compartment of the regional train that will take us to Simferopol.

19:29Departure to Simferopol– overnight aboard the train.

See the Crimea Map to the right, to see a more detailed view of where the tour will end up, on the Black Sea, where we visit Yalta, Seavastapol and Simferopol.

Day 7 – Friday, Sept. 22 - Simferopol - Yalta(B, L, D)

07:25Morning arrival to Simferopol, where we will disembark and catch our bus to Yalta.

08:00Transfer to Yalta

09:00Check in to our hotel “Krasotel”

09:30Breakfast at the hotel

11:00Yalta city tour beginning with a walking tour along the Sea-front, Ihnatenko, Roosevelt, Sadova, Pushking, and Catherine Streets, where you will see magnificent villas of the 19th- early 20th centuries, fashionable hotels, museums. Lesia Ukrainka Literary Museum, A. Chehov Memorial House “White Dacha”, Armenia Church, Roman Catholic Church, St. Alexander Nevski Cathedral, alleys in Yu. Gagarin Maritime Park – Yalta a famous sea-side resort – learn more at this link:

Yalta – Black Sea Resort City.

12:30Lunch at a sea-side restaurant

14:30Visit of Massandra Winery: Wine cellar tour + wine tasting. The Massandra Winery Museum is a treasure trove of trivia delights: a bottle of 1775 Massandra Sherry de la Fronterra certified by the Guinness Book of World Records to be the oldest Russian wine; and a certificate of the Crimean Observatory of the Ukrainian Academy of Science showing that a newly-discovered asteroid is now called Massandra. The museum houses a display showing the development of winemaking in history. After visiting the museum, guests will enter the cellars, where rows of barrels contain wines being aged prior to bottling.

17:00Departure back to our hotel in Yalta.

18:00Dinner at the restaurant in or near our hotel.

Overnight in Yaltain the hotel “Krasotel”

Day 8– Saturday, Sept. 23 –Yalta - Sevastopol – Alupka - Yalta(B, L, D)

07:00Breakfast at the hotel.

08:30Travel to Sevastopolfor a city tour Museum of “Panorama” complex and “Malakhiv Kurgan”, Diorama of the Defense of Sevastopol in 1854—1855 , Museum of the Black Sea Fleet , Nahimov square and other famous parts to this historic Black Sea naval port.

12:00Lunch at the restaurant

15:00Boat trip on the Black Sea, during which you will see the famous palace of the "Sea Swallow's Nest", you will hear stories from the guide about the sights of the coast, learn about the legends and stories associated with this region.

17:00Visit of Livadia Palace -The summer home of the last of the Russian Tsars, Nikolai II, and in 1945 home to the Yalta Conference, where Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin met to re-draw the map of Europe at the end of the war - the Livadia Palace breathes the history of the last 150 years.)

18:00Dinner at the restaurant.

Overnight in Yalta in the hotel “Krasotel”.

Day 9–Sunday, Sept. 24 - Yalta – Simferopol – Kiev – Toronto(B)

05:00Check out the hotel – transfer to the airport.Departure to the airport in Simferopol by bus.

06:00 – arrive at the airport – light breakfast at the airport.

07:10Flight to Borispol Airport in Kiev.

08:40Arrive in Kiev.

10:45Departure on flight back to Canada (directly).

16:50Arrive in Toronto, Canada – meals on board flight.

COST:

Number of participants / Cost per person - Full-board
3 meals/day, all transportation to and from and in the Ukraine (airport transfers in Canada excluded)
14 participants or more required for tour to go / $3,489.00 Canadian(including all taxes)

Service provided by AgriTours Canada and Real Ukraine Agency, a member of ATOI:

Inclusions:

Luxury coach transport during the whole period – coach size depending on group size

  • International flights to and from Ukraine,
  • Domestic flight from south region of Ukraine back to Kiev and to Canada.
  • Transportation in Deluxe Motor coach throughout Ukraine
  • Train transfer in overnight sleeper in southern Ukraine - Odessa – Simferopol.
  • Boat trip around Southern coast of Crimea
  • Organized technical visits as listed
  • Tourism attractions – cultural and scenic including a visit to the Black Sea port area.
  • 7 night’s hotel accommodation (4 stars) / 8 days motor coach
  • Full-board (3 meals/day)
  • Fully Guided in the Ukraine by a Ukrainian-English speaking agricultural specialist or guide.
  • Tour Director from AgriTours Canada
  • 1 bottle of water per person each day (0.5 litres)
  • Excursions, entrance fee and visits in Kyiv , Odessa, Yalta, Livadia, Massandra,: - city tour Kyiv
  • Guided visit of Odessa
  • Sevastopol city tour
  • Yalta city tour
  • Livadia Palace
  • Massandra Winery : Wine cellar tour + wine tasting

Not included:

  • Insurance for flight cancellation, interruption, baggage and medical coverage (can be provided)
  • Items of a personal nature.
  • Gratuities for the driver and Ukrainian guide
  • Transfers to and from Pearson International Airport.

Page | 1TICO#2716341