Itinerary help?
 

I'm planning on leading a group on a trip from the Ukraine to Russia. We will fly into Kiev on November 15th and fly back from St. Petersburg on November 25th. Here is my orginal plan:

1. Arrive Kiev and spend two nights.
2. Take overnight train from Kiev to Moscow and spend two nights.
3. Take the overnight train to Novgorod and spend one night.
4. Travel by bus to St. Petersburg and spend three nights before flying back.

The last four nights of the trip that includes Nogorod and St. Petersburg are great. However, I'm not too crazy about my two night stay in Kiev and my two night stay in Moscow. Can anyone offer me any encouragement to leave my itinerary as is, or is there another way to improve it and make it more interesting? I'd love to take the group to Lvov in western Ukraine for one night, but it is just too far out of the way to include in the itinerary.

Thanks for your help!

Could you mention why you are not crazy about Kiev and Moscow? Moscow is a great city with many sites that would surely interest a group (what sort of group are traveling, maybe then be better placed to decide on Moscow/Kiev) I have not been to Kiev unfortunately but from reading various trip reports seems an interesting place to spend couple of nights.

I initially agreed with your perspective that two nights in Kiev and two nights in Moscow would be good. However, in reading some posts, Kiev and Moscow are sometimes presented as somewhat drab and not so interesting. Lvov, in western Urkraine, gets great reviews (like Novgorod and St. Petersburg), but it is difficult to include in a straight line itinerary.

I think that you will find that only two nights in Moscow will not be enough.

Kiev is a great and beautifull city, with many historic buildings, parks and great beaches on the river Dnjepr. 2 nights might be not enough to see it all, but certainly you can see the highlights.
I would advise you to make the train reservation well in advance for such a large group.

Two nights in Kiev may be OK based on your trip time, but absolutely you need more time in Moscow.

Went there last year for the 1st time and found it fascinating. The city is large,vibrant,and clean.

There are many great restaurants,markets, historic tours, and sights.

The culture is different,but thoroughly enjoyable.

Try for more than you are planning now.

GTG