Recreation on Lake Baikal in winter is varied. In many respects it is dictated by weather conditions. In December, the lake is cool and damp. Fog often spreads over the water surface. Real frosts come here in January. By the end of the month, the thickness of the ice allows you to move on it without fear. In February, the January frosts recede. The day is often sunny and quiet.

There are few tourists at the beginning of winter. The influx begins on New Year's Eve. Winter holidays are the most expensive. In the second half of January, activity subsides, but some resorts are still crowded. In February, fans of ski holidays flock to the lake. They are attracted by moderate prices, comfortable weather and plenty of snow. What to do on Lake Baikal in winter?

New Year holidays

From late December to mid-January, the recreation centers and hotels of Baikal are full. It is better to book a New Year's tour several months in advance. In addition, early booking gives you the opportunity to save. Tours are designed for schoolchildren and students, active and elderly people.

A weekly recreation program on Lake Baikal in winter often includes:

• a tour of Irkutsk with a sightseeing tour of the historical center;
• visiting the village of Zhemchug and bathing in hot thermal springs;
• skiing and skating in the mountains of the Tunkinskaya valley;
• visit to Khoymorskiy datsan of Arshan settlement;
• a trip to the waterfall of the river Kyngarga;
• meeting the New Year with a gala dinner and fireworks;
• rest on the shore in Listvyanka;
• climbing the Chersky Stone at the source of the Angara;
• excursion to the reserved rock Shaman-stone;
• familiarization with the expositions of the Baikal Limnological Museum;
• visiting the architectural and ethnographic museum "Taltsy".

It is worth visiting the nerpinaria. In the sledding center you can ride a dog sled or a sleigh with horses. The village has a diving center. You can go sailing on a boat with a transparent bottom. Ice excursions on the Khivus all-terrain vehicle are very popular. For a change, you can visit the bard song theater, take a master class in a pottery workshop.

Winter fishing

Holidays on Lake Baikal in the winter of 2017 can be remembered for a notable catch. winter fishing starts in mid-December. During this period, bays are covered with ice 10–15 cm thick. In early January, central Baikal also freezes. The best time for fishing is February. At the end of winter, the thickness of the ice reaches a meter. At the same time, it is easily drilled with a standard ice ax.

Dace, pike and perch are found off the coast. In February, you can catch grayling and burbot. local business card- Baikal omul. This valuable commercial fish found in clean, oxygen-rich water. Through clear ice lakes you can see how the shoals go. They catch not only on the “peep”, but also on the “headlight”. At night, they choose places where the depth is more than 25 m. Then they illuminate the bottom with a headlight and put a “donk”. Omul reacts to small crustaceans coming into the light.

Winter fishing tours involve accommodation in comfortable houses and meals with homemade dishes. Departure to the ice is carried out by snowmobile or car. Rybakov is accompanied by an experienced instructor. Based on the weather and wishes, he determines the fishing spots.

Main ski resorts

The most famous ski resort Lake Baikal - "Sable Mountain". It is located on the southern shore of the lake, in. Snow lies here all winter and spring. There are 12 tracks for beginners and professionals. There are modern lifts. The hotel base is represented by the Sobolinaya and Grand Baikal hotels. A budget option accommodation - a place in the hostel "Baikalski". For those who love solitude and silence, a cottage town "Rus" was built.

The resort has the opportunity to take individual and group skiing lessons. There is a snowboard school. You can rent equipment. Near Listvyanka there is a ski resort "Eastland". There are three trails of varying difficulty on its territory. There is lighting for evening skiing, a snowmaking system. There is a chair lift. A tubing track has been made. There is a snow park, sports bar and equipment rental.

Holidays on Lake Baikal in winter 2017 - prices in Eastland:

• Tour "To whom over 50+" - from 1,300 rubles per person.
• Tour "Get on skis" - from 1,700 rubles per person.
• Tour "Together with Mom" ​​- from 2,200 rubles per person.
• Tour " Business people» - from 2,400 rubles per person
• Instructor services - from 1,000 rubles. at one o'clock.
• Equipment rental - from 150 rubles. at one o'clock.

Secluded vacation in the mountains

A popular place among freeriders is Mount Mamai, 10 km from Vydrino. During the season, 4–6 m of snow falls here. The microclimate of the resort is mild and moderately windy. There are no prepared tracks. Popular slopes are "Pillow" and "Meat". The length of the slopes is 1–3 km. The height difference is 400–800 m. rare forest. good place for off-piste skiing is Bull Mountain. It is located on east coast lakes. You can get here by helicopter, snowmobile, on foot.

In the northwestern part of Lake Baikal, on Mount Medvezhya, there is a ski resort Davan. The nearest settlement to it is Goudzhekit. The resort is famous for its lush snow. The cover reaches a height of 3–5 m. There are 4 trails 6–7 km long on the territory of the complex. The height difference in Davan is 1 km. Thus, a holiday on Lake Baikal in winter can be both extreme and calm. Its main advantages: fresh air, picturesque landscapes, a lot of active entertainment.

Winter Baikal in terms of beauty and impressions will give odds to Iceland and the Norwegian fjords. This is the biggest ice rink in the world! Constant winds snow is carefully blown off the lake and islands, tourist camps are open all year round, and the Baikal omul is smoked right on the shore.

Find out from our experience (and our photos!) how to relax in winter on Lake Baikal, how to get there and have a good time.

When to go to Baikal

Baikal ice is the most fantastic sight and you will definitely want to come to the lake when the ice has already risen, but has not yet melted. The strongest ice, it is believed, rises on the lake after the January frosts. Many recommend going in March: the weather is warmer, the sun is brighter, the ice is still strong. But! In March, an unexpectedly early spring may begin and you will come to gray ice, which began to melt, and an ice road closed to traffic.

In February 2015, we went to the Baikal island of Olkhon for two weeks and caught on the edge of a sharp warming. In a couple of days, the ice lost its blue crystal clearness and became gray and faded, rustling underfoot with thousands of small ice scales. The bus took us away from the island, no longer a long way across the ice, but the shortest way to the nearest shore. The winter ice road was closed after our departure. So we would recommend the end of January and February for the trip.

How to get to Baikal

The easiest way to Baikal runs through Irkutsk: the largest number planes and trains arrive in this city. It takes 6.5 hours to fly from Moscow to Irkutsk by plane, and 5-6 days by train. There is another option to fly / drive to Ulan-Ude and Severobaikalsk, but if this is your first trip, we recommend choosing the route through Irkutsk, as the easiest. We recommend staying on Olkhon Island. There will definitely be the most beautiful views. Below, for example, is a photo of Shamanka rock.

Do you think that if you came to Irkutsk, then Baikal is here? Ha! You won’t get to the lake on foot, and there are no scheduled buses or trains. The shortest straight line to the lake is about 70 km, and if you go, for example, to Olkhon Island, then all 250 km.

Our final destination was on the island of Olkhon in the village of Khuzhir. A commercial bus runs to Olkhon, places for which can be booked through any hostel. The bus leaves Irkutsk once a day and travels about 3-4 hours. For tourists, a ticket cost 900 rubles in the winter of 2015. If you did not come to Irkutsk by car, then the alternative is to rent a car at a price of 1500 rubles per day.

The bus to Olkhon turns onto the ice road at the first opportunity, because the asphalt road ends, and driving along the dirt comb is a dubious pleasure. The ice road is the first wow-impression of Baikal: you are driving on solid water, and road signs flash past you.

Tourist bases on Lake Baikal in winter

There are many tourist centers on Lake Baikal and the choice is limited only by your budget. Since we were going not just to see, but also to capture the beauty of Baikal on slides, we chose Olkhon Island as one of the most beautiful places. Further, they already chose a hostel on the principle of "cheap, but warm."

The cheapest option that we could find cost 500 rubles per person per day in a house for two: a toilet on the street, a kitchen-dining room in a separate building, and a bathhouse. The small wooden house was heated by electric batteries and was warm and cozy. We didn't need more.

To choose a camp site, please be patient. Look at the Yandex maps: find Baikal, type "hostel" in the search and follow the links. You can search through Yandex and Google with the words “hostel on Baikal”, but there will be more rubbish with the offer of tour packages.

Decide in advance if you want to cook your own food. Not all camp sites provide meals in winter. On Olkhon, for example, in Khuzhir, there are a couple of small grocery stores that have everything you need for self-cooking.

Take your skates with you. Even if you don’t feel very confident on the ice, happiness even from 5 minutes on the biggest ice rink in the world is worth it.

Holidays on Lake Baikal in winter

The most important entertainment is walking on the frozen surface of Lake Baikal. Drawings of air bubbles in transparent ice can be looked at endlessly. Cracks narrow and wide knowledgeable people they say that the lake breathes. You will hear the booming loud noise cracking ice sheet. And close to the shore you can find a heap of ice boulders as tall as a person.

In the village of Khuzhir on Olkhon, there are places where you can rent a bicycle with studded tires at an affordable price. We took it for a day: we rode to the neighboring village of Kharantsy and returned back to Khuzhir on the ice. Despite the fact that we knew about the meter thickness of ice on the lake, we did not dare to go on it for a long time, until a “loaf” car drove onto the ice next to us and drove off into the distance.

In the winter of 2015, it was also possible to rent ATVs in Khuzhir, but the price of 4,000 rubles per hour seemed unreasonably high to us, and in two weeks we bypassed most island beauties.

Safety on Baikal

The ice thickness on Baikal easily reaches 1 meter. We saw how the locals sawed out large cubes of ice near the shore of Olkhon, and there was still a decent thickness before the water. But you need to understand that until the ice has risen, and if you are by car, then it is quite possible to plunge into the invigorating Baikal water.

For excursions by car, we strongly recommend that you follow the recommendations of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, do not leave the marked road and communicate with local residents who are well aware of the current state of the ice. The ice road for cars on the lake is opened no earlier than the strongest ice rises, and it is closed as soon as the thaw begins.

Great in winter. It is quiet, calm and fabulously beautiful here. AT New Year, Christmas and January holidays recreation center "Chara" is always glad to see guests! We offer you winter tours 2018 to Lake Baikal and ice fishing at reasonable prices.

Journey to the heart of Baikal

Have you dreamed of seeing the legendary lake for a long time, but the usual cost of a tour to Baikal is unbearable for you? This is a tour at the most affordable prices! Visit the heart of Lake Baikal - Olkhon Island and be imbued with unusual landscapes to the core.

5 days / 4 nights

from 38 800 rubles

We are offering to you in an unusual way celebrate February 23 and March 8. Go to Baikal, watch fabulous ice grottoes, take pictures against the backdrop of sunsets and walk on the Baikal ice.

4 days / 3 nights

from 25 800 rubles

Winter ice fishing

Are you a professional fisherman or do you like to relax by fishing? Take a break from the city noise on the shores of the quiet waters of the Small Sea.

5 days / 4 nights

from 24 500 rubles

Offers for Irkutsk citizens

Recreation centers on Lake Baikal in winter 2018: prices

The climate in the Baikal region is close to the sea - the winter is milder, and the summer is not as dry as in the entire Siberian region. A large mass of water works like a thermostat - winter period on Baikal goes beyond the calendar winter.

When people talk about trips to the tourist centers of the Small Sea on Lake Baikal in winter, they usually mean the month of March. In March, it is already warmer, the daylight hours become longer. However, due to the large temperature difference, it is impossible to spend the night in tents at this time.

Ice caves of Baikal

The winter fairy tale of Baikal - ice grottoes with stalactites and stalagmites, giant icicles growing up from the bottom and hanging from the ceilings of the caves. When sunlight pierces this icy splendor, everything around is immersed in an iridescent radiance.

The thickness of the ice on the lake in March reaches two meters in places. However, not everywhere: in one of the places of Baikal there is a fairly large clearing.

The transparent mirror surface looks amazing, especially under the March sun. And at the very beginning of winter, splashes, or sokui, form on the stones of windward rocks - ice can cover rocks up to ten meters in height. After the lake freezes completely, its level drops, and severe gaps form under the sokuyami. It is under the splashes that most of the Baikal caves are hidden. In summer it is problematic to get there, and in winter, on the Baikal ice - no problem. Therefore, trips to tourist centers on Lake Baikal are no less popular in winter than in summer.

Entertainment and recreation on Lake Baikal in winter 2018

Mount Sobolinaya is a chic place for skiers: slopes prepared for descent, convenient lifts, developed infrastructure. In the period from November to April, the snow cover is quite stable - so you can train for half a year.

Ordinary skiers also have something to see - the coast winter lake dotted with all sorts of paths.

In addition to training, here you can go for health-improving procedures. If you want to ride for several days, recreation centers on Baikal in winter are at your service. Prices of various categories, as well as rooms - from ordinary standards to "luxury".

Another exciting activity is ice fishing. The most fishy places on Baikal are the bays of the Small Sea. Here, the water temperature is always higher than in other water areas of Baikal, thanks to Olkhon - the island blocks access to cold water.

The ice fishing season in the southern part of the lake starts in January. Perch, pike, grayling, whitefish, omul - thanks to the chic local delicacies, your vacation will be remembered for a long time.

New Year on the Small Sea

The main winter holiday - New Year - on the Small Sea will definitely become an unforgettable event. Celebrate the holiday in a big way, admire the frosty magic on a week-long tour. Holidays filled with positive emotions and impressions: festive festivities, a Siberian bath (it's time to improve your health), skating on the mirror surface of icy Baikal, delicious dishes Russian and Buryat cuisine - where without the famous Baikal poses and smoked omul!

New Year's Eve will be lit up with festive fireworks. Entertainment worked out to the smallest detail: disco, quizzes, contests. You can continue the holiday and celebrate Christmas here, among loved ones or just in a friendly company.

Ice car tours

Camp sites on the Small Sea in the winter of 2018 offer a bit of extreme sports - car tours on the ice of Lake Baikal. Do not worry - the thickness of the ice is about one and a half to two meters, it will even withstand a truck. But from the window you can see many amazing and beautiful places.

For tours, cars adapted for off-road use are used. Good spikes on the tires allow you to move freely on the ice cover.

Winter holidays are also good for their low population - most vacationers, especially foreign tourists, take vacations in summer period. For the same reason, the road to the lake will also be cheaper.

Baikal excursions and attractions

Attractions and excursions are available all year round - you can see all the same expositions as in summer. If you get tired of the street cold - welcome to the warm museums.

Our camp site on the Small Sea is ready to accommodate you in warm and cozy rooms in winter!

Send a request for booking rooms from the site