Travel organization

“Hello Denis? I don’t have any good news for you. The bus company doesn’t want to take your bikes,” I hear Father Andrej’s voice through my cell phone. “Well, let’s take the bikes to Irkutsk today and see if we can get a ferry to Olkhon from there. That should work, right?” I reply. “The ferry costs 3,000 roubles (68 euros) per person. It’s far too expensive. Only for rich people. It’s not a good idea. Besides, the route from Angarsk to Irkutsk is far too busy and uninteresting. I’ll think of something and call you right back,” I hear. Just ten minutes later, Andrej calls us again. “So, the bus company will take your bikes after all. It costs 1,000 roubles incl. bike per person. (22.72 euros) “However, the bus doesn’t leave until tomorrow morning. You would only have to pay for tonight’s hotel accommodation yourself. Then everything would be organized. And if the bus driver doesn’t take your bikes, you’ll get your money back,” he suggests. “We’ll think about it,” I reply, thanking him for his efforts.

“Well, what are we going to do?” I ask Tanja. “I think we should take the bikes to Irkutsk and organize everything else from there.” “Maybe. But we need a hotel where we can leave our trailers during our trip to Olkhon Island. That’s not a problem here. But Irkutsk is a big city. That could be difficult,” I point out. After much deliberation, we decide to stay a day longer in this beautiful hotel for 2,500 roubles (56.81 euros) per night so that we can plan the rest of our trip in peace. Tanja calls a few hotels in Irkutsk. Some are fully booked, others don’t take our bikes. In the end, we find a hotel where everything seems to fit. “Very good. Then we’ll already have our bikes in the capital of Siberia. Now we just have to find out whether we can take our bikes onto the ship to reach Olkhon and how much it costs.” “I’ve now found out the price for the boat trip,” the receptionist at a hotel tells me. “Good, and how much will it cost?” I ask. “The tour lasts three days. Food, two nights’ accommodation and fishing included. So it’s a great trip. It costs 30,000 roubles (681.81 euros) per person.” “What? That’s extortionate! Can’t be? We just want to go to the island. That’s all. Besides, we want to stay there for a week or two,” I reply, horrified by the astronomical sum. “The boat needs a lot of fuel. Everyone has to earn something. The travel agency, the crew, the hotel and the captain. It’s not that expensive. We guarantee a wonderful trip,” replies the woman. “Thanks, but that’s far too expensive for us,” I say and hang up.

Minutes later, we have digested the lady’s statement and try to find out more information on our cell phone. “The boat to Olkhon Island costs 2,900 roubles (65.90 euros) per person. “We’ll be happy to take the bikes with us for a small surcharge of 435 roubles. You can stay on the island for as long as you like and book your return trip from there,” another travel agency told us a little later.

We look forward to your comments!