My husband and I recently had the good fortune of touring Belarus with Andrei Burdenkov a few weeks ago. My husband had selected Andrei because of his excellent reputation and the wonderful Youtube videos he has posted on how to travel in Belarus. In addition, Andrei answered my husband’s many emails before the trip right away. Andrei was very articulate and has excellent English language skills. He comes from a family of linguists. He was extremely organized but flexible when we wanted to suggest something we had read about to include in our tours. He knows everything about Belarus: its history, culture, politics, food, architecture and people. His service was also very reasonably priced for the excellent quality and experience he gave us. Andrei took great care of us 24/7 from the moment we met him at the airport upon our arrival to the moment we left Belarus. We were never handed off to someone else. He made traveling in and out of the country very easy and inexpensive. In the five days we were there we saw country villages, palaces, modern buildings, museums, bunkers, etc. We learned about the customs and life of local people as well as the history of Belarus during WW2 and Soviet times. Once of the most moving places we saw was the Brest fortress at the border with Poland, which still bore the evidence of battle from the 1940’s and today has an incredible monument guarded by young military reservists. We also saw a wide range of historical architecture from the 13th century all the way through the period of Soviet occupation. Having traveled in Russia and Siberia before, it was wonderful to see such a wide spectrum of villages, cities and country landscapes. Andrei took us to marketplaces and exposed us to different food and drink every day. We stayed at wonderful hotels each night. Although we had lots to see and do every day, Andrei was flexible if we saw something along the way that we wanted to explore, he happily accommodated us, such as going inside an old synagogue undergoing reconstruction or exploring a newly discovered Soviet bunker. Since we enjoy seeing Russian orthodox churches, Andrei also made sure that we could stop and explore each one we saw. Andrei’s life is tourism. He is not someone just doing this temporarily. He has invested in building a villa in a small village that will accommodate visitors who he will also take around the country. We hope to return someday and will stay at Andrei’s place in his small Belarusian village.

I am used to traveling alone, so I was skeptical of hiring a guide for a visit to Belarus. However, I knew I would never find my rural destination on my own, so I researched some options and finally found Andrei. I'm not sure if it was providence guiding my decision or just dumb luck, but I'm so happy I contacted him. He was able to help with the visa process (not difficult, but a few tricky items were necessary that needed a local hand) and then picked us up directly from the airport, drove us to the farmstay, translated, and was otherwise a fantastic host. Although I had a guidebook, I should have skipped it as I learned much more from Andrei. He was easy to talk to, like an old friend, and I felt sad to see him go when our trip was over. His English was scary good -- I think he's a better speaker than most Americans I know, and his commentary had me laughing throughout the stay. This was one of the most interesting trips I've ever taken and I fell in love with Belarus much more than I ever thought I would, mostly due to Andrei's guidance. The best part was the way he was able to simply walk up to locals and explain what we were looking for (long lost family), which is obviously something I never would have been able to do on my own. This was a fantastic touch that I can't imagine anyone else providing. If you're looking for help in Belarus, contact him and you won't be sorry. If you're like me and skeptical of hiring a guide, don't be. I can't imagine any better person to help with visas, driving, translation, and just good, practical information about past and present. At the end, I left with a deep love and admiration for Belarus, and I can't wait to go back. Thanks for a wonderful experience!

Andrei is an excellent guide for visitors to the country to really enhance your experience, be it a few hours or several days. My wife and I did extensive research online before coming to Belarus and the one guide that stood out was Andrei with his honest and comprehensive information through his YouTube videos and all the positive reviews of his service through TripAdvisor and Google. We spend three days touring Belarus in his comfortable passenger van and were picked up from Minsk airport, given a tour of Minsk then headed to Grodno for a tour and overnight, then to Brest for another tour and hotel stay. Our final night was in Andrei's new and specially built traditional cottage which was a lovely comfortable way to experience life in the country in a lovely setting. (although slightly thicker matresses would be great). Andrei has an encyclopaedic knowledge of Belarus both in the cities and countryside and what he doesn't know he finds out quickly and lets you know. This insiders view of Belarus was what we were really after as most post Soviet independent countries are very different to Belarus which still has Soviet statues of Lenin and the amazing massive structures at Brest to celebrate the brave soldiers of Belarus/Russia. The mostly state run farming and other quircks of Belaurus are well explained by Andrei. Overall if you are headed to Belarus as a first time visitor and want to experience the 'real' country then Andrei should be your first choice.

Myself and a friend booked Andrei after deciding to spend Christmas in Minsk. Right from my initial inquiry Andrei was on the ball and very attentive. He helped us to choose the most appropriate tours for our interests. He was very prompt with his replies and answered all of our questions before we confirmed the booking. We took the city tour and the Stalin Line Tour. The great thing about Andrei is he tailored the tour to our interests and gave us plenty of facts and interesting stories with out sounding as if he was reading from a script. We were intrigued to find out what life on a daily basis in Belarus is like and Andrei was happy to give us his own opinion and that of the wider population. I would also recommend Andrei for airport transfers if needed as he is competitively priced and even helped us to check in to our apartment. Not only did he give us good value for money on the tours we booked with him he helped us to find various supplies we needed while away and also made the process of registering with the police straight forward (something we didn't book him for) To summarise not only is he a very knowledgeable guide but he went the extra mile to help us while in Minsk. My only regret is we didn't book a tour to see rural Belarus with him. Thank you Andrei!!!

I had the good fortune of being able to book a privately guided tour of Belarus led by Mr. Burdenkov during the week of Thanksgiving. Mr. Burdenkov was professional and helped me with several aspects of my trip, from providing visa support documents to helping me book hotels for overnight stays in Brest, Grodno, and Minsk. Mr. Burdenkov planned a meaningful and memorable tour of Belarus that far exceeded my expectations - in addition to visits to some of the top historic sites (such as Brest Fortress), the tour also included stops in traditional countryside villages and was specifically tailored to address my own personal interests in Belarusian cuisine, Soviet history, and local religious sites (churches and synagogues). Having Mr. Burdenkov as my guide allowed me to appreciate aspects of his country's history and culture that I wouldn't have been able to experience if I had simply toured the country on my own. For these reasons, I highly recommend having Andrei Burdenkov as your Guide in Minsk - he will help you experience Belarus in a way that is safe, pleasant, and memorable. Спасибо большое!

I am a solo female traveler and Andrei's services were highly recommended by several members of a travel community I am part of. He responded promptly to emails and we organized 2 days together: 1 day to visit the castles and a city tour the next day. Andrei picked up exactly on time and was professional throughout. His knowledge of Belarusian history is top notch (not just Soviet times, but ancient Belarus). He was deftly able to answer questions I threw at him about the 1500s, Soviet times, and present time. We stopped in a small village where he is building a log house guesthouse. Turns out he is into preserving cemeteries and I happen to love cemeteries! He also is knowledgeable about genealogy. When I mentioned my great-grandfather was a victim of Stalin's purges he immediately got online and started looking through databases (unfortunately, no record of my ancestor). Overall, I would strongly recommend!!! I initially thought the prices were high, but after running into friends who booked just a driver (through another agency) I am so happy I chose this option.

I needed someone to help me with taking my son and I through Minsk and Zaslavl which is where my Dad's Dad's family came from. I sent out email requests to twenty companies and Andrei Burdendov responded both quickly and with the most thorough ideas for our tour. He helped me get our visas when I had trouble with our Consulate. We had a great one day tour that included both a full walking tour of Minsk, a walking tour of one of the local concentration camp memorials, a walking tour of Zaslavl where we were able to find the location of the cemetery where my ancestors were buried, and then we visited the Stalin Line museum where we were able to enjoy a ride on a Soviet tank! He picked us up and dropped us off at the train station and brought us to a great Belarussian restaurant for lunch. He has continued to be a great friend and has helped me with my Jewish genealogy. I have made new friends through his Facebook pages. I would've recommend his services to anyone interested in traveling to Belarus.

Great experience with this tour agency. It's rather hard to visit both Mir and Nesvizh with public transport and therefore we decided to go to these two iconic Belarussian landmarks with a tour. To cut down our expenses, we decided to opt for the transfers only option with this agency. We were greeted by Nadya who was very professional and friendly as well as she spoke good English, and she managed to answer all our questions about her country. She drove us up to Nesvizh, where we toured the castle on our own at our own pace, and then to Mir where we also had time to eat dinner. The tour lasted from 9am to around 4:30pm and we were picked and dropped off to our hotel as well and this was very convenient. We highly recommend this tour agency! P.S. Andrei is very dedicated to his agency, and answers your questions via email almost instantly!

Just spent three days with Andrei in Belarus looking for my distant relatives. My grandparents left Belarus in the early 1900’s, I gave Andrei the basic information I had and a couple of months ago he found their home towns. We drove to southern Belarus and found the villages and found a few living relatives on my paternal side. At the cemetery we found at least a dozen well cared for graves. More success than I had expected! Thanks Andrei. His English is great and we made this trek with 4 adults and one 4 year old. Andrei was patient, understanding and kind enough to make unplanned bathroom stops. His knowledge of Belarusis also very good. Had a great time.

Whether it was sorting out visas; showing us the best of his city; organising a farmstay out in the countryside; making recommendations of the best places to eat and shop; telling quirky and interesting stories you won't get anywhere else; or answering strange questions - his favourite kind, the simple truth is nobody does it better than Andrei. Absolutely fluent in English, and able to organise unique experiences at short notice, he's one of the best city guides anywhere in the world we've visited so far. His attentiveness, military precision, and amazingly dry wit will not soon be forgotten. Hopefully we'll make his acquaintance again one of these days.

Andrei is an outstanding guide & companion to explore Belarus with! He is fully fluent in English (with an affinity to British slang and subtle James Bond references), punctual and highly reliable. Andrei impressed us with a profound knowledge of Belarusian history (and beyond) and was very flexible in building tailor-made tours to suit our interests. He also has extensive knowledge of Belarusian Jewish history and the conversations with him may range from eclectic anecdotes to in-depth discussions on current affairs, Belarusian society, economics and other topics - all while providing a very interesting local perspective. Highly recommended!

I'm an American female traveling solo. I took a full day private tour with Andrei in Minsk that was jam-packed with info, sights, education and recommendations. There was also a nice little bonus of cultural insight that I found interesting. I traveled alone and never felt unsafe or in any danger and I felt that Andrei did his best to ensure I had an experience personalized for me. A year later I contacted Andrei asking for some pictures/video he'd taken that I never downloaded and he found them and sent them! I was so appreciative and happy! Needless to say, I would recommend Andrei and his business!

I hired Andrei for a 5 hour tour on a Saturday afternoon in May specifically asking for some rustic scenes to photograph in the countryside out of Minsk. Andrei showed me some absolutely beautiful and amazing scenery and I could not have been happier. He is extremely well spoken in both Russian and English, knows a lot about all the places we visited. Andrei is a very interesting individual and a pleasure to spend several hours with. I will not hesitate to hire Andrei again on my next trip to Minsk. Highly recommended for any visitors to the area.

When I messaged Andrei to show me around Minsk and surrounding area he got back to me with in minutes and in no time I had an appt. to meet with him the following day. He was prompt and the vehicle was very nice and clean. He was very knowledgable and I learned many interesting facts. I thouroughly enjoyed both tours and would visit the castles again. There is a lot of fascinating history in Belarus and Andrei is excellent in his job. I would recommend him to anyone wanting to tour Minsk or the surrounding area.

We thoroughly enjoyed our day of sightseeing with Andrei. In the morning we did a car and a part walking tour of Minsk. After a very nice lunch, which Andrei helped us order, we then toured the Khatyn Village Memorial and then went to the Glory Mound. We highly recommend Andrei for any tours around Minsk and surrounds. He is very knowledgeable and full of information, any questions are always welcome. A big thank you for a fantastic day you were excellent! Stephen and Elaine

Andrei Burdenkov is an excellent guide to be engaged for Minsk as well as peripheral sight seeing tours of Minsk. He explains the history of tourist places very meticulously. His manners are very pleasant and he is always willing give his time to customers.He is very punctual and committed person in all, for his profession as well as to constumers. His English is very good and this is particularly useful in a place where most people don't understand and speak English.

Daytrip from Minsk to these beautiful castles went without a hitch. Andrei is a very good and smooth guide who knows a lot about history. Moreover, his English is also of exceptionally good level. He is very helpful and knows how to answer every question perfectly. Since it is almost impossible to visit these castles by public transport, this is the best way! Price quality is top. I would definitely recommend Andrei's other tours as well!

Andrei was our guide when we visited Belarus. He took us to the village where my grandfather had lived. He spoke to locals in order to find out the maximum information about the family. He is an excellent guide with an amazing knowledge of the history of everything about Belarus. He was a wonderful person to spend time with and answered the many questions that we had. You cannot find a better guide than Andrei!

Had a fantastic time with Andrei. He really knows what he's doing. Does research beforehand and gave us a history lesson in the car. He spoke of loads of people in the little town we went to, Ashmyany, and found identical pictures from the school which we had copies of. We found 3 graves of relatives. Well worth the price he charges. Thank you for a wonderful time. We really enjoyed Belarus.

Andrei is a great and professional guide, with a lot of personal knowledge and other sources of information that make a family roots trip a great experience. With his help, I managed to find the house where my grandmother lived in the 1930s, although the street name has changed since then. He has an open mind, flexibility for change and great patience for all our desires. Thanks, Andrei ...

We hired Andrei for a day tour of the Stalin Line, Khatyn, and the Mound of Glory, and enjoyed the trip so much that we booked another tour afterwards with Andrei for Mir and Nesvizh. Andrei was a consummate professional. He was extremely responsive both prior to our arrival in Belarus and during our trip. He even responded to unrelated questions we had during our trip. Highly recommended!

Andrei was a wonderful guide. We do not speak any Russian and could not read the signs. Not only did Andrei exhibit impressive knowledge of the history, geography and nature of Belarus, he also patiently translated everything for us. He even negotiated vegetarian meals for my husband, which was no small achievemnent there! We were very satisfied with our four day tour with Andrei.

My 15-year-old son and I had 48 hours in Minsk. Andrei was the perfect guide to show us the city, and fulfill a longtime wish of my son to learn more about the area and Soviet history in person. We left with a flavor, literally and figuratively, for the wonderful culture and rich history of Belarus. Thank you, Andrei, for perfectly fulfilling all expectations and more.

Andrei was outstanding. He researched each area that we wanted to see and made sure that we were able to get there with ease. He helped us journey into the town and villages where our parents lived and also the forests that they fought in. He was an unbelievable source of information. I would recommend him to anyone.On behalf of the Ginsburg family I thank him.

Went to Khatyn village and Mound of Glory with Andrei. Andrei has always something interesting to say and is passionate about the history of his country: he's definitely a tremendous source of knowledge. I'd be glad to come back again and discover more about Belarus ! He was also really helpful and patient when I had questions before coming to the country.

If you're about to vist Minsk and Belarus, but don't know how to start, contact Andrei and his company. Andrei was very kind to provided us with all information about the visa appeal, accommodation, moving around in Belarus and all possible points of interest. If you want to see real Belarus and meet its nice people, just join Andrei's tours.

It was good to get to know Mink with a local who knows the city so well. Andrei is very communicative, professional and friendly. I have learnt a lot on this short tour of the city so I recommend to go on a day trip with him if you are interested in history. His English is also excellent and he is a very good driver!

По роду своей деятельности довольно часто сталкиваюсь с туристами, которые хотели бы посетить различные места Беларуси. Неоднократно обращалась к Андрею за помощью в организации экскурсий и могу сказать, что он отличный гид и настоящий профессионал, знающий и любящий своё дело.

We were able to arrange with this tour the same day and had an incredible time. I would highly recommend going outside the city and seeing the military arms museum near the Stalin Line. If you have the budget the tank ride for $100 is well worth it. Thanks for the great tour!

Highly recommended. Andrei is a great guide : he's quite helpful and knowledgable and was happy to humor all my questions about Soviet / WWII stuff. I did the Khatyn / Glory Mound tour and, thanks to Andrei, enjoyed it more than I would have done had I gone solo.

Many thanks to Andrei who was incredibly informative and helpful in helping me to obtain, organize and submit the necessary documents needed to get my Belarusian tourist visa. Andrei is extremely knowledgeable, friendly and quick in responding to any inquiries.

Andrei was great help, good advice, nice and comprehensive when it came to fill out the visa and get the health insurance. Fast and available. Happy to have interacted with him and will do it again next time I travel to amazing Belarus. Thanks again Andrei.

Andrei assisted me with an overstay of visa. He was fantastic and highly effective with the department of immigration in Belarus and with translation. For a very reasonable fee, the process was so much smoother and easier than it would have been by myself.

Андрей - прекрасный гид по Минску, который сможет рассказать вам всё, что вас заинтересует! Экскурсия с ним прошла в позитивном ключе, весело, открыто, и очень интересно. Большое ему спасибо за познавательную экскурсию и прекрасное настроение!

Andrei was a wonderful guide. Knowledgeable, interesting, and sensitive to our questions and concerns. He explained the history shared how people lived in Minsk today and was open to all our questions. A distinctive experience.

Andrei was a great guide to Minsk and the surrounding areas - very knowledgeable and very responsive over email ahead of time as we coordinated the itinerary. Full of interesting facts and details over the course of our travel.

Andrei was a wonderful guide having led us on a tour of Minsk and then to visit the site of our grandfather's former estate at Werseskow(Vereskova). Efficient, knowledgeable and friendly. Highly recommended.

Andrei was amazing in helping us prepare and have everything ready for our trip. He answered all my questions, and provided everything we would need. I highly recommend!

Andrei is a fantastic guide. He was very knowledgeable and informative. He accommodated my odd schedule and customized the tour for my interests. Thank you!

I thought to get in touch with Andrew to get invitation for tourism and on that basis to get visa but he blocked me on twitter Such a rude behavior.

Hello i want to have a tour un Minsk and i am from Algeria , so could you help me to get the Visa by sending me the Invitation ?

My friends and I did a tour of the Stalin Line and it was fantastic! I highly recommend Andrei as a tour guide!

If you visit Belarus and don't use Andrei Burdenkov as your guide, you are missing the best part!

We really enjoyed the the tour with Andrej, he even took us to try some delicious pancakes!

Just excellent!!!

Great