I travelled twice in Russia last year, 30 days each time. The first trip was around Siberia and Far East (including Ulan-Ude and around, Irkutsk and Lake Baikal, Yakutsk, Kamchatka, Khabarovsk, & Vladivostok), and the second trip was around the European part of Russia. For all the places I'd visited, it's very safe. I don't speak Russian at all and there're very few Russians speaking English, but most Russian people are very nice and hospitable. It happened only once that two police officers stopped me and asked me to show my passport, and that was in Murmansk, when I just got off the train. They checked my passport and wished me a nice stay, with very limited English and a smile. As to trains, the third-class is much cheaper than the second-class, and safe enough for me (I took overnight trains for 8 times and only one of them was in second-class compartment). I am a solo female traveller.
Hello there! I'm super new to this community and am looking forward to receive some helpful advice. I did come across a similar topic titled, 'Itinerary in Murmansk', but the content wasn't specific to my query; hence this new thread.
I've planned for a 21-day, solo, back-packing trip for Christmas/NYE this year. Included in my travel agenda is a chase of the Northern Lights; Murmansk is a part of that itinerary.
I've been told that Teriberka is a good spot for viewing the lights and hence would like to understand the logistics. I've decided against using a tour guide or buying any sort of tour packages for the purposes of saving money and making the trip more challenging.
Query 1: How does someone reach Teriberka from Murmansk while on a budget?
1(a) Is renting a 4 x 4 the only option?
Query 2: I've read about husky farms and other winter outdoor activities in and around Murmansk. Are such activities best done in Murmansk itself? If not, which specific towns/cities in the Kola Peninsula should one visit for this?
Query 3: Is the Trans-Siberian railway experience a memorable one for me to ignore the extra travel time (as compared to a flight) from St. Petersburg?
3 (a) Is there a must-visit town or city on my way to Murmansk?
I look forward to a few responses! Thanks in advance!
Regards,
Suraj
Good afternoon!
In the end of april, me and a friend want to spend 3 weeks in Kazachstan and Kyrgyzstan.
To make the trip a little more special we want to travel to Kazachstan from the Netherlands by train.
Some years ago i did the Transsiberian Express and i really enjoyed it.
My questions are. Has anybody did the Moscow-Almaty train ride? What was it like? I read about long days of Kazakh steppes roaring by..and thats sounds good. Is there an option for a first class wagon (couldn't find it online) and is it worth the upgrade? In a really old post somewhere online they where saying that you get constant visits of police and patrols in the train. Is it way more then on the Transsib/(what didn't have a lot of patrols to be honest)?
I really love traintravelling and this looks like a unique route to take different then the Transmongolia or Siberian route above.
Would love to see any information you could give me about this trip.
Kind regards,
Michiel
Yeah, I enjoyed Semey. I was there in the middle of winter though, I don't know if that makes a difference. There are lots of nice old wooden houses around - not only Siberian log cabins, but at least a couple of lovely wooden mosques from the 19th century as well. There's a Dostoyevsky museum (he was exiled there), a monument or two related to nuclear testing, a nice river. Interesting people to chat to on the train there, a nice coffee shop from what I remember (handy, in the middle of winter). That kind of thing.
I was in Xinjiang recently as well, but not the north - I've never made it up there. Xinjiang is controversial as anything at the moment. You are going to be seeing it in a very sad state, even compared to what it was a few years ago. If you have any Turkish, it will come in lots of use in Xinjiang, though perhaps less in the north.
Toyama, eh? I'm about to post a topic about Toyama...
The best guides are the Trans-Siberian Handbook by Bryn Thomas (Trailblazer), with a mile-by-mile companion, and the Trans-Siberian Railway by Simon Richmond (Lonely Planet). For background, Deborah Manley’s The Trans-Siberian Railway: A Traveller’s Anthology (Century) contains writings from travellers as far back as 1897 as well as from Paul Theroux and Eric Newby. For a brilliant account of Siberia, Colin Thubron’s In Siberia (Chatto & Windus) is peerless. Alexander Solzhenitysn’s A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich gives a grim insight into Soviet-era gulags. The journey is also an ideal opportunity to read some longer Russian novels such as Tolstoy’s War and Peace or Dostoyevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov. (The telegraph writes)
I agree that it is a bad idea to fly from NYC to DC. By the time you get to the airports and through the security circus, there is no time gain, and it costs more. I like trains,and I have done both the Ghan and the Trans Siberian, but the NYC-DC run has no redeeming value as compared to the much cheaper buses, especially between these two cities.
In DC I suggest the Drug Enforcement Agency Museum, just across from the Pentagon City Metro stop. Not open on Monday or weekends, but an excellent presentation, and much expanded from the original version. Another off the beaten path place is the Museum of the American Indian. I just visited the Capitol Visitors Center, and the experience was definitely marred by school groups. A distinct feeling of herded tourism. Another unique institution is the Holocaust Museum. A nitpick there is that they designate Adolph Hitler as a "former corporal." Actually, he was a former Lance Corporal, or equivalent in the US Army, a Private First Class. Exactly why museum management feels it necessary to give him a posthumous promotion to the lowest non-commissioned officer rank is not clear. My theory is that the staff who understand German do not understand the rank structure, and the ones who do understand rank structure do not understand German.
I'm looking to travel the Trans Siberian/Mongolian Railway next winter, starting in Beijing with stops in Mongolia and across Russia, then heading through the Baltics down to the Balkans and aroung Eastern and Central Europe. Is the winter a good time? I know it'll be cold as hell but I'm Canadian, I can handle winter. I'm worried about the social aspect. I just spent a few months travelling Southeast Asia and I met people everywhere and would join them since our routes are all more or less the same. However I've travelled Europe before and I know that everybody seems to have different routes. Also are all hostels going to be empty in winter in Siberia or the Baltics or Balkans? Is it better to couch surf because of the lack of backpackers I'll meet in empty hostels? Any insight in this area is appreciated!
Hello everyone.
Me and my girlfriend are going to Russia on the Trans-Siberian Railway on the 1st of August!
Please tell me your thoughts about this trip itinerary.
We are not sure about stopping in Krasnoyarsk because we only have two days (one night) and we are affraid about that this would not be enough time to do a "good" hiking at stolby. What do you think? Maybe we could skip Krasnoiarsk and sleep in Suzdal, Ekaterimburg, Novosibirsk or Baikal zone one more night?
Thank you for any information!
3 days in Moscow
1 day and a half between Suzdal and Nizhny
2 days (1 night) in Kazan
2 days (1 night) in Karsnoiarsk
3 days and a half (3 nights) in Olkhon
1 day and a half (1 night) in Ulan-Ude
2 days (2 nights) in Vladivostok