Travel to Russia
European Russia, by far the largest country in Europe even without the
rest of the vast Russian Federation, stretches from the borders of
Belarus and Ukraine right up to the Ural mountains. In Russia,
accommodation often has to be booked in advance and visas are obligatory.
The easiest places to visit in Russia is St Petersburg and Moscow as they
are well connected to the rest of Europe by buses and fast trains. The
capital city of Russia is Moscow which is rather chaotic and not a very
beautiful city as such. However, at the central core of Russia, one could
find fascinating history, palaces and churches of the tsars, wooden
buildings and the relics of the Communist years.
Russia has few tourist offices and none of them are particularly useful.
It is more reliable to use the information desks located at hotels and
hostels, which most travelers do. There is no need to spend money buying
expensive foreign maps as high-quality maps in English are widely
available at low prices.
Currency in Russia is the ruble, divided into 100 kopeks. The coins are
in the denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 50 kopeks and 1, 2 and 5 rubles,
while notes are in 5, 10, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 rubles. Rubles is used in
all payments and charges as it is illegal to pay in foreign currency.
Never change money anywhere except in an official bank or currency
exchange to avoid being swindled, and most of these exchange offices are
open from Monday to Saturday (10am-6/8pm or later). Automated Teller
Machines (ATMs) are everywhere and the most reliable could be found
inside metro stations and branches of Sberbank.
