What should I pay attention to when traveling to Russia?
1. Language
Russia is a country with a very low English penetration rate, which greatly increases the difficulty of free travel. In Russia, almost none of the middle-aged and above can speak English, and there are not many young people who can speak English, and only simple English.
The staff at the railway station and subway station do not speak English, and there are very few English signs. Asking for directions will be very difficult, so you must make good use of google map, which is very reliable. If you download a Russian translation software, it will have a certainly help.
Make sure to complete your Russian visa application before your departure.
2. About the train
You may need to take a train or high-speed rail to and from Moscow and St. Petersburg, as well as to Vladimir and other Golden Ring towns.
There are 9 railway stations in Moscow, and trains from each railway station leads to different places. So be sure to figure out which train station you bought the train ticket from.
Buying train tickets is also a very troublesome problem. It is recommended to buy train tickets in advance on the official website of Russian trains. There is an English version of the website (although it is English mixed with Russian, you can check Russian words online). Because buying tickets online makes it easy to choose the number of trains and seats. The prices of different trains and seats vary greatly, and the price of purchases at different times also varies greatly. The earlier you buy, the cheaper.
You can purchase ticket online before departure. Most trains can board the train with a printed e-ticket.
You can also purchase the tickets at station. There are several ticketing locations in the train station. Some sell long-distance train tickets, and some sell suburban train tickets. It is recommended to write down the destination and the time you want on paper in Russian and show it to the conductor when buying the ticket. They staff there doesn’t understand English.
3. Security issues
Although the natives of Russia are very good, there are many foreign thieves (from the state of St. Petersburg) in Moscow and St. Petersburg. In St. Petersburg, they are blatantly stealing tourists. Do not put your mobile phone is your chest, because there are many bad guys in St. Petersburg, especially where tourists gather.
Therefore, you must pay attention to your belongings in the scenic area and the railway station.
As for the evening, it is very late in Russia. In June, St. Petersburg is still lit until 10 o’clock in the evening. It’s better to avoid thieves and alcoholics.
Of course, no matter where you travel, there are unsafe factors. This is a matter of probability. Pay attention to safety is a prerequisite.
4. Pay attention to the opening and closing time of each attraction
Many attractions in Russia are closed for one day on different days. For example, the Winter Palace is closed on Mondays, the Summer Palace is closed on Mondays and the last Tuesday of each month, Ye Palace is closed on Tuesdays, the Kremlin is closed on Thursdays, and St. Isaac’s Cathedral and the Cathedral of the Spilled Blood is not open on Wednesdays, wait…
In addition, the opening hours of the attractions here are relatively late, most of them are 10:30-18:00, the Kremlin is 9:00-16:00, the Yegong is 12:00-18:00, etc…
Before you go, it is very important to figure out the opening and closing times of the places you plan to go, so as to plan your itinerary.
If you don’t want to line up, you can buy tickets online in advance before going to the Winter Palace and Ye Palace, which can save a lot of time.
5. About postcards
Although postcards are sold everywhere in Russia, stamps can only be bought at the post office! Postage stamps are not sold in shops selling postcards! And every post office is closed on weekends! Therefore, those who want to send postcards must go to the post office to buy the stamps on weekdays.
