Domestic flights across the country
Aeroflot, S7, Pobeda, Ural Airlines and Rossiya cover the entire country. 80+ cities with direct connections from Moscow. Baikal, Altai, Murmansk, Kamchatka — 4–7 hours away.
Russia you've never seen before
Best fares
Hotels in Russia, from palaces to eco-lodges
St Petersburg — palatial hotels and design boutiques. Baikal — timber lodges by the water. Altai — mountain glamping. Sochi — Black Sea resorts.
Regions to explore
When to fly to Russia
St Petersburg — May–July (white nights). Baikal — March (ice) and July–August (summer). Altai — June–September. Sochi — May–October.
Ready-made tours of Russia
What you need to know before you go
Travel documents
Russian internal passport or foreign passport — for domestic flights. For travel to Kaliningrad — internal passport is sufficient. For Crimea — Russian documents.
Money and cards
Mir cards accepted everywhere. SBP — convenient for commission-free payments. In remote regions (Chukotka, Kurils) — better to have cash roubles.
Transport across the country
Air — up to 7 hours to any corner. Train — Sapsan to St Petersburg in 3.5 hours. Car hire — available in all major cities. Baikal — only taxi or excursion jeep.
Connectivity and internet
MTS, Beeline, MegaFon, Tele2 — domestic roaming is free. 4G covers all major cities and resorts. In Baikal and Altai — only 2G/3G in certain areas.
Must-try experiences
Mid-June — Palace Bridge drawbridge at 01:35. Neva Embankment, Strelka of Vasilyevsky Island. 'Scarlet Sails' festival — last Saturday in May.
White nights — mid-May to mid-July, when the sun doesn't drop below 8° beneath the horizon. Peak — 21 June (summer solstice), when there is no darkness at all. Palace Bridge drawbridge on the Neva — every night 01:35–02:55 (schedule at mostotrest-spb.ru). 'Scarlet Sails' — last Saturday in May or first Saturday in June, graduation for all city schools with a tall ship on the Neva and fireworks.
February–March: transparent black ice, hummocks, nerpa seal tracks. Khivus (hovercraft) to Olkhon Island. Best experience — ice trek to Khoboy Cape.
February–March on Baikal — transparent 'black ice' 80–120 cm thick, through which you can see 30 m deep. Famous hummocks (ice cliffs 3–10 m), methane bubbles frozen in the mass. Khivus (hovercraft) from Irkutsk to Olkhon — 4 hours, 6,000 ₽. Ice trek to Cape Khoboy — the northernmost point of Olkhon — 3 days on foot with overnight stays in ice yurts.
M-52 highway from Biysk to the Mongolian border — one of the most beautiful routes in the world. In autumn — golden mountains, passes, confluence of Chuya and Katun.
Chuya Highway (M-52) — the only Russian road in the top ten most beautiful by National Geographic. 968 km from Novosibirsk to the Mongolian border (Tashanta). Key points: Seminsky Pass 1,717 m, Chike-Taman with valley views, Kuray Steppe with views of the North Chuya Range (5,000 m), confluence of Chuya and Katun. Best in autumn — golden poplars, clear skies, no tourists.
3 million exhibits, 1,000+ halls. Tip: buy tickets online and go at 18:00 — the halls empty out. Audio guide in Russian — 500 ₽.
3 million exhibits, 1,057 halls, 5 buildings (Winter Palace, Small, Large/Old, New Hermitage, Hermitage Theatre). Impossible to see everything in one visit — choose the top 10 masterpieces (Leonardo 'Madonna Litta', Rembrandt 'Return of the Prodigal Son', Impressionists). Ticket 500 ₽ online at hermitageshop.ru. Tip: free entry on the first Thursday of every month (but crowded) and for everyone on 7 December (museum birthday).
White Kremlin with a mosque and Orthodox cathedral 50 metres apart. Chak-chak, echpochmak, kazylyk. Kazan — Russia's tastiest city according to gastronomy tourists.
Kazan Kremlin — the only place in the world where a mosque (Kul Sharif) and Orthodox cathedral (Annunciation) stand 50 metres apart. UNESCO since 2000. Syuyumbike Tower — leaning by 1.9 m. Tatar cuisine: echpochmak (triangle with lamb), chak-chak, kazylyk (dried horse meat), katyk, kumis. Best ethnic restaurant — 'Tugan Avylym' with live ensemble performances.
Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan — volcanoes, hot springs, wild nature. One of the rarest experiences in life. Flight from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk — 45 minutes.
Kuril Islands — archipelago of 56 islands from Kamchatka to Hokkaido. Accessible to tourists: Iturup (volcanoes, hot springs, White Cliffs beach), Kunashir (Tyatya volcano, Cape Stolbchaty), Shikotan (Dolphin Bay). Flight from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk — 45 min on L-410 (17 passengers), from 12,000 ₽. Best season July–September. Visa-free for Russians.
Valley of Geysers — helicopter tour from Petropavlovsk. Avachinsky Volcano — one-day hiking ascent. Bears — right by the river during salmon run (August–September).
Valley of Geysers — 4 km canyon in Kronotsky Reserve in Kamchatka, the only place with geysers in Eurasia. Velikan Geyser shoots water up to 30 m. Access only by helicopter (Mi-8 from Petropavlovsk) — 50,000–70,000 ₽ per day with lunch and steam bath in Uzon Caldera. Avachinsky Volcano (2,741 m) — 7–8 hour round-trip hiking ascent. Bears during salmon run at Kurilskoye Lake in August.
Sergiev Posad, Pereslavl, Rostov, Yaroslavl — 8 ancient cities within 300 km of Moscow. Wooden churches, monasteries, white-stone cathedrals from XII–XVII centuries.
Golden Ring — 8 ancient cities within 300 km north-east of Moscow: Sergiev Posad (Trinity Lavra of St Sergius), Pereslavl-Zalessky, Rostov (Rostov Kremlin), Yaroslavl (UNESCO), Kostroma (Ipatiev Monastery), Ivanovo, Suzdal (40+ churches), Vladimir (Assumption Cathedral XII c.). Car for 4 days — optimal. Can be done by bus from Moscow with guide for 1 day (Sergiev Posad) or 2 days (Suzdal+Vladimir).
St Basil's Cathedral, Mausoleum, Armoury. In winter — skating rink on Red Square. In summer — Kremlin tour with views of the Moscow River.
Red Square — Russia's main square (since XV c.). St Basil's Cathedral (1561) — symbol of Moscow, museum ticket 1,200 ₽. Lenin Mausoleum — free, Tue–Thu 10:00–13:00. Armoury in the Kremlin — crowns, Monomakh's Cap, Catherine II's carriages — ticket 1,000 ₽. In winter — skating rink on the square itself (December–March, from 600 ₽). In summer — Kremlin tour with ascent of Ivan the Great Bell Tower.