How safe is it to travel to Moscow and St Petersburg? I am not a frequent traveler but have been to Prague, Budapest, Vienna, and Italy. Russia sounds interesting and would like to travel there but I am curious about the safety. The Visa process sounds like a pain. Thanks for any comments.

The first time you go through the visa process, it is a bit laborious. You always get the visa though and that is more than I can say for Russian friends who try to get visas to the U.S.

Is Russia safe or is traveling from Moscow to St. Pete safe? From Moscow to St. Pete on one of many nice trains is quite safe. LOTS of tourists will be on those trains in the summer so you won't be alone as a foreigner. Don't broadcast your foreigness though. If you've traveled before outside the U.S., you know what I mean by that. Be alert but don't be scared.

Some parts of the country of Russia are safer than others. I live and work mostly in Siberia. I feel 100% safe here. My wife and 3 sons feel safe here too. They have also developed street smarts which help them avoid places, times of the day, and gatherings that could prove hostile.

The Far East of Russia is quite safe for Americans. The southern parts down near Georgia, Chechnya, etc, are best left alone probably.

In European Russia, St. Pete especially, I caution you to be especially aware along Nevski Prospect (the main street in St. Pete) of Gypsies. I speak of children and grown ups. They are quite adept at lifting one's purse, wallet or jewelry. Simple awareness and traveling in groups will help you out a lot.

Russia is an immensely interesting place. I highly suggest you visit. It'll challenge you and enlighten you at the same time.

Enjoy!

I think Woody125 has imparted some great advice. Although I have not been to most of the areas he mentions, I have in fact traveled to Moscow and Saint Petersburg many times. I have not personally encountered the gypsies on the Nevski, but have seen them in action. I have never felt unsafe in either Moscow or SP. Yes, there are the street hustlers, and beggers, and so on, but not unlike many other large cities in Europe or for that matter the US.
You will have a great time in both of these cities.

Thanks for your responses. What is the language barrier like? Do many Russians speak English?

We were in St. Petersburg in 2003- no problem with English at all. You should learn the Cyrillic alphabet, though- you'll find that a lot of the words are borrowed from English and other familiar languages once you decipher the letters. If you want to splurge, a private guide is great. They can whiz through the Hermitage and take you to exactly what you want to see, and answer all your questions. That's also the best way to see the Yussupovsky Palace, where Rasputin was murdered. We booked that through our hotel (the Radisson).

Don't be intimidated by the visa procedure. I did ours and followed the directions carefully (although I had to make up a travel agent itinerary since we weren't using one!) and they arrived with no problem. Do a search here on "Russian Visa" and you'll find lots of info.

St. Petersburg is one of 2 cities where my husband was pickpocketed- the other was Rome. In St. Petersburg, he was pushed as we were walking up steps by a group of gypsy children. He punched the one who tried to grab his camera bag and saved that, but they took $200 worth of rubles from his front pants pocket. (He thought it was safe there.) We think they were lurking around the bank when we used the money machine inside. But, the usual precautions you'd take in any big city suffice. We could walk around at night and not feel threatened at all. We'd go back in a heartbeat, but it's a long, expensive trip from Kansas!

Thanks for your responses. What is the language barrier like? Do many Russians speak English?


I just got back from two and a half weeks in Moscow. I think most of the younger generation do know some english, but I found in the more out of the way spots, they probably knew it but didn't speak it. It just my impression that maybe it's a confidence thing.

I don't know the percentages, but if you are in the main tourist areas, there is someone (i.e. hotel staff, big expensive restaurants, etc). If you want to eat at the more local places (i.e. the cheaper places where the Russians themselves eat) then you will need to know Russian. Though we did mange with the 'point and grunt' method :)

I personally would advise to learn a few phrases (the usual pleasantries, etc). Also learning some cyrillic will be needed for the metro (ie. which exit do you need to take? What is 'Exit'?). Most good guide books have some phrases, and you might want to check out www.waytorussia.com as they have a little Russian tutorial. Also check out http://www.alphadictionary.com/rusgrammar/index.html for some exercises in recognising cyrillic.

FWIW, it looks like I'm going to be going back and forth and I've spoken to my manager and it looks like we're going to arrange some Russian lessons.

How safe is it to travel to Moscow and St Petersburg? I am not a frequent traveler but have been to Prague, Budapest, Vienna, and Italy. Russia sounds interesting and would like to travel there but I am curious about the safety. The Visa process sounds like a pain. Thanks for any comments.

Ifelt more safe walking the streets of Moscdow at any hour by myself than I do Minneapolis/St Paul which is where I am from.

How safe is it to travel to Moscow and St Petersburg? I am not a frequent traveler but have been to Prague, Budapest, Vienna, and Italy. Russia sounds interesting and would like to travel there but I am curious about the safety. The Visa process sounds like a pain. Thanks for any comments.

I elt more safe walking the streets of Moscow at any hour by myself than I do Minneapolis/St Paul which is where I am from.

Agreed. I feel much safer in Moscow than in London.

The usual precautions apply, but in general if you keep alow profile you'll be fine.

I just got back from a trip, and I'd agree they aren't any more dangerous than any other large city, and perhaps less so.

I did encounter some inept pickpockets in St. Petersburg at the Nevsky Prospect metro station (in the heart of the tourist area). They jumped in front of me and my friend and made a big show about how they couldn't push open the doors to the station. The idea, of course, was for me to crowd them and push the door open. They would grab my wallet at this time. However, we immediately saw something fishy was going on and backed away. They gave up left.

I wouldn't credit this to Russia though -- you can encounter this in any tourist area in the world.

How safe is it to travel to Moscow and St Petersburg? I am not a frequent traveler but have been to Prague, Budapest, Vienna, and Italy. Russia sounds interesting and would like to travel there but I am curious about the safety. The Visa process sounds like a pain. Thanks for any comments.
Hello guys!
SOS I need help, I try to gather information about business lounges in Sheremetyevo, basically your personal opnions.
In fact if you need ANY information about Russian visas or hotel or whatever , do not hesitate to contact me as I am a Moscow citizen.
Thanks in advance

I used the D.A.T.E. (Delta/Skyteam/Aeroflot) lounge (http://www.date.com.ru/en/lounge/index.html) at SVO, which was decent. I'm not much of a drinker so I can't comment on the bar. They had various juices and pastries, along with chips and other snacks. I thought it was pretty nice.