u01sss3

I'm one of the luckier ones because I'm from Edinburgh where there's a consulate but it seems a real hassle.

fruitcage

Loved Russia on 2 visits as a tourist, and I live couple of hours from the nearest consulate / fingerprint-taking office. If you live in Edinburgh I wouldn’t hesitate.

TSE

Spare a thought for the Russians as there are only five UK visa application centres in the whole of Russia!

tenn_ace

exactly what I keep hearing from Russian friends who managed to visit UK... so EU is generally preferred among Russians

Bohinjska Bistrica

It's not the easiest thing I've ever done, but if there is one near by I'd go for it. The cost of that and the cost of flights are irritating, but worth it when you are there. The Rouble collapsed a few years ago so it's at least pretty reasonably priced when you get there.

I never realised there was one in Edinburgh. I grew up not far from Edinburgh, so just as well I didn't still stay there or I'd have gone to London for no reason!

Suppose the other blocker is the flights, which in fairness can be pricey. We went in via Riga with Air Baltic as the BA/Aeroflot prices were just too much at the time we were looking to go.

Very much tit-for-tat I believe, and probably why we can't benefit from the e-visa. A real pity, but that's politics.