Travel To Russia Info
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Getting to Moscow from Berlin
1) By train There are currently very cheap offers for direct sleeper trains from Moscow to Berlin (59 euros one way, takes about 27 hours), available at any Deutsche Bahn ticket office or via www.bahn.de. However, note that you need a Belarusian transit visa if you have an EU passport. This is relatively cheap and easy to obtain through any Belarusian consulate (no invitation needed, but remember to get a double-entry visa if you intend to cross the country again on your way back), but it takes at least a week unless you want to pay an express visa fee. If there are no seats left on the direct train, it’s also possible to go to Warsaw first, more trains run from there (with or without an additional change in Brest). All trains from Berlin/Warsaw/Brest arrive at Belorussky vokzal (Belarus Station) in central Moscow.
2) By coach www.oldworld.ru offers coach trips to Moscow; the price is 82 euro for a one way ride and 136 euros for a return ticket. There are also other companies; it’s worth browsing the web or checking with a specialised travel agency. The journey takes about 35 hours and is exhausting. Note that you’ll probably need a Belarusian transit visa (see 1).
3) By plane The cheapest companies are Germanwings (www.germanwings.de, flying from Schönefeld to Vnukovo airport) and Germania Express (www.gexx.de, flying from Tegel to Domodedovo). Note that, with both companies, the earlier you book the cheaper it is; prices range from 19 to several hundred euros one way. The good thing is that you only book one leg at a time, thus you can fly in with one company and fly out with another. Mongolian Airlines (www.miat.com) also has reasonably priced Berlin-Moscow flights (Tegel to Sheremetyevo, only on Thursdays). The other – much more expensive – options are Aeroflot or Lufthansa. Air Baltic, Malev and other companies have indirect flights that are also rather expensive. There are also moderately-priced flights to Saint-Petersburg with Pulkovo Airways.
If all else fails, you could try flying into a neighbouring country that has no visa requirements for EU citizens (Ukraine or one of the Baltic states) and then take a train to Moscow, of which there are plenty from Kiev, Tallinn, Riga or Vilnius.
Take some roubles if possible, as the exchange offices in airports
have bad rates and/or charge a commission. Moscow itself is full of
24/7 no-commission exchange offices, check out several to find the
best rate in your area.
To get from Vnukovo to Moscow, take bus 611 or 611c to the Yugo-Zapadnaya metro station; tickets are available from the driver for 15 roubles (about 40 cents). There are also slightly faster minibuses (no. 45), tickets cost 30 roubles (less than a euro). There are also express trains to Kievsky Station in central Moscow at 6.55, 7.55, 8.55, 9.55, 10.55, 11.55, 16.55, 17.55, 18.55, 19.55 and 20.55, tickets cost 76 roubles (2 euros). To get to the trains, go to the far end of the terminal, go outside and continue walking until you see the train terminal on your right.
From Domodedovo to Moscow, there’s an hourly express train (more frequent during peak hours) to Paveletsky Station in central Moscow, which takes 50 minutes and currently costs 120 roubles, or just over 3 euros. (There are also cheaper and slower ones.) The ticket window and the train station are at the opposite end of the terminal from the one where you’ll emerge after getting your luggage. There are also minibuses to various destinations in the southern part of Moscow.
From Sheremetyevo-2, there are no trains, only buses and minibuses that go to various destinations in the north of Moscow, taking 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the route and traffic situation.
Ignore the taxi drivers at the airport(s), they’ll overcharge you tenfold.