Россия

Russian is the official language across the country. Several republics also have their own official languages, such as Tatar in Tatarstan, the region around Kazan. English is spoken by some younger people and hotel staff in Moscow and St Petersburg, but it is rare elsewhere, even in shops and train stations.

Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet. Learning the letters before you go helps a lot with street signs, menus and station names. The Moscow and St Petersburg metros have signs in Latin letters too, but most regional signs do not. A translation app with offline languages is very useful, especially if the mobile internet stops working.

Staying connected in Russia is harder than in most countries.

• Mobile internet shutdowns: authorities often switch off mobile internet in many regions, including Moscow, sometimes for hours at a time. During a shutdown, usually only a short list of approved Russian services works. Download offline maps and translations, and keep printed or offline copies of hotel bookings and tickets.
• Blocked services: many foreign websites and apps are blocked or slowed down, including major social networks and messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Telegram. VPN services are restricted, and using them to reach banned content is illegal.
• Foreign SIM cards: new rules can block mobile data and SMS on a foreign SIM for a period after you arrive, and some foreign SIM and eSIM plans do not work in Russia at all. Check the current rules with your provider before you travel.
• Russian SIM cards: you need your passport and must pass biometric checks to buy one. Registration can take time, so buy it at an official operator store rather than at a kiosk.
• Monitoring: assume that phone calls, messages and internet use can be monitored.

Medical care in big cities can be good in private clinics, but standards vary and are basic in remote areas. Hospitals may ask for payment before treatment. Because foreign bank cards do not work, check before you travel that your insurance covers Russia and can pay providers directly. Carry enough cash for an emergency.

• Tap water: drink bottled or boiled water, especially in St Petersburg and older buildings. Bottled water is cheap and sold everywhere.
• Pharmacies: look for the sign Аптека (apteka). They are common in every town, and some in big cities are open 24 hours. Staff rarely speak English.
• Medicines: if your medicine contains narcotic or psychoactive substances, carry a prescription in your name, translated into Russian and notarised.
• Vaccinations: make sure routine vaccines are up to date. Hepatitis A is recommended. Consider tick-borne encephalitis vaccine if you plan to hike or camp in forests in western Russia, the Urals or Siberia between spring and autumn.
• Other risks: winters are very cold in most of the country, so pack proper warm clothes. Mount Elbrus and other high peaks in the Caucasus carry a risk of altitude sickness.

Most visitors need a visa, and there is no visa on arrival.

• E-visa: citizens of around 60 countries, including most EU countries, can apply online for a unified e-visa at least 4 days before travel through the Russian MFA e-visa portal. It is single-entry, allows a stay of up to 30 days and is valid for 120 days after it is issued. You must enter and leave through one of the checkpoints listed for e-visa holders. Citizens of the UK, the USA, Canada and Australia cannot use it and need a regular visa from a consulate or visa centre.
• Passport: it must be valid for at least 6 months after your visa ends. Medical insurance that covers Russia is required for a visa.
• Arrival: your fingerprints and photo are taken at the border. You sign a migration card; keep your half until you leave, as officials may ask for it.
• Registration: you must be registered with the migration authorities if you stay anywhere for more than 7 working days. Hotels do this automatically. In a private rental, the owner must register you. Keep the registration slips, as police may ask for them.
• Getting there: there are no direct flights from the EU, the UK or the USA. Most visitors fly via Istanbul, the Gulf or the Caucasus. All passenger crossings on the land border with Finland are closed, and crossings from the Baltic states and Poland are few and often restricted.

Visa and entry requirements change frequently. Verify current requirements with the official immigration authority or your country's embassy before travel.

• Churches: in Orthodox churches, women usually cover their hair and wear a skirt below the knee, and men take off their hats. Many churches provide scarves at the door. Photography inside is often forbidden or needs a paid permit.
• Mosques: in Kazan and other Muslim regions, dress modestly and remove your shoes. Women cover their hair.
• Homes: take off your shoes when you enter someone's home. Bring a small gift, such as sweets or flowers. Give flowers in odd numbers, as even numbers are for funerals.
• Greetings: a firm handshake is normal between men. People can seem reserved with strangers but are often very warm once you are invited in.
• Drinking: at a shared meal, toasts are common, and it is polite to join at least the first one.
• Documents: carry your passport, migration card and registration slip at all times. Police can check documents in the street.

The New Year holidays in early January are the longest break of the year, and many offices and some museums close or keep short hours. Trains and flights are very busy around New Year and the May holidays.

In big cities, most shops, supermarkets and shopping centres are open every day, often from about 10:00 to 22:00, and some supermarkets stay open 24 hours. Many museums close one day a week, often Monday or Tuesday, so check before you go.

Distances are huge, so most trips combine trains and domestic flights.

• By train: Russian Railways runs a large network of fast day trains and comfortable sleeper trains. The Sapsan high-speed train links Moscow and Saint Petersburg in about 4 hours. Tickets show your name and passport number, so bring your passport to the station. With foreign cards not working, you may need to buy tickets with cash at a station ticket office.
• Trans-Siberian Railway: the classic route runs about 9,300 km from Moscow to Vladivostok. Without stops it takes about a week. Most travellers break the journey in Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk and Irkutsk for Lake Baikal.
• By air: domestic flights save days on routes to Siberia, the Far East and Kaliningrad. Drone attacks often close airports for hours, so leave extra time for connections.
• In cities: Moscow, St Petersburg, Kazan and several other cities have a metro. Buy a transport card or pay with cash at the ticket office. Taxis are cheap and mostly booked through the Yandex Go app, which needs working mobile internet.

Breakfast is often porridge (kasha), eggs, syrniki (fried cottage-cheese pancakes) or pancakes (blini). Lunch is the main meal of the day for many people. On weekdays, many cafés offer a cheap set "business lunch" of soup, a main course and a drink. Dinner is lighter at home but can be long and social in a restaurant.

Soups are central: borscht with beetroot, cabbage shchi and sour, meaty solyanka. Try pelmeni dumplings, pirozhki (small baked or fried pies), beef stroganoff and salads such as olivier. In Kazan, look for Tatar pastries like echpochmak and the honey sweet chak-chak. On Lake Baikal, smoked omul fish is a local speciality. Georgian and Central Asian restaurants are popular all over the country.

Tea is the everyday drink, and kvass, a slightly sour fermented bread drink, is sold in summer. Vodka is drunk with food and toasts, and Russian beer and sparkling wine are cheap. For a quick, cheap meal, look for a stolovaya, a self-service canteen with homestyle food.

Moscow and St Petersburg

• Moscow: the capital, centred on the Moscow Kremlin and Red Square, with Saint Basil's Cathedral, the Tretyakov Gallery of Russian art and grand metro stations.
• Saint Petersburg: the former imperial capital on the Neva, with canals, the Hermitage Museum in the Winter Palace, and the palaces of Peterhof and Tsarskoye Selo nearby. The White Nights of June are the most popular time to visit.

Historic towns near Moscow and St Petersburg

• The Golden Ring: a circuit of old towns north-east of Moscow with white-stone churches and monasteries. Highlights include Sergiyev Posad, home of the Trinity Lavra of St Sergius, as well as Vladimir, Suzdal and Yaroslavl.
• Veliky Novgorod: one of Russia's oldest cities, with the Novgorod Kremlin and early medieval churches.
• Pskov: a medieval fortress town with the Pskov Krom, close to the Pskov-Caves Monastery.
• Kizhi Island: an island in Lake Onega with famous 18th-century wooden churches, a UNESCO site reached by boat from Petrozavodsk in summer.

The Volga and the Urals

• Kazan: the capital of Tatarstan, where the Kazan Kremlin holds both the Kul Sharif Mosque and an Orthodox cathedral.
• Nizhny Novgorod: a large city where the Volga and Oka rivers meet, with a red-brick Kremlin above the water.
• Yekaterinburg: the main city of the Urals and a common first stop on the Trans-Siberian.

Siberia and the Far East

• Lake Baikal: the world's deepest lake, reached from Irkutsk. Olkhon Island is the lake's largest island, and Ulan-Ude on the eastern side is a centre of Buryat Buddhist culture.
• Vladivostok: the Pacific port at the end of the Trans-Siberian Railway.
• Kamchatka: a remote peninsula of volcanoes, geysers and bears, reached by air.

The far west and north

• Kaliningrad: the former Königsberg, a Russian exclave on the Baltic between Poland and Lithuania, known for the Königsberg Cathedral and the Curonian Spit.
• Murmansk: the largest city north of the Arctic Circle, visited in winter to see the northern lights.