Drive in Russia?
Feb 23rd, 2002, 01:26 PM
#1
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Drive in Russia?
Has anyone here driven in Russia? Am visiting in june along with three other people and am considering driving from moscow to the golden ring cities and on to novgorod and st. petersburg. Have been to st. petersburg before, but driving was unnecessary on that trip.<BR><BR>I prefer independent travel to tours and the convenience of a car to the train-to-bus-to-taxi-to-train transferring that would be required for this itinerary. Also, have always driven abroad, including in many big or tangled cities - rome, paris, istanbul, florence, milan. (Though i would use a car just to get in and out of moscow and st. petersburg, not to get around in them.) Still, road signs in cyrillic give me pause.<BR><BR>Anyone with any experience in this?
Feb 23rd, 2002, 05:02 PM
#2
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Don't. What would you do if a policeman stops you? (Serious question). I have taken drivers/cars outside of those cities without a problem, but I have real doubts (1) about renting a car without a driver, (2) picking up/dropping off the car in different cities, and (3) if you can't read cyrillic you won't have any idea about directions--yes some people will say "there are signs in English" but I think those signs end about a mile from the airport.
Feb 23rd, 2002, 05:19 PM
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<BR><BR>Second the "DON'T" . . I lived in Moscow for three years and drove around the city some, but would not venture outside Moscow without a Russian driver. The GAI ( traffic police ) can be very difficult to deal with and will stop you for no reason, hopeing to get a bribe. Signage is easy to figure out, but local rules can differ greatly. If you were to have an accident, you would be in deep doo doo, as President No. 41 would say.<BR><BR>Having said that, you could probably hire a driver with a car easy enough and the Golden Ring Cities are well worth the cost, although with four, it will be difficult to find a car that will hold all of you with luggage. The Russian cars are very small. <BR><BR>Moscow is quite the experience, but Russia is so much more than Moscow and St. Petersburg. Roads, Hotels and Restruants will be very basic but "memorable". <BR><BR>What ever you do, I hope you enjoy the visit. . . Rich<BR><BR>
Feb 24th, 2002, 05:51 AM
#4
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Only Russians should drive outside moscow and even within the city. I have access to a car and never use it. I always have a Russian friend drive me outside town and dealing with the traffice police is not pleasant. Consider Contacting patriarshy dom tour company. They can arrange what you want and provide the driver and guide. www.russiatravel-pdtours.netfirms.com<BR>
Feb 24th, 2002, 11:35 AM
#5
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marc, rich and ruth: <BR><BR>I was afraid that would be the answer. But you are right, no doubt.<BR><BR>So, am thinking instead about vladimir/suzdal and the trinity monastery of st. sergius as day trips from moscow. Also considering novgorod as a day trip or overnight from st. petersburg and kizhi as an overnight.<BR><BR>Any hidden gems outside of moscow and st. pete that you know of that i havent included? Are the solovetsky islands worth a trip?<BR><BR>Thanks for the good advice.
Feb 24th, 2002, 12:29 PM
#6
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Kizhi (actually, Petrozavodsk and then hydrofoil to Kizhi) is an overnight train trip from St Petersburg (I did this last year). Well worth the trip for the architecture museum.<BR><BR>Novgorod can be done in a day--I had a driver for a trip in 2000, about three hours from St Petersburg. The train scehdule is quite inconvenient for a one day trip.<BR><BR>I am going to Sergiev Posod and probably one other outside Moscow city this summer, again using a driver/car. The Solovki islands are quite a distance from St. Petersburg--I looked into this last year and concluded that it was not worth the three days to/from necessary--although you can see the movie "Solovki" by Marina Goldovskaya about the first Soviet Gulag on the main island. <BR><BR>If you want, I am going to be in the region in late june/early July and would be happy to see if you can come along on some of my day trips. Please write me directly.
Feb 24th, 2002, 07:35 PM
#8
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Second,third and fourth the DON"T. We drove to Sergei Posaad in private cars and even that was an adventure. We stopped outside the ring road and I think probably "paid off" someone in order to continue. The Russian police are completely arbitrary in what and who they decide to stop. We drove in Moscow with our hosts and it is a frightening/NASCAR situation--think "tall skinny cars all of a sudden!". What a great country!!<BR>Accidents are horrendous--not just little fender benders but major blood letting things. Think about it!
Mar 8th, 2002, 08:37 PM
#9
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As someone who sounds like you - we have rented cars everywhere we go including Costa Rica (which is one of those countries where the travel guides say NOT to rent a car due to no signs, scary police...) We did not rent a car in Russia.<BR><BR>I would NOT for all the reasons posted above. Also, be aware they really don't have taxis. It is mostly cars for hire or the subways and trains.
Mar 13th, 2002, 11:15 PM
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Cost varies according to where you are (city, region), how long a trip, how many people and other factors. As far as trust, generally.<BR><BR>For shorter trips in St Petersburg/Moscow I usually paid 50 rubles (about $1.66), but I know some Russian and can write down addresses. Official taxis charge about 50% more.
Mar 22nd, 2002, 01:43 PM
#15
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To be honest,(i'm speaking from experience)I would not suggest driving in/around Moscow. The cops are unpredictable and so are other drivers. <BR>For day trips around Moscow I'd try the commuter trains (elektrichka) They are extremely reasonable. For example, a trip to Sergiev Posad is something like an 1.5 hours.
Mar 24th, 2002, 12:11 AM
#16
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Unlike previous posters, I would disagree that you shouldn't drive in and around Moscow, esp. if you've driven in the places you describe. Certainly you are likely to get pulled over, but most likely you'll be let go once the cops figure out that you don't speak Russian (or feign not to). Even if you do get stopped, the most you're looking at is 5 minutes of adventure and a 100 ruble "fine". There are plenty of good maps, and the way to the golden ring cities is well marked. If you like driving, being independent, and are not adverse to a little adventure, go for it.
