copilot

Hoping you can help with our tentative 2-week itinerary in Russia. With so much to see, and the various opening days/times of the sights, we found it a bit challenging to plan. For some background, we are mid 30's and mid 40's, mid-range budget (generally about 3 1/2 star hotels), and are traveling independently. We've traveled a lot in Europe and Asia, but this is our first time in Russia. Our tentative itinerary is below, for travel in mid-May. It's just a general outline at this point; I like to have a plan in mind but once we get there, we like to be able to wing it a bit based on whatever cool alleyway we stumble on. At this point I'd just like some general advice as to whether we're trying to do too much, or are leaving something wonderful out. Particularly in St. Petersburg, I'm not sure if by scheduling several excursions from the city, I'm not allowing enough time in the city itself. (FYI, our rationale for visiting St. Pete's first is that we loooove flea markets, and this way we will visit the huge Moscow market near the end of our trip, and won't have to lug our treasures around for the entire trip). Also, we'd like some advice as to when/where it's helpful to hire a guide. We don't like group tours, prefer traveling independently, but like hiring a guide here and there for specific sights if it will help us to learn more about what we're seeing. Fodorites have always helped us in the past; appreciate any suggestions:

Fri: Arrive St. Petersburg. Peter & Paul Fortress, etc.
Sat: St. P: Yunona Fair; Vasilievsky Island and Left Bank
Sun: St. P: Petrodvorets
Mon: St. P: Yusupov Palace, + TBD.
Tue: St. P: Hermitage, Winter Palace
Wed: St. P: Tsarskoe Selo (Pushkin)
Thu: St. P: Church on Spilled Blood, Museum of Ethnography, Summer Garden, etc.
Fri: Train from St. P to Moscow
Sat: Moscow: Ismaylovo Mkt., then Tretyakov or Pushkin Art Gallery
Sun: Moscow: Kremlin, Armoury, St. Basil's
Mon: Moscow: explore old Arbat neighborhd
Tue: Moscow: Kitay Gorod area and Polytechnical Museum
Wed: Moscow: Cosmonautics Museum, + TBD.
Thu: Trip to Suzdal
Fri: Suzdal
Sat: Return from Suzdal to Moscow
Sun: Depart Moscow

Thanks for any suggestions.

bardo1

We too are planning two weeks in Russia and our itinerary looks very similar to yours. Your itinerary is about the best you can expect to do in two weeks. Seeing "Russia" in two weeks is like trying to see the USA in two weeks execept Russia is twice as large as the USA.

One difference in my itinerary is that we are staying in apartments as it appears mid-price, central hotels are tough to find - espcialy in Moscow.

You'll soon discover that hotels (and everything else!) cost double in Moscow than what it costs in St. Petersburg: plan accordingly.

Marc_David_Miller

For such a trip we usually recommend hiring a guide for at least the first day (for general orientation purposes and spot-on recommendation which just can't be conveyed in advance) and one other day (for sites which are difficult to navigate on one's own without local knowledge or language skills).

Also keep in mind the May holidays-the period from May 1 to May 9 is a national holiday, and in both cities there will be official celebrations which will close off areas of each city at times and cause massive traffic delays (as well as closings of museums and other sites). After May 9 there are many exhibitions and trade shows in Moscow, and it is best to book your accommodations as soon as possible (we have clients whose rates vary between $200-500/night during a 4-7 day stay!!); the high season in St. Petersburg also starts, but you have a little more flexibility there. Also, someone who knows the hotel markets in both cities could probably help keep costs down, especially if your dates are flexible.

There are some wonderful scientific museums in both cities (should that be your interest), including the Hygiene Museum (near the State Russian Museum on Italianskakya, St Petersburg, with Pavlov's dog on display!) and Mineralogy Museum (Leninsky Prospect, Moscow).

As for your general itinerary, it is not particularly challenging (you are covering the highlights that any first-time visitor would want to see. If you have particular interests there might be other recommendations (for instance, if you are interested in contemporary art, my family's foundation will have exhibitions in at least one of Moscow (either the Tretyakov or another museum) or St Petersburg (the State Russian Museum) in May; visit www.KolodzeiArt.org for details before your trip, and if it works out I would be happy to invite you to the opening). Also, Suzdal is interesting but can be challenging to get to without language skills.

copilot

Thank you both for your comments. Yes, we too are planning to stay in apartments in both Moscow and St. Petersburg, in order to cut down on costs.
Marc, thanks for your suggestions re: guides and itinerary. We planned to arrive May 11 because we had also read about the holidays you mentioned, and figured that many of the museums would likely be closed. Re: our itinerary; the schedule I posted is very rough, just so that we can get a general idea of whether we're leaving out anything major. We don't like to rush through a city, but we tend to be always on the move, so typically at the end of a day, we realize we've seen/done a ton of things. We tend to plan our general itinerary and then have a long list of "maybes" to add in here and there, depending on how the days go. I am interested in art, local handicrafts, and antiques (more the fun flea-market variety than high-end treasures), and I love browsing small neighborhoods and shops. My husband loves all things technical, particularly aerospace, but really anything scientific or technical. So we try to balance the two areas on our trips. If there are any particular sights you recommend, please let us know. We really enjoy getting off the beaten track, but realize that for our first visit, in only 2 weeks, that won't really be possible. We'll hit the highlights and get ideas for our next trip! Thanks again for your help.

Marc_David_Miller

There are a number of small museums devoted to aeronautics, as well as Monino Airfield (devoted to aviation) and Star City (the control center for the space shots). There are also some design bureaus for which we have arranged private tours for clients. As for art, recommendations depend on what type of art interest you (contemporary, icons, impressionist, etc.).

Marc_David_Miller

Also make certain you know how to register your visa if not staying in a hotel (a good visa provider will have an office in both cities to allow this).

gladiatrix

If you are travelling without a tour group/guide be careful out there. Beware of pickpockets, scams, other stuff- all looks very nice. St. Petersburg is a beautiful city. Don't buy souvenirs on the street, find reliable dealers/ shops. Know your goods, like amber and wooden items. Don't drink the water, don't brush your teeth with it. Also be careful where you eat, no street vendors. Pay heed, or you'll be e-mailing us from a hospital.
Enjoy the beautiful art and music!

katya_NY

To the above:

You must work for the Russian board of tourism.

Welcome to Fodors.