I am a senior citizen who will be arriving in Moscow by myself in mid-October and I'm wondering what I should expect at the airport. Will the passport control lines be very long? Will there be signs in English? Do I need to go somewhere in addition to passport control to have my visa checked or validated? Thanks in advance for any help.
Doris N.

I went through Moscow Airport in this July.

There are signs in English.

Passport control lines were very long (at the time,only 3 windows opened), I waited about an hour.

No,you don't need to go somewhere to have visa checked,they validate at the Passport control.

Your visa needs to be registered which will be done when you check into your hotel. You will also have to fill out a Migration Card to hand over to the Border Control Officer. Fill out both sections, Part A and Part B.

I flew into Sher 1 about a year ago. It wasn't the most 'user friendly' airport I have ever been in. But if you follow the herds of people, you are likely to end up in the right place in terms of customs and baggage retrieval. I would recommend familiarizing yourself with the guide information concerning the airport in advance of your arrival.

C

You will have to fill out the Migration form, which is on counters and functionaries hand out, but you need to be alert for it because it isn't immediately apparent when you are arriving with a planeload of people.

The passport control lady was extremely rude to my friend and virtually threw her passport and card back in her face because she hadn't filled out the card correctly. She is a sweet 80-year-old lady and I found this treatment uncalled for, but I think the "officials" are still overly impressed with their duties.

Do get your hotel to validate your stay for when you return (they write dates in the visa form in your passport).

Just got back two days ago from Moscow... don't forget to pick up the migration card as you enter the lines for passport control and fill out both sections as others here have said. I had a preprinted one I was given when I got my visa but they wouldn't take it when I got to the front of the passport line. Luckily the woman was nice enough to tell me that I could just go back to the kiosk and pick one up and jump the line after filling it out.
Also, I would suggest arranging for transportation from the airport in advance of your arrival. When you exit customs with your bags you may be (as I was) greeted by a huge pushy crowd of people wanting to be your taxi driver. It sure was nice to know I was being met at the airport rather than having to choose amongst the many swarming potential drivers.

How long it takes to get through passport control appears to be a function of how many planes and people are trying to get through at the same time. We waited for less than 15 minutes, it actually took longer for our luggage to get out.

Just follow the crowd from the plane, passport control is easy to find.

The migration card should be given to you on the plane. We flew in on Lufthansa and had everything we needed to go through passport control.

Each of your hotels will register your visa when you check in and will put a stamp on it. Opinions vary but I was told to carry my original passport and the card with the hotel registration stamps at all times. We did see police stopping people to check their documents but they were mostly younger men with dark complexions.

JohnR is right about prearranging for transport, I've heard horror stories of cab drivers trying to charge $100+ and there really is no easy public transportation. We prearranged through www.gotoru.com for $30US and the driver was there as promised. I've also seen recommendations for www.waytorussia.net.

Another factor in Moscow is WHICH airport you are landing at. Do you happen to know?

Everyone who has chimed in here has been pretty much right on with sage advise. It would be good to know which airport in Moscow that you will be arriving. I have traveled in and out of SVO2 many times.
I assume all adivse is standard for any of the 3 or 4 Moscow airports, but assuming you are arriving @SVO2:
Everything is taken care of at Passport Control. Directional sign to Passport Control are in English, and usually it will depend upon how many flights are arriving at or near the same time. I've made it thru Passport Control in 5-10 minutes and taken as long as 45. Baggage claim is immediate outside the exit gate from Passport Control and chances are you'll either be waiting in line at Passport Control or at the Baggage area.
The flight attendants should hand out the Migrations cards during the flight. Be sure to complete both the entrance and exit portion of this card for presentation at Passport Control. The exact same information is needed on both sections of the form. The Passport Control Officer will take the top half of this form when you clear customs and the hotel will validate and use the bottom half for your registration into the country.One poster is correct. The Migration form that is sometimes given by the various travel agency who may issue the visa is not always accepted by the Passport Control and they will insist on the "Standard" form.
After claiming your baggage you'll need to turn leftish and exit thru customs. If you have large cash and or other items to declare such as your personal jewelery and such, you'll need to go thru the Red Line. If you have nothing to declare exit the Green Line.
The mention of the throngs of "taxi drivers" who will be greeting you when you enter the arrival terminal thru the glass doors after exiting the Customs area can not be understated. They are polite, but they are extremely pesistent. I always have others arrange for a driver to transport me to my hotel near Red Square. I usually pay $700-800 Ruble or $25-30$. These airport "taxi drivers" will generally hit you with a $60-$90 fare. It is not difficult to haggle and negotiate them down to a better price, but I think you'll be happier to arrange or have someone arrange for your transportation.
Also, usually the first thing I do when I exit the glass doors and enter the terminal is take a hard left and go to the Currency Exchange window and exchange some $'s into Rubles such that I can pay my driver. Actually, I've now learned to return home with just enough Rubles for a driver and use them upon my return.
Your gonna have a great time in Moscow. Good Luck and enjoy!

I have a question about what to "declare" when entering at the airport. Do you really have to declare your camera? Rings you are wearing? watches? What do you Have to declare?

Judy:

I declared pretty everything like that. On the way in, a Delta flight attendant told me of her direct experience with cell phones, watches and cameras being confiscated because there was no proof they were brought into the country. Better safe than sorry. The other thing I did was to leave really valuable stuff at home, i.e. watches.

As Carson said, better safe than sorry. An arbitrary figure would be anything worth more than $300-500, but especially gold, any old jewelry, and any old books or artwork. I don't recommend to clients that they declare smaller items like cell phones.