massagediva

I am planning a trip to India for late fall and it looks like the most economical fares involve long layovers in either Moscow or Istanbul.I'd love to have a glimpse of both of these cities-which would you choose?

cmt

Istanbul

Leely

I have't been to either, but I'd love to go to Istanbul.

And, lucky you, India. How thrilling!

p.s. Had a long layover in London last summer while on the way to Nairobi. We managed to see a lot and have a great day.

massagediva

ttt

cyrusmag

For Moscow you might want to check into whether or not you need a visa. The Lonely Planet Website has forums (Thorntree) with exhaustive info on the topic of Russian visa requirements on the eastern europe branch. Personally I'd go for Istanbul.

elmothehobo

Istanbul, Moscow is a no-no unless you are laying over at Domodeov (the "newer airport&quot, Sheretmeyvo (sp?), which is also the bigger airport is an absolute relic of the Soviet Union.

Istanbul would be far nice than Moscow. While at the airport you can catch one of the famous Turkish cabs into Istanbul.

Firstmate

Define long layovers. Given the absence of a Russian Visa, your layover in Moscow will be at and in the airport. You did not specify which airport. At IST you could purchase an entry visa and leave the airport and at least do some sight seeing.Maybe depending upon how much time you had.
I have been to Istanbul a few times. I have been to Moscow many times. Both cities are great, wonderful, and all that stuff. I will say that the IST airport is quite new and very modern.
Personally, I prefer Moscow, but also looking forward to return to Istanbul. Both cities different. Traffic at Moscow can be extremely heavy. On a bad day one could consume at minimum an hour to travel from SVO to Moscow City Centr. So given how long your layover is, and given the time to return to airport to check back in and so on, unless it is a long layover, doesn't seem practical to me.
Frankly, I can not recall how long it takes to get from IST airport to Istanbul City Centr.
I would not agree that Istanbul is nicer, than Moscow, but would concur IST airport is much nicer than Moscow. As mentioned, I prefer Moscow, but in this situation it may not be the most practical choice. In either case, whichever choice you make, you can not go wrong as both cities are great!

Garfield

I have been to both cities, as for a quick glimpse it would be hard to choose.

If you are in Moscow you will need a transit visa to leave the airport. I don't know what the situation is in Istanbul. If a visa is required for Turkey it is easy to get at the airport, for Russia you must get it before you arrive.

Getting into the city in Istanbul would be less expensive by taxi than in Istanbul than Moscow. Public transportation could be used in Moscow.

For transit information in Moscow SVO airport see Aeroflot website at:

http://www.aeroflot.ru/eng/

For Russia visa invitation see Way to Russia site at:

http://www.waytorussia.net/

Because of the visa requirement and process of obtaining I would tend to favour a short visit to Istanbul.

massagediva

Thank you all for your very helpful responses. I hadn't even thought about the issue of visas!