We will be traveling to St. Petersburg, Moscow, and the surrounding countryside in June. Is the tap water safe to drink? Also, we are interested in attending some concerts such as the ballet at Mikhailovsky Theatre or other concerts that are going on during the White Nights Festival in St. Petersburg. Is it necessary to buy tickets online ahead of time or should we wait until we get there?
Thanks.

Tap water is perfectly safe.

Advance concert tickets are highly preferable, if not mandatory depending on the show and dates.

Also, look into Russian choral concerts (or even pop into a church for an Orthodox Mass). Amazing singing that you won't hear anywhere else.

We stuck to bottled water in Russia. If you do some searches online, you'll see a lot of advice to either boil your tap water or stick to bottled water.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/specia...rt-supply.html

http://www.saint-petersburg.com/esse...and-insurance/

Thanks, Bardo and Dreaming. I think to be on the safe side, we'll purchase our tickets ahead of time and buy bottled water.

We drank bottled water throughout Russia. Have not done this anyplace else in europe - but have had a couple of friends return ill and didn't want to take any chances.

Definitely bottled water, always in Russia.

Definitely bottled water in St. Petersburg, my (somewhat dated) guidebook says it contains giardia. Perhaps because it's built in a swamp? It says the water is safe in some cities, but you're better off just drinking bottled water.

It is good practice to drink bottled water in most places. Simply put the water may be fine but it has different bacteria etc. than that of your home and the "different" while not dangerous can give you stomach problems. Why take the chance especially in Russia??

Thanks, everyone, for your sage advice. We'll use only bottled water in Russia.

St. Petersburg is magnificent during the White Nights -- enjoy!