Moscow or St. Petersburg?

MRG77

I'm looking for a bit of help. I'm thinking of going to either Moscow or St. Petersburg at Easter and I'm wondering what city people would recommend. I'd like to see Red Square and the Kremlin in Moscow but it's a huge city and I think it might be too much of a challenge for me. St Petersburg is a beautiful city with a lot of history to it and is a lot smaller than Moscow so it might be a bit easier. What would people recommend?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

Truman Burbank

Quick reply. St. Petersburg 9.75/10 (- 0.25 for language difficulties outside of hotel reception desk!). Will get back to you tomorrow. Was inexpensive flying to Helsinki and getting the train from there (no idea if that's best option 2 years on). Great scenery en route.

Zebra3

Was in Moscow a few years ago. Not much to it.

Know people who have been to Petersburg and they said it was beautiful.

Think some airline started doing cheap flights from England to Petersburg recently as well.

Bodhran

If it's either one city or the other then go for St Petersburg. It's really beautiful, The Venice of the North. A few years ago I did a trip with The Travel Department which included both Moscow and St Petersburg. While Moscow was very interesting, I preferred St. Petersburg. Traffic in Moscow is manic and it takes ages to get around. The fact that they use the Cyrillic alphabet in Russia also make things that bit more difficult than other European cities, particularly if you are going under your own steam and not part of an organised group.

Gatica

I'd vote for St Petersburg over Moscow. Moscow has the red square to offer, that is true, but St Petersburg is far far nicer.
While it is smaller, it is by no means small and traffic is quite heavy there too. If you use the metro, you should be fine, but you do need to be able to read cyrillic. The transport system is quite vast but at least you don't need to drive there. I'd try to stay somewhere within walking distance to a metro station, as outside of it, it could be complicated with buses, minivan-buses, trams and trains. If you did have time to see both, the night train between them is the cheapest way.

Meathlass

Going to disagree with everyone here!

Spent 10 days in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Went in September and Moscow was beautiful with lots of flowers. I spent days around the Kremlin and Red Square, such an amazing sight, would never get tired of it. There was also a couple of space museums which were great.

St. Petersburg does have more to offer and is a little cheaper so maybe if you're going for more than 4 days the latter would be best.

No matter which you choose bring plenty of money!!

MRG77

Thanks for the replies guys. You were very helpful. Looks like St. Petersburg it is!!

Meathlass- How easy was it to get your visa? I've done my research and know how to go about it, just wondering how long did it take and was there much hassle involved or was it straight forward?

spurious

It's straightforward enough once you have your 'letter' from the hotel.
Be advised the Russian Embassy does not take cards or cash - postal order only.

Meathlass

MRG77 wrote: »

Thanks for the replies guys. You were very helpful. Looks like St. Petersburg it is!!

Meathlass- How easy was it to get your visa? I've done my research and know how to go about it, just wondering how long did it take and was there much hassle involved or was it straight forward?

I should have specified that I went in 2006 so no point giving advice on visas as I'm sure it's changed. But once I had letter from hotel etc I went to the embassy and was waiting for it to open. Came back at lunch time and it was ready for me, so no major hassle.

MRG77

Meathlass wrote: »

I should have specified that I went in 2006 so no point giving advice on visas as I'm sure it's changed. But once I had letter from hotel etc I went to the embassy and was waiting for it to open. Came back at lunch time and it was ready for me, so no major hassle.

Ah! ok! I thought you went in September just gone by. Thanks for the reply.

Truman Burbank

- Easily enough to see/do 5 days
- UNESCO World Heritage site
- Simple visa application (accommodation letter routine)
- Relatively inexpensive, even with +++ museum entry charges for non-Russian tourists
- Took Metro after Helsinki train, then taxi to hotel
Besieged by taxi drivers on exit from Metro. Walked off for a few mins til they all calmed down, set price prior to trip
- No problems navigating Metro system. Worth a trip down the death-defying escalators
- Travelled with kids
- If getting bus to/from Tallin it MUST be booked day before. Otherwise, expect to fill a brown envelope to secure your seat
- Stayed in nice suburban hotel, frequented by business travellers. Huge mistake. Gated in a slum side street beside a river
- As previous, outside of hotel on our own challenging using buses, should have stayed on/off main street
- Canal boat trip a must. Just hop on. Neva River one great too
- Took a brilliant day tour with a local in a mini-van (so with other tourists too) to see main churches/cathedrals, Russian/American who has/had office Nevsky Prospekt (main street), paid in $, recommended by The Marriott so cut our losses rather than spend half the day trying to get around ourselves and seeing 1/4 of them
- Plenty of pickpockets, were targeted particularly on packed buses
- Artillery museum worth a trip
- Fabulous big indoor food/beer fare on/just off Nevsky Prospect, heading in Hermitage direction, on left 2/3s up. You'll find it!
- The sight of Palace Square, Alexander Column and The Hermitage, as you round that corner, is nothing short of breathtaking
- I write on FlyerTalk and find it the best for travel tips, for example
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/hotel-deals/1421936-st-petersburg-russia-golden-lion-mini-hotel-3-a.html

zeirtz

You could go to St. Petersburg on the St. Peter Line and dispense with getting a visa altogether. You are able to stay up to 72 hours (3 days/2 nights) in the city and return to Helsinki.

http://anastasia.stpeterline.com/en/Goodtoknow/Visafreerule.aspx