Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
All visitors to Russia need a visa. Package tours usually take care of this, though you
will need to give the travel agency your passport for submission to the Russian
embassy. For independent travelers, visa applicants must provide proof of hotel reser-
vations in an official letter from a hotel or travel agency. Travelers staying in private
homes need an invitation from a Russian organization. Two places that offer this serv-
ice for a fee are
www.waytorussia.net
; and Sindbad's Hostel,
www.sindbad.ru
(
&
812/331-2020
). Start the process several weeks before you leave. If you apply by
mail, you will have to send your passport to the embassy.
While in Russia you need to
register your visa
. Most hotels will do this for you. If
they don't offer this service, check with the visa agencies above.
RUSSIAN EMBASSY LOCATIONS OVERSEAS
United States:
Embassy: 2641 Tunlaw Rd. NW, Washington, DC (
&
202/939-8907,
202/939-8913, or 202/939-8918; www.russianembassy.org).
Consulates: 9 E. 91 St., New York, NY (
&
212/348-0926); 2790 Green St., San
Francisco, CA (
&
415/928-6878); 2322 Westin Building, 2001 6th Ave., Seattle, WA
(
&
206/728-1910).
Britain:
5 Kensington Palace Gardens, London W8 4QS (
&
0870/005-6972).
Canada:
52 Range Rd., Ottawa, Ontario K1N 8G5 (
&
613/594-8488).
Australia:
78 Canberra Ave., Griffith, Canberra, ACT 2603 (
&
02/6295-9474).
Ireland:
186 Orwell Rd., Rathgar, Dublin (
&
01/492-3492).
CUSTOMS REGULATIONS
WHAT YOU CAN BRING INTO RUSSIA
Visitors can bring in most things other than weapons, drugs, and livestock. If you have
cash in any currency worth more than $1,500; anything antique; or valuable jewelry,
laptop computers, cameras, or other electronics, then fill out a Customs declaration
form upon entry and go through the
Red Channel
at airport Customs. The declara-
tion form will be stamped and returned to you, and you must present it again upon
departure. You can take up to $10,000 if you declare it.
WHAT YOU CAN TAKE HOME FROM RUSSIA
Most souvenirs are safe to take home, except antiques, artwork, and caviar. Travelers
are currently allowed to take 250 grams (10 oz.) out of the country. The rules on art-
work and antiques change frequently; they most often affect religious icons, old
samovars, and artwork worth over $1,000. In some cases, the item cannot be
exported; in others, export is permitted but only with Culture Ministry certification.
Most vendors can complete the export certification for you. Tourists wishing to export
anything valuable or anything made before 1960 (including books or Soviet memora-
bilia) should have the store certify it or clear it themselves with the
Russian Ministry
of Culture's Assessment Committee
(in Moscow,
&
095/921-3258;
in St. Peters-
burg,
&
812/310-1454
). Applications are cheap (about $10), but export duties can
run up to 100% and the process is tedious.
MONEY
Russia's
ruble
is still not technically a “hard” currency, which means very few banks
abroad will exchange them. The U.S. dollar was the de facto second currency in the
