Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
51
from Domodedovo to the center take
about an hour (it could be more than 2 hr.
in heavy traffic) and cost around 2,300
rubles. The train ride to Paveletsky is 40
minutes and costs 200 rubles (see schedule
at www.aeroexpress.ru). Two metro lines
meet at Paveletsky station, where taxis are
also available. Private buses run from
Domodedovo to the nearest metro station,
Domodedovskaya, every 15 minutes for
just 80 rubles. Look for the buses labeled
Scania.
It takes about 30 minutes depend-
ing on traffic.
Flights from St. Petersburg usually
arrive at
Sheremetevo-1
(
&
495/232-
6565
), adjacent to Sheremetevo-2 but
smaller. Taxis from there cost slightly less
than from the international terminal.
Other domestic Russian flights come into
Vnukovo
(
&
495/436-2813
), 30km (19
miles) southwest of the city. Taxis to the
center of the city cost about 1,500 rubles.
Vnukovo also runs a train directly to
Kievsky Station close to the city center
that costs 100 rubles. The train runs every
hour between 7am and 9pm; the trip takes
about 40 minutes.
To find out which airlines travel to
Moscow, please see “Toll-Free Numbers &
Websites,” p. 310.
Tverskaya Street. A second-class ticket in a
sleeping car from Warsaw takes 24 hours
and costs about $70; from farther west the
time and cost rise accordingly. Most Euro-
pean trains travel through Ukraine or
Belarus, both of which require a transit
visa. Contact the Ukrainian or Belarusian
embassy in your country for details, or
pick a route through the Baltic states or
Scandinavia. The train from Beijing takes
5 days and costs about $250.
Note:
Rail
passes that serve the rest of Europe do not
serve Russia.
By Car
For those rare arrivals by car, take the
vehicle straight to your hotel and inquire
about secure parking. Unfortunately, no
current maps in English indicate one-way
streets or other such crucial details for
drivers. The Travellers Yellow Pages map in
English, otherwise quite good, is available
at www.infoservices.com and at major
Moscow hotels. Do not underestimate
Moscow traffic, which has mushroomed
in the past decade and can leave visitors
trapped in a labyrinth of jammed one-way
streets, especially from 8 to 10am and 5 to
8pm. Watch out, too, for the traffic police,
who, always eager for pocket money, can
stop you just to make sure your documen-
tation is in order. Garages are rare despite
rising demand. Muscovites park on side-
walks and in doorways if they can't find
free spaces, but because theft is common
this is not advised. There are also an
increasing number of guarded parking
areas, usually just a strip of parking places
commandeered by a private company with
a fare collector hanging out on the corner.
Rates are usually fixed regardless of how
long you stay parked. Renting a car with a
driver is a more reliable and often cheaper
option than driving yourself.
3
By Train
The St. Petersburg-Moscow train route is
the country's best-maintained and most
romantic. An overnight ride on a sleeper
brings you into Leningradsky Station and
costs 1,200 to 3,500 rubles, depending on
the train's class and hour. The pricier rides
come complete with slippers, in-cabin
television, and a late-night meal. Two fast
day trains, the Express and the Aurora,
make the trip in about 5 hours, with a seat
running 2,300 to 4,500 rubles. Lenin-
gradsky, like all of Moscow's train stations,
is conveniently located on the Circle Line
of the metro. Western European trains
generally arrive in Belorussky Station,
barely north of the city center and within
walking distance of the hotels on busy
By Bus
Several European tour companies offer bus
trips to Moscow, usually departing from
Germany. However, the journey is long
