Preparing for the Provinces

With this month’s installment of the Practical Traveler, we introduce a new format that will be used often in coming months. We have invited three acknowledged experts on travel to Russia to take part in a roundtable forum on an “issue of the month.” This month’s issue is “Travel to the Regions.”

The roundtable was conducted online, to bridge the seas that separate our experts. Robert Greenall lives in London, is former managing editor of Russian Life and has written two books on travel to Russia (Explorer’s Guide to Russia and Explorer’s Guide to Moscow). Athol Yates lives in Australia and is an expert on Russian railroads. He is author of Russia By Rail and The Siberian BAM Railway Guide. He is currently running a WWW Russian railway information service <http://www.russia-rail.com>. Neil McGowan lives in England and is proprietor of The Russia Experience Ltd. He has been organizing travel to Russia and Eastern Europe for 16 years and has over 70 Russian visas to his credit. His web site is at: <http://travel.world.co.uk/russiaexp>.

Russian Life: Greetings, experts. You know the guiding ground rules: keep it short, no watering down the truth, no shameless self-promotion, and no biting. OK, first question: You have a client or friend in-country who has decided she wants to travel to the provinces, be it to Irkutsk or Petrozavodsk. What are the three most important pieces of advice you would give this person before she sets off? Or, put another way, what three questions would you ask her to see if she is ready? Neil?

Neil: (1) Take enough cash with you. Banking facilities deteriorate rapidly beyond Moscow/Petersburg, and, although you can change US dollars (or maybe Yen or DM) cash for rubles, transactions involving travelers checks or credit cards have serious wild-goose-chase potential! (2) Wear solid footwear. Cratered, potholed sidewalks collect dustheaps in summer, water in spring and fall, and turn to lethal ice-rinks in winter. (3) Expect delays, and build-in time for them. Sounds obvious, but scheduling tight turnarounds is asking for trouble!

Athol: I concur on all three points. Here are my three to give you six: (1) Plan to arrive early in the morning. This will give you time to scout around the place, find a hotel and, if you see what you want or can’t get a bed, then you’ll have time to catch an evening train out of the city. (2) Find out as much as you can about the place before you arrive. This may mean you will have to search for a guidebook which covers your destination. When you are reading up on the place, don’t forget to find out what is in the region as there are often unique attractions, such as caves and bizarre museums, near most cities. (3) Take everything you need, as your time is too valuable to spend it on a fruitless search.

Robert: (1) I agree with Athol about the need for information. More than in Moscow and St. Petersburg, where it is now sufficiently simple to find your way around, she should arm herself with a guidebook (it is very important that this should be one which gives sufficient attention to the place she is in — none, including the Lonely Planet, are yet entirely comprehensive, but it should be possible to find something that covers that particular town or area). (2) I would also highlight the possible pitfalls of a woman travelling alone. She should be aware that, although it may be less dangerous than, say, Turkey, from the point of view of unwanted male attention, it is also less common — there are very few western tourists at all in the Russian provinces. If she is not an experienced traveler, she should think about going with a companion, in a group, or visiting only places where she has friends living locally. (3) Be aware that accommodation, food etc. may not be of such a good quality or as diverse and interesting as in those two cities.

Russian Life: Some great stuff. Neil and Athol, you both raised the issue of what one brings when traveling to the provinces. Neil, you said bring enough money, how much is enough? Also, any follow-on’s for Athol’s point about taking everything you need so as not to be caught in a fruitless search? What do you find to be absolutely essential to bring when you go to the provinces?

Neil: Essentially, you can opt to travel one of three ways in Russia. How much cash you need depends on which you choose. If you join a group tour,  you’ll find that most of your expenses (food, lodging and transport) are taken-care of. However, beware that, in order to advertise a nice-sounding (low) trip price, most tour companies will not include some of the more expensive side-trips or attractions,  and sell them to you locally for extra cost. You should budget $8-10 for major museums and attractions, although you still find some 50 cent bargains too.

The other two budgetary options are a stark choice: between the “expat” lifestyle, or traveling as the Russians do themselves. The variation levels are so massive it’s hard to be specific. But excluding accommodation costs, on $20 a day you’ll survive barely, on $35 per day you’d start to enjoy it, on $50 a day, you’d have fun. If you want the dubious benefits of “western-style” service, bring $100+/day, and be prepared for “western” to mean The Good, The Bad & The Ugly. On the other hand, befriending local Russians will get you onto a circuit where prices are a great deal less, although etiquette will normally prevent the Guest from the West putting their hand in their pocket for anything, to your massive embarassment.

Athol: I would say Neil’s numbers are right on. I budget between US$30 and $60 per day for being in a provincial town, with a town like Severobaikalsk being at the low end and Irkutsk being at the high end. If I am traveling by train and buying tickets at the station myself, I budget about $40 for an overnight. Usually I am pleased at coming in well under budget. Remember that a partridge in hand is worth 20,000 in the Siberian taiga.

Robert: I agree that how much money you need to bring really depends on where you’re going and in what circumstances. If it’s a weekend at the international class Beresta Palace Hotel in Novgorod, you’ll be looking at costs equivalent to a fairly expensive visit to Moscow, whereas if you’re staying with a family in Veliky Ustyug you’ll hardly need any money at all, just a lot of presents and a return invitation.

But there is related issue about how you get the money you are going to spend. The fact is that, unless you’re coming in from China, chances are your first stop will be Moscow or St. Petersburg. You should use that reality to your benefit. It is far better to change your hard currency or whatever else you have into rubles in Moscow and St. Petersburg. It is both more convenient and you’ll probably get a better rate. The provinces tend to be a bit behind with exchange rates, so, as long as the ruble remains in slow decline against the dollar, this is an advantage. And, of course, the prices are lower, so you’ll be getting extra value for money with that too. Just watch out for cities with unusual exchange rates and high prices, particularly in the Far East.

Russian Life: Some excellent advice, experts. Unfortunately, space requires we cut off here until next time. The lists each of you sent of things to bring when traveling to the provinces were superb. We’ll combine them and append the list alongside this article. Thanks for your input. We can’t wait to hear your thoughts for next month’s column on Unknown Moscow.

WHAT TO BRING WHEN  GOING TO THE PROVINCES

While you should probably bring uncommon medications, necessary clothes, presents and reading matter with you from home, you can pick up the basic toiletries and food products that you need in Moscow or St. Petersburg, if you have enough of a layover.

ABSOLUTE ESSENTIALS

• Any prescription medicines you require — full dosage covering entire trip duration.

• Moneybelt to hold your cash, passport, valuable documents.

• Mini first-aid kit, which should include several syringes, band-aids, antiseptic, headache tablets, antiseptic gauze, chapstick, insect repellent, antibiotic ointment, cortisone or antihistimine creme for mosquito bites, nausea, diarhea and food-poisoning tablets.

• A spare set of passport photos. Also take a photocopy of your visa and the first three pages of your passport and keep them separate from your passport and visa. What is more, always photocopy your valuable documents, such as passport, credit cards and travellers cheques, before you leave home, and give the photocopies to someone whom you can notify (by telegram, fax or phone) if you lose your valuables.

• Tampax or equivalent.

• Contraceptives, if you think you may need them.

• Film for your camera (imported film is very expensive when bought locally; local brands may not be processable when you get home).

• Batteries for your camera, video, walkman, etc.

• Voltage transformer 110v->220v (if you come from North America) and plug adaptors — Russia uses standard, European 2-pin plugs.

• Heat-proof mug and one-cup immersion boiler, to sterilize water, make tea, coffee, instant soup, etc. on trains.

• A heavy duty water bottle which will withstand boiling water from the train’s samovar (or your immersion heater); when cooled, this water becomes your drinking water for the next day.

• Swiss Army knife.

SECONDARY ESSENTIALS

• Guide books.

• Alarm clock.

• Instant coffee.

• Packs of tasty snacks to brighten those low moments, or mysterious restaurant closures.

• Some fresh fruit. Oranges can survive a suitcase-battering, to emerge like a Vitamin-C-Dream-Come-True in a Siberian one-horse town...

• A flat, “self-parking” bathplug. The bathplug is always missing!

• Your favourite toiletries (soap, shampoo etc).  Expect none locally.

• A big pack of tissues, to double as toilet-paper.

• Flashlight.

• For Ladies: a headscarf to cover your head when visiting churches.

• Pre-moistened wet wipes.

• A hipflask containing a favorite beverage for impromptu celebrations.

• A pack of good quality, unopened cookies or chocolates, which you can buy locally, as your contribution if you get invited to share a meal.

• Plastic bags for purchases, as they are not handed out in shops or markets.

• A compact pen and paper set.

• If you play a musical instrument that is portable, take it along — playing is a good way of making friends.

• A plastic-covered bicycle-lock chain to secure your suitcase on trains, in hotels, etc.

• Russian-English dictionary.

• Books and magazines in English (many available in Moscow or St. Petersburg, but not in the provinces).

• Portable cassette player and tapes (you can give tapes to people you meet afterwards).

• For people you meet: photos of where you come from, postcards, pennants, pins, etc.

• Business cards