Travel Notes

Travelers to Lake Baikal seeking more comfortable accommodation while in Irkutsk will soon have their prayers answered. The Siberian city will open a Courtyard by Marriott hotel in September, reportedly that city’s first four-star property, and Marriott’s thirteenth hotel in Russia.

The hotel is located in the city center, near Kirov Square and the Irkutsk Drama Theater. Rates start at R3,750 per night for a standard room, according to Marriott’s website. The chain is also reportedly to open its fourteenth Russian hotel before the end of 2011, near Moscow’s Paveletskaya Square.

Visa travel between Russia and the United States is about to become easier for several types of travelers, including tourists. A visa agreement projected to arrive before year’s end would introduce three-year, multiple entry visas for tourists and businessmen and eliminate invitations as a step in the visa process.