Ultimate Guide to Russian Railways
Siberian train (Trans Siberia / Транссибирская магистраль, Транссиб)
Before you start using Russian trains, I hope you close your eyes and imagine:
You have been on the train for ten hours, but there are twelve hours to go. You have not boarded the train for a long time.
Your carriage is swaying and climbing in a forest full of unknown streams under the vast Russian sky. Just now you passed through a city with golden domes gleaming in the sun.
Time is elsewhere. You transcend the boundaries of time.
You are drinking the 13th cup of tea and are discussing fate and eternity with strangers-even if you do not speak Russian.
Traveling in Russia is like taking a gondola in Venice. Train travel is a must-except that you can travel by Russian train across seven time zones at half the price of a Venetian gondola. Trains are the cheapest, safest and most comfortable way to travel through Russia.
The Russian Railways is like a state within a federal state, running with the precision of an atomic clock. Until recently, it started to have its own time zone: the entire Russian railway runs in Moscow time!
Therefore, if you take the train from Blagoveshchensk, you must arrive at the station six hours earlier than the time stated on the ticket, because Blagoveshchensk is six hours earlier than Moscow.
Imagine pushing open the gate of Blagoveshchensk railway station, crossing the threshold with one foot, and opening in the emptiness of time itself.
Starting from August 1, 2018, all tickets and clocks on the Russian Railways network will depart from local time.
Railway Operators
Model
Different models can be seen through the train number.
- No. 1-150 is a regular, uninterrupted fast service throughout the year, many of which are fixed
- 151-298 is a seasonal express
- No. 301-450 and 601-698 are regular and slow
- 401-598 are seasonal and slow
High-level train (Firmeny)
It is usually named after "peregrine falcon (САПСАН)", "red arrow (Красная стрела)", "Lev Tolstoy (Лев Толстой)" or "swallow (Ласточка)". They have the most modern carriages, usually painted in the train’s own special color scheme, are usually air-conditioned and provide good boarding services. Although the fare is slightly higher than other trains, these are undoubtedly the best trains. They usually use low-numbered train numbers such as "1", "8" or "10", and usually use restaurant carts to provide drinks, snacks and affordable full meals. They usually have Spalny Vagon 2-person soft sleepers, Kupé 4-bed sleepers, and sometimes but not always Platskartny open hard sleepers.
Premium short-distance train brand
These are trains with normal seats and the journey does not exceed six hours. Russian Railways named its newest train after the fast bird to show the speed of the train.
- Peregrine Falcon (САПСАН, Sapsan, Peregrine)-Russia's highest speed high-speed rail. It runs between St. Petersburg, Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod (Nizhny Novgorod) at a speed of 250 km/h. Similar to aircraft cabin settings, first class, business class and two economy classes.
- Lou Yan (Стриж, Strizh, Swift)-a brand new express train between Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod. It also operates between Moscow and Berlin, with first-class and second-class seats.
- Swallows (Ласточка, Lastochka, Swallow)-fast and short-distance trains for inter-regional and urban services, especially the new Moscow Ring Railway.
Express (Skory)
These usually have spalny vagon soft sleepers, kupé 4-seater soft sleepers and Platskartny open hard sleepers, and many have restaurant cars.
Ordinary car (Passazhirsky)
Ordinary passenger trains, which are usually relatively slow, usually use older carriages. They usually have a 3-digit train number, such as '904'. Platskartny is an open hard sleeper, but there is usually no spalny vagon 2-person soft sleeper. This is the cheapest option, but not recommended!
Class
Each carriage has two guards (provodniks) on duty. You show your ticket and passport and board from the door where Provodnik stands. You cannot get on the bus without showing your ticket. Russian trains generally have three classes.
Third Class Hard Sleeper (PLATSKART)
If you are willing to give up your privacy, you can purchase Russian Railways third class (platskart). There is no such word as privacy in Russian. This concept does not match the Russian worldview. There is no better description than in the platskartny carriage. Platskart is an open sleep car, a mixed-gender dormitory with wheels.
Platskart has nine virtual compartments. Each has six berths-two lower berths and two upper berths perpendicular to the movement on one side of the corridor, and one vertical berth on the other side. There are 54 beds in total.
You should not worry about robbery on the train. Because of the open space, it is actually very safe. People will look at your things for you!
The advantage of the third-class cabin is that you can make friends immediately, share food with strangers and hear their family stories within five minutes. Everyone can see what others are doing, and everyone is taking care of other people. During the journey, you are all together. It is great that you are a family.
If you want to experience the real Russia and want to save money, please choose third class.
Second Class Soft Sleeper (Kupé)
Each Kupe carriage has 9 real carriages. Each carriage has four berths, two lower floors and two upper floors. In a compartment with doors, you can close and lock it. The berth is longer than the third-class cabin.
Usually the second-class cabin is more civilized and peaceful, with more air to breathe and more space, which is much like a European 4-sleeper sofa.
But kupe is more like a lottery than platskart. You keep in touch with other people, so hope they are well. Once, an oil worker in Volgograd and I spent the night in Kupe, Russia from Vorkuta to Moscow. We were drinking vodka (made from mosquitoes). The next morning I heard from my ear. Judging from singing).
But this is the worst thing that has happened to me-it's usually a good night, and it makes me meet a friend whom I will never see. All my other second-class trips went well.
Kupe is a good compromise between money and comfort.
First Class Deluxe Soft Sleeper (Spalny Vagon, SV)
Spalny Vagon, usually abbreviated as SV (for example: Es-Vay), means soft sleeper. The two bunks in the compartment with doors can be locked. Add many cushions, carpets, tassels and curtains.
Each soft sleeper carriage has 9 real carriages and 18 beds. Usually there are two people booking, but when booking online, it is easy to choose an empty car to maximize the chance of being alone. Some trains even have luxury carriages with bathrooms.
SV is an excellent way to travel. I like to face endless scenery alone, drinking endless tea and endless thoughts.
I will always remember the reflection of the Vologda Cathedral seen from my SV window in the white night. It's just me and the scenery, it's amazing.
The disadvantage is that SV is expensive.
Seat
Strictly speaking, you will also find basic seats on certain long-distance trains and local or suburban trains called "Obshchi", but this is not suitable for long-distance travel, so it is not recommended. Now, there are many day high-speed trains between Moscow and St. Petersburg and other cities. They have ordinary and "business" class instead of the above-mentioned comfortable airline seats based on sleeper cabins.
What class should I choose?
Yiddish writer Sholem Alejchem wrote about his rail journey in 1905 as a Russian traveling salesman. He said that people should always go to third class, because in second and first class you will be bored to death.
This is my suggestion:
- If there is no choice, please mix third class and first class.
International Train Service
Russia has great international train routes, including the best trains in Western Europe.
Allegro train (Allegro)
High-speed tilting train between St. Petersburg and Helsinki. Leave St. Petersburg four times a day and take you to Helsinki within three and a half hours. There are first class and second class cabins. Be careful-this train is leaning at a corner. This makes some people feel motion sickness.
Lev Tolstoy (Лев Толстой, Lev Tolstoy)
Daily overnight Firmenny service between Moscow, St. Petersburg and Helsinki. This service has Kupe, SV and Luxe carriages, but no platskart. Leo Tolstoy even had a passenger car that the wealthy Muscovites used to carry their land cruisers to Finland.
Louyan Train (Стриж, Strizh, Swift)
There is a weekly train between Moscow-Warsaw-Berlin East Station. The Trenhotel train similar to the Spanish Railways is used. The train has Kupe, SV carriages, first-class seats and second-class seats, but it is not recommended for long-distance journeys.
Europe's Ghost Trains
European Railway Experts-Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries, the authors of "Europe by Rail", have turned the Russian Railways twice a week to and from the classic cities of Western Europe into the European Devil Train. The reason why it is called the Devil Train is that basically Western Europeans have never heard of these two trains.
Trans-Europe-Express
Leaving Paris Gâre de l’Est at 18:58 on Thursday afternoon, arriving in Berlin the next morning, and arriving in Moscow the third morning. In the opposite direction, he left Moscow at 20:00 on Tuesday evening and arrived in Paris on Thursday morning. It has spotless, luxurious, brand new models and Polish-style restaurant cars that can still cook real food. The cabins it offers include kupe, spalny vagon and ultra-luxury VIP.
Moscow-Nice-Express (Moscow-Nice-Express)
Moscow-Nice-Express ran before the Russian Revolution, transporting the Russian royal family to the French Riviera. After a 100-year hiatus, this route was recently reintroduced. It left Moscow on Thursday night, passed through Warsaw, Vienna, Innsbruck, Verona, Milan and Genoa, and then arrived in Nice on Saturday night. On Sunday morning, it left Nice and arrived in Moscow on Tuesday morning. The train configuration is the same as the Moscow-Paris train.
Eastern European Route
There are daily services from Moscow and St. Petersburg to all capitals in the east-Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius, as well as Minsk and Kiev. The ties between Belarus and Ukraine are particularly close, with services covering most major cities.
In summer, there are services to Budapest, Belgrade, Bar, Varna and Burgas.
The CAUCASUS TRAIN
Please avoid doing this unless you know what you are doing. Due to the 2008 war against South Ossetia, regular services to Georgia, Azerbaijan have been interrupted. The only part of Georgia you can reach is the Republic of Abkhazia separated via Sochi. Armenia was also cut off because of its continued hostility with Azerbaijan.
Central Asia Route
Easily reach the Central Asian countries Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan by train.
Far East Route
There are regular services on the Trans-Siberian Railway to China, Mongolia and even North Korea.
Trans-Siberian Railway (Транссибирская магистраль, Транссиб, Trans Siberia)
The Trans Siberia Railway (Trans Siberia / Транссибирская магистраль, Транссиб) is the longest railway in the world, connecting the Russian capital Moscow (usually Yaroslavsky station) with the port city of Vladivostok (Vladivostok) on the Sea of Japan. , A total length of 9288 kilometers (if the railway mileage from Moscow to St. Petersburg is also included, the total length of the main line is 9937.7 kilometers). A total of 8 time zones are traversed, and the whole journey takes 7 days.
Construction of the railway started in 1891 and completed in 1916; the electrification project began in 1929 and was completed in 2002. Before the railway between Xinjiang, China and Kazakhstan was opened to traffic in 1991, it was the only railway that crossed the Eurasian continent and the only transportation route through Siberia so far.
The Siberian Railway has two traditional branch lines: the Mongolia branch line departs from near Ulan-Ude and passes through Mongolia to Beijing; the Manzhou branch line departs from near Chita, passes through Manzhouli and Harbin, and then returns to Russia to Vladivosto Gram, you can transfer to Beijing-Harbin Railway to Beijing from Harbin. On the main line, there is a "Baikal-Amur branch line" that leads to Sakhalin via Lake Baikal, and there are also branch lines connecting North Korea with Pyongyang and many other countries in Central Asia.
Since China uses a standard gauge of 1435mm, while Russia and Mongolia use a wide gauge of 1520mm, the trains arriving at the Sino-Mongolian border (Erlian Station) and Sino-Russian border (Zabaikalsk-Zabaykalsk Station) must change the steering of different gauges. It takes about two hours.
Train facilities
- First-class compartment (high package): each compartment has eight compartments, each compartment has two persons; every two compartments share a shower room
- Second-class carriage (soft sleeper/hard sleeper)
- Second-class soft sleeper compartment: eight boxes per compartment, second-class hard sleeper compartment: nine compartments per compartment, each compartment is four people, two sets of bunk beds; no shower room
- Third-class carriages (hard sleepers), a total of 48 open sleepers, no boxes
- There are two car palms in each compartment for day and night shift service
- There are toilets at both ends of each car, but the car palms will be locked when the train stops
- There is a water heater in each compartment to provide unlimited drinking hot water at any time. It can also be used to scrub the body or clean the hair; you can borrow a hot pot and a magnetic cup from the palm of the car
- Luggage can be concealed under the bottom board
- Each carriage has 3 to 4 cylindrical two-pin power plugs on the aisle, voltage 220V.
Diet
- Generally, food trucks will be added. For transnational trains, they will be hung up when entering the country and unloaded before leaving the country. Each country is responsible for the domestic road section; generally it is priced in each country’s currency, but international currencies such as US dollars and euros are also accepted. You must pay attention to the exchange rate calculation. There are often service personnel filling the exchange rate
- The K3 train will stay for a while after changing the bogies at Erlian Station. You can buy food and beverages from the shops in the station after passport control
- There are often hawkers selling food at each station, but generally only accept the currency of the country
- For shifts in charge of China, meal vouchers that can be exchanged for bento will be presented. The number of tickets will be regarded as the number of meals in China (K3 times are two)
Safety
- Even if the train passes through Mongolia without getting off the train, you must obtain a transit visa in advance
- Before crossing the border, border guards will board the vehicle to check the passport. They should stay in the car and wait until the passport is retrieved before moving; after crossing the border, they will change to another border guard to board the car for inspection, that is, every time they cross the border, Undergo two inspections
- When the train is approaching the station, the palm of the car will be guarded at the door, but you must still pay attention to personal valuables. Often thieves sneak into the train and steal property
- Be sure to lock the box door before going to bed at night; the third-class sleeper has no private space, and you must be more careful to protect important property
- The weather in Siberia is cold, so keep warm
Train Types
Boarding
Seven things you must bring when traveling in Russia
- toilet paper. On firmenny trains, toilet paper should always be provided, but it may be used up. It is recommended to bring toilet paper
- Change in Russian currency to buy tea and food. 100 rubles and 50 rubles are good, about 10 rubles coins
- Russian phrase book. Use your newly learned Russian phrases to meet newly discovered Russian friends
- Learn and play durak poker
- Food-enough for you to share
- Family photos-good on the phone
- Fine chocolates from your country/region. Even two. A piece of chocolate leaves me without tickets. It can be very useful as a spontaneous gift. You can even bribe. Russia produces high-quality chocolate, but people like to try foreign brands.
Dress
Once people settled down, they changed clothes and put on comfortable home clothes and slippers, just like wearing them at home all day. Homewear is for streetwear, and slippers are for street shoes. Russians believe that home clothing is cleaner.
It is impolite to wear street clothes if you sit on a bed made by someone else. If you are wearing street clothes (to be honest, I always forget to bring indoor clothes), please move the mattress so that you can sit on the bunk under it.
On-board rules
Drinking is prohibited
Beer and wine are only sold in the restaurant’s car, and then you can only enjoy it there. In fact, the ban can only play a role. Some third-class cabins sell beer. At the station, you can get anything from babushkas.
If you are found to be drunk and misbehaving, you will be thrown off the train and fined.
The same is true for smoking. Smoking is not allowed anywhere on Russian trains.
Arrival
One hour before arrival, the palm of the car will turn around in the carriage to collect all the bedding and tea cups (sorry, you cannot keep them). There is usually some form of announcement, but it may not be in English and may not be loud. We strongly recommend that you set an alarm at least 30 minutes before arrival.
