Russia Travel Advice

General travel information for Russia

Continent: Europe, Asia

Geographic location: From Eastern Europe, North Asia to the Pacific coast

Highest elevation: Elbrus in the Caucasus (5642 m above sea level)

Longest river: Lena (4294 km)

Form of government: Federal Republic System of

Government: Semi-presidential system

Languages: Russian

Neighboring countries: Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Belarus, Ukraine, China, Mongolia, North Korea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan

Capital: Moscow

Area: Approx. 17,075,000 km²

Population: Approx. 146,877,088 people including Crimea (2018)

Population density: About 8 residents per km²

Religions: About 41% Orthodox, 13% Atheists, 6.5% Muslims

Currency: Ruble (RUB); 1 euro is approximately 78.8 rubles. Travel

Climate: very diverse climate, arctic, temperate and subtropical climate zone

Time zone: UTC +3 to UTC +12

Area code: +7

Country code: RU, RUS, 643

Electricity: In Russia Type C and F sockets are used. The mains voltage is 230 V with a 50 Hz change interval.

Check a2zdirectory for old history of Russia and agooddir for modern history of Russia.

Travel climate in Russia

Russia is one of the few countries with an incredibly diverse climate. The country extends over three climatic zones, the arctic, temperate and the subtropical climatic zone. Summer in Russia is between May and the end of September and temperatures can exceed 30 ° C. In winter, on the other hand, temperatures can be measured down to -20 ° C. Very few countries can show such extreme temperature differences.

Moscow	Min Temperature ° C	Max Temperature ° C	Hours of sunshine / day	Rainy days
Jan	-12.7	-6.1	1	11
Feb	-11.6	-3.9	2.5	8
March	-5.9	2.4	4.1	8
Apr	-1.8	10.6	5.7	9
May	7.6	18.6	8.5	8
June	11.4	22.4	9.2	11
July	13.1	23.8	8.8	12
Aug	11.7	22	7.6	10
Sept	7	15.8	4.8	11
Oct	2.1	8.4	2.5	10
Nov	-3.4	1.3	0.6	12
Dec	-9.8	-3.4	0.6	12

St. Petersburg	Min Temperature ° C	Max Temperature ° C	Hours of sunshine / day	Rainy days
Jan.	-10.7	-5.1	0.7	10
Feb	-9.6	-4.1	1.9	9
March	-5.2	1.1	4	9
Apr	0.6	8.1	6	7
May	6.5	15.6	8.4	7
June	11.4	20.1	9.2	9
July	13.9	21.3	6.9	11
Aug	12.8	20.1	6.9	11
Sep	8.1	14.5	4.3	12
Oct	3.4	8.2	2.3	12
Nov	-1.9	2	0.9	12
Dec	-6.4	-2.3	0.4	13

Novosibirsk	Min Temperature ° C	Max Temperature ° C	Hours of sunshine / day	Rainy days
Jan.	-19.3	-12.9	2.2	8
Feb	-19.3	-11.9	3.8	6
March	-11.4	-3.7	5.4	6
Apr	-2.3	5.9	7.1	7
May	5.3	15.3	8.5	9
June	12	21.6	10.1	9
July	14.5	23.7	9.8	10
Aug	11.4	20.6	7.9	10
Sep	6.1	14.7	5.7	8
Oct	-1.2	4.9	3.2	11
Nov	-10.7	-4.8	1.9	11
Dec	-16.7	-10.5	1.5	9

National parks and nature conservation in Russia

Russia has an incredible number of national parks. 40 national parks cover a total area of almost 90,000 km². Only a small number of the areas are listed here.

Sikhote-Alin

nature reserve This nature reserve is in the Far East and consists of the oldest mixed forests in the world in which several mountains around 200 meters high characterize the landscape. Many endangered animal species live in these areas, such as the Himalayan bears, Siberian tigers, Amur tigers, brown bears, black bears, wolves and lynxes. There is hardly any other place in the world where you can find so many endangered and rare animal and plant species in just one place.

Altai – nature reserve

The Altai nature reserve covers a total area of 8812 km² and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The different habitats of the reserve provide a home for various larger mammals. In addition, around 300 bird species feel at home, 180 of which breed in the area. A large part of these animals live around Lake Teletsk, the pearl of Western Siberia. A little south of the lake, the Chulyshman and Karakem rivers form the western border of the park in places.

Volga Delta near Astrakhan

The Volga Delta is one of the largest river deltas in the world and offers a unique wealth of flora and fauna. The best way to explore the area is by boat and see different sea eagles, ospreys, rare species of falcons and swans, cranes, pelicans or different types of herons up close. At flowering time, many types of water lilies and lotus can be admired which float on the water in various colors.

The white nights of St. Petersburg The white nights of St. Petersburg are

particularly popular with tourists. The city is right on the tropic of the sun. So it is about 22 hours a day in the city at midsummer time. The two hours in which the sun goes down it is not really dark

Culture and sights in Russia

St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow

One of the oldest buildings in Russia is in Moscow and should definitely be visited. Known as a landmark of Russia, St. Basil’s Cathedral is located on Red Square in the capital. It consists of nine chapels and stands out with its beautiful colors and shapes. The golden dome that crowns the cathedral is particularly impressive.

Baikal lake

The so-called Well of the Earth or also called the Pearl of Siberia is a lake over 600km long. Its width, however, is only between 27km and 80km. But far more impressive is the depth of the lake at 1,637 meters, which makes it the deepest lake in the world. It also offers a unique flora and fauna and thus a large habitat for many rare animal species. Some of the breathtakingly beautiful islands can be reached by ferry in summer and across the ice in winter.

Catherine Palace in Pushkin

The Catherine Palace in Pushkin is not far from the metropolis of St. Petersburg. This was almost completely destroyed in World War II and then rebuilt. With its various buildings, the building is one of the most beautiful baroque buildings in Europe. The luxury inside the building is overwhelming and amazes visitors. In the artificially created park around the palace, numerous ponds and green spaces invite you to linger.

Holidays in Russia

Holiday	Date
New Year	Dec 31
Russian Christmas	Jan. 7
Defender of the Fatherland Day	February 23
International Women’s Day	8th of March
Spring and Labor Day	1st of May
Day of victory over fascism	May 9
Day of Russia	12th of June
People’s Unity Day	November 4

Public holiday, but not a national holiday	Date
Valentine’s day	Feb 14
Maslenitsa	Late February / early March
The great fast	48 days before Easter
Easter	March April May
Day of the baptism of Russia	July 28
National Flag Day	August 22
Constitution Day	Dec 12

Medical advice for Russia

For legal reasons, we as a tour operator are not allowed to communicate any binding medical information for Russia and therefore refer to the information provided by the Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Robert Koch Institute and the German Society for Tropical Medicine and International Health

Travel advice for Russia

You can obtain current travel and safety information, information on entering and leaving the country, as well as special criminal information and recommendations for your stay in Russia from the Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany.