Planning a Russia tour raises more practical questions than most European trips, and that is exactly why it rewards a little homework. The distances are bigger, the alphabet is different, and the seasons change the country completely. Here is what actually matters before you go, collected from travelers who have done the Moscow and St Petersburg route and would do it again tomorrow.
When to go: the calendar decides half your trip
The comfortable window runs from May to September. May brings mild days and thinner crowds. June and early July are the famous white nights in St Petersburg, when the sky never fully darkens and the city stays out late; it is the most atmospheric period and also the busiest. August is warm and reliable, September quieter and golden.
Winter has its own dramatic beauty, Red Square under snow is a postcard, but sightseeing days shrink to a few hours of light and temperatures demand serious clothing. For a first visit, summer wins.
Getting between the two capitals
The Sapsan high-speed train covers Moscow to St Petersburg in around four hours, city center to city center, and it is the civilized way to travel: no airport transfers, big windows, birch forest rolling past. On organized tours the tickets are booked for you, which matters because popular departures sell out. Overnight sleeper trains still run too, and some travelers pick them purely for the experience of falling asleep in one capital and waking up in the other.
Getting around inside the cities
Both metros are fast, cheap and astonishingly frequent, with trains arriving every minute or two at rush hour. A few things make life easier:
- Learn to recognize your station name in Cyrillic; signage in Latin script exists in the center but thins out fast
- Buy a rechargeable transport card instead of single tickets, it works on metro, buses and trams
- Stand on the right on escalators, some of which are among the longest in the world
- Screenshot your hotel address in Russian to show a taxi driver
- Use official taxi apps rather than flagging cars on the street
Money, language and everyday logistics
Russia runs on the ruble and, in practice, on cards and phones, though foreign cards can be unreliable, so carrying some cash exchanged locally is the safe play. Prices for museums and food are gentle compared to Western Europe, and a filling lunch in a self-service canteen, the beloved stolovaya, costs less than a sandwich in most EU airports.
English is spoken in hotels and by younger people in the center, less so elsewhere. Nobody expects you to speak Russian, but spasibo (thank you) and zdravstvuyte (hello) open doors and faces. A translation app with offline Russian downloaded is worth its megabytes.
Packing and small comforts
Summer in Russia is warm but moody. Pack layers and a compact rain jacket, because a St Petersburg day can move from sun to drizzle and back before lunch. Comfortable shoes matter more here than almost anywhere in Europe; you will cover kilometers of granite embankments, cobblestones and museum parquet without noticing. Power sockets are the same European type C and F used in Serbia, so adapters stay at home.
Two smaller notes. In Orthodox churches that are active places of worship, women are expected to cover their heads and men to remove hats, so a light scarf in the daypack saves improvisation. Tipping is simple: around ten percent in restaurants, in cash where possible, and nothing expected in canteens or taxis.
Mobile internet is cheap and fast; a local SIM or eSIM bought on arrival costs little and keeps maps, taxi apps and the translator running, which in a Cyrillic city is half your independence.
What to avoid
Skip the souvenir stalls directly on Red Square and around the Hermitage, the same matryoshkas cost a fraction two streets away. Do not photograph anything that looks military or governmental beyond the obvious tourist landmarks. Book Hermitage and Kremlin entries in advance or go with a guided group, because walk-up queues in July can eat half a day. And do not overload the itinerary: both cities are enormous, and three sights properly seen beat seven glimpsed from a bus window.
Why a package makes sense here
This is one destination where an escorted arrangement earns its price. Visa formalities, train tickets, museum slots and transfers are exactly the friction points of independent travel in Russia, and a good operator removes all of them. WAYLY runs tours covering both capitals from 2580 €, with guides who handle the queues while you handle the sightseeing; current arrangements are listed here.
If you like trips with this level of contrast, consider pairing Russia with the Baltic states, a natural continuation of the northern route, or decompress afterwards somewhere unashamedly easy like Corfu. Either way, go prepared and Russia repays every bit of planning with interest.
