san Petersburg tips

Travel tips

PREPARATION

VISA: do you wanna travel as free as a bird? http://www.waytorussia.net

MONEY:

Remember that San Petersurg in winter time is defenitely not a low budget target. Being two people take into account at least 40euro/day per each
It quite easy to find place where you can change money. US dollars are always accepted and most of the time euro as well.

OUTFIT:

looking the average winter temperature in Russia is quite scaring and thinking to backpack there even more. Trekking shoes with thick socks, leotard under the pants, very expensive thermal shirts under a sweater in turn under a warm swedish jacket, a cap (often double), a scarf (sometimes I wore the mask to shelter the chin and the mouth) and two pairs of gloves was my outfit. I've never frozen up apart from the hands every time I needed to take off the gloves, namely to take a picture. But frankly I've been lucky since in such period the temperature was over the average (between -5 C and -12 C, left alone -18 C in Moscow the last day) so I've never faced the real coldness (luckily!). Hence, as I presumed, the hands and the feet are the most critical parts.

SAFETY:

Generally speaking San Petersburg is quite safe. I hung out in the late evening and in the very outskirt by no means being hassled
Watch out the drunks, if they aim you they can be a danger, in such cases smile and greet them getting further
For pedestrian to cross the street is a danger. Take for granted drivers won't stop, and in the winter time when streets are covered by snow and ice the risk is even higher.

GENERAL TIPS:

Forget easy and cheap international phone calls, and don't use the mobile for them, I paid something like 3$ per minute!!!!!
Remember: Russians usually seem rougher than they are, don't pissed off for them. Smile and greet anyway.
Organise your belonging so that it'll be easy to remove your passport because you'll be asked to show it very often.
Don't take the taxi fro the airport to the centre since they charge 35$ for a ride that can easily done by a superfreqent bus, unless you don't have to do it in the very early morning when there's no other choise.