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- Foreigners should be in possession of valid passport and Russian visa. \ if there are no special non visa Agreement between your county and Russian Federation.
- Entrering the country please follow the customs regulations and declare all the staff necessary as per the local customs rules.
- There are 11 time zones in Russia, the difference between Moscow \ St.Petersburg and Greenwich Mean time is +3 hours. Air tickets indicate the time of departure in local time.
- National Holidays:
- 4th November - National Unanimity Day
- 31 December – New Year Day
- 07 January –Orthodox Christianity
- 23 February – Russian Army Day
- March or April \non fixed \ Easter Day
- 08 March –International Women’s’ Day
- 01 May - Labour Day
- 12 June – Independence Day
- Working hours Monday-Friday:
- Offices 9.00 am-06.00pm
- Service bureaus 09.00-10.00pm
- Russian monetary unit is Rouble.
- Current rate of exchange 42 Rbls per 1 euro \ 30 Rbls per 1 USD.
- Notes of 10,50,100, 500 and 1 000 are used as well as 1Rbl, 5 Rbls, 10Rbls coins, 50 Kopeks\half of Rbl\ 10 kopeks - \1/10 part of Rbl.
- Exchange rates between the roubles and hard currency is set by authorized Russian Banks.
- Daily exchange rate you can find in all the Exchange Bureaus in the hotels, airports, exchange offices.
- Many hotels, supermarkets, big shops accept credit cards Visa, Master card etc. \ Please note American Express credit cards are not widely accepted \
- Tipping is not a must and guests should not feel obliged but many visitors use the tipping as a way to show appreciation for a job well done and this is certainly acceptable.
- The best stores are centrally located in Moscow \Red Square, GUM Department store, Manege Square, Arbat Street etc/ and St.Petersburg \Nevski Prospect, St.Isaac Square,Gostini Dvor.
- Main stores are open from 10.00am till 9.00pm.Food stores 8.00am-9.00pm
- Many food stores are open now 24 hours a day
- Electricity – home voltage is 220 V. European type plugs are required.
- Insurance-it is recommended to purchase travel insurance before departing for Russia
- The tariffs for postal services are in local currency and postal offices are open in the hotels
- Automatic telephone service is from the lobby of the hotels and to switch the telephone in your room you need to leave a deposit in the reception of hotel.
- Medical treatment-First aid is provided free of charge.
- In Moscow and St.Petersburg there are American medical Centers and European Medical Centers. Contacts are available in reception of hotels
- Transport-Metro is the most comfortable and fastest public transportation within a city. The fare of the journey irrespective of the distance is 28 Roubles \ about 70 cents \ per person today.
- Stations are open from 06.00amd and work till 01.00am
- Tickets are also required for bus, trolleybus and tram. Cost of journey is 28 Rbls.
- Taxies can booked with the hotel or you can try to hitch a lift.
- Do not get in a car with a stranger if you use a private car.
- Fix the price before you getting in.
- Climate – intercontinental, four seasons:
- Winter –December –February. Average temperature -10C or -15C snowy
- Spring -March-May. Average temperature +5C +18C, rains and winds
- Summer –June –August. Average temperature +18C + 24C, hot and dry, may be rains and thunder thunder storms
- Autumn-September-November. Average temperature +15C +3C. Rains and early snow in November
- Emergency phone numbers:
- Fire 01
- Police 02
- Ambulance 03
- Immediate Assistance SOS 112
- Medical assistance
- St.Petersburg – Medem Clinic – tel +7 812 336 33 33, 6 Marata Street, American Medical Clinic–tel + 7 812 740 20 90 address 78, Moika Embankment
- Moscow – European Medical Center - +7 495 933 66 55, address 5/1 Spiridnievski per
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