Train FAQs


The Russian Railways is one of the largest in the world, and trains serve almost every town and city in Russia. In the most cases, it's safer to use Russian trains than internal flights..! It will certainly be cheaper and far more interesting!

Q: Which train companies operate the Russian railway network?
A: The Russian Railways is the company that owns the railway network throughout Russia. It has a few departments (or sections), such as Oktyabrskaya railway network (serves Moscow - St. Petersburg route), or East Siberian railway network (serves the area around Baikal Lake in Siberia), but generally it's one huge government monopoly. The Russian Railways is like a state within a state with its own schools, little towns, hi-tech communication network, and equipment. It is quite a successful company too, because it manages to run trains on time in such a huge and diverse country as Russia.

Q: Can I buy train tickets in Russia?
A: Yes, you can, but you always need to present your passport and all tickets have your name, seat number, and passport number.
You can buy your train tickets either at any train station or from any agent (please note, the most staff at the stations does not speak English) The agents always charge a fee (usually from $5 to 25%) on top of the Russian Railways price, because the Russian Railways don't pay any commission and require a lot of paperwork to be done on each purchase.
The tickets for all destinations are usually readily available; however, if you want a train for a specific date or a train that departs only a few times a week, it is better to try to buy your ticket at least 3-7 days before.

Q: Are there any restrictions?
A: You cannot book a train ticket in Russia - only purchase it. You cannot purchase it earlier than 45 days before the departure of your train. Your ticket will have a seat and car number, your name and your passport number There are no such things as "open tickets" in Russia and you can't do stopovers (unless you get a separate ticket for each part of the journey).

Q: What types of trains are there in Russia?
A. The three types of train...

There are three main categories of long-distance train in Russia:
  • Firmenny: These are high-quality trains, often with a name such as 'Krasnaya Strela' (Red Arrow) or 'Rossiya'. They have the most modern carriages, often painted in that train's own special color scheme, usually air-conditioned and with good on-board service. These are easily the best trains to go for, although the fare is a little higher than for other trains. They usually have low-numbered train numbers such as '1', '8' or '10', and they usually have a restaurant car serving drinks, snacks and affordable complete meals. They generally have “spalny vagon” 2-bed sleepers, “kupé” 4-bed sleepers and sometimes but not always “platskartny” open-plan dormitory sleepers. See below for a description of classes.
  • Skory: Express train. These usually have spalny vagon 2-berth sleepers, kupé 4-berth sleepers and platskartny sleepers, and many have a restaurant car. They normally have one or two-digit train numbers, for example '11' or '26'. Cheaper than travelling on a Firmenny train.
  • Passazhirsky: Ordinary passenger train, often relatively slow and usually using older carriages. They typically have 3-digit train numbers, for example '904'. They usually have kupé 4-berth sleepers and platskartny, but not usually spalny vagon 2-berth sleepers. The cheapest option, but not the best!

The three classes of accommodation...

Long-distance trains within Russia and the former Soviet republics have three main classes, all designed for both daytime and overnight travel given the distances covered by many trains:
Spalny Vagon / Luyx (1st class) 2-berth compartments, 9 compartments per coach, with both beds at the lower level either side of the compartment. Washrooms and toilets are at the end of the corridor. It's twice the price of travelling kupé, although you get twice the space per passenger, so it's recommended for those who want extra privacy and space and who can afford it. SV is also known as 'myagky' or 'lyux'. On the best 'firmenny' trains you can often buy tickets with or without 'service', meaning with or without bedding and meals included. In addition to the normal 2-berth sleepers, the best Moscow-St Petersburg overnight train (the 'Krasnaya Strela or 'Red Arrow') also has two deluxe sleeping-cars with 1- & 2-bed compartments with private bathroom and shower and TV / DVD entertainment system. These deluxe sleepers were introduced in 2004.
Kupé (2nd class) 4-berth compartments, 9 compartments per coach. Washrooms and toilets are at the end of the corridor. Kupé is recommended as the class chosen by most visitors to Russia. On the best 'firmenny' trains you can often buy kupé tickets with or without 'service', meaning with or without bedding and meals included.
Platskartny (3rd class) Open-plan dormitory cars. There are 54 bunks per coach, arranged in bays of 4 on one side of the aisle and bays of 2 along the coach wall on the other side of the aisle. Recommended for the most budget-conscious and adventurous visitors.
Other classes... Strictly-speaking, you'll also find basic seats on some long distance trains and on local or suburban trains, known as 'Obshchi', but this isn't intended for long-distance travel and is not recommended. There are now a number of daytime expresses between cities such as Moscow and St Petersburg, and these have comfortable airline-style seating in ordinary and 'business' classes rather than the sleeper-based classes described above.


Spalny Vagon / Luyx (1st class)


Kupé (2nd class)


Platskartny (3rd class)

Q: What the atmosphere on the train is like?
A: Whichever class of travel you choose, each coach is looked after by a pair of attendants called a 'provodnik' (male) or 'provodnitsa' (female). The provodnik will check your ticket at the door to the sleeper when you board. Shortly after departure, the provodnik will come round to take your ticket and the small bedding fee. You may be asked if you would like a glass of black Russian tea ('chai') - this costs about 25cents. Bedding (two sheets, pillowcase and towel) is then handed out in sealed packs - blankets and mattresses will already be stacked in your compartment. After a few journeys, you will become quite proficient at making up your bed..!
samovar A samovar with unlimited free hot water is available at the end of the corridor - pack some tea or coffee, sugar, soups or water-based drinking chocolate and bring your own mug. Most long distance trains have a restaurant car serving drinks, snacks, and inexpensive full meals.

Q: Will my luggage be safe?
A: Generally, it is safe; however, if you're going on a long journey or if your train is going to make a lot of stopovers, it's better to be careful about small valuables items and money.
It is possible to keep the luggage either in an overhead luggage storage area, or under the bench. It is more secure to keep it under your bench.

Q: Are there toilets, showers, bed sheets in the trains?
A: There are two bathrooms at each end of every carriage.
It's best to use bottled water.
The showers are provided on long-distance trains (more than 24 hours); only in kupe or 1st class carriages. If your train doesn't have a shower, you can ask a conductor to allow you to use a shower in another carriage for a small fee.
The bed sheets are provided in the train, and a set (which includes a towel) costs about 50R ($1.5-$2).

Q: Is it safe to travel in Russian trains?
A: There is no particular need to worry about security on Russian trains, as long as you use common sense, exactly as you would in a hotel, locking your door at night and not leaving valuables unattended in your compartment. In addition to the normal lock on the compartment door, 'Spalny Wagon' and 'kupé' compartments have a security latch which stops the door opening more than an inch or two, and which cannot be released from outside. There's also a safe place for your bags at night - if you have a bottom bunk, there is a metal box underneath the bunk which you can only get to by lifting up the bunk - in other words, for anyone to get to your bags, they will have to shift you off your bunk first..! Your provodniks will probably also lock the access doors at each end of the corridor at night to prevent unwanted guests. Men and women share the same compartments in Russia, but it's generally quite safe even for women travelling alone (many Russian women travel alone, after all!). If you're a woman and find yourself in sharing with three men that make you uncomfortable, just ask the provodniks (carriage attendants) if they can move you.

Q: Is it possible to do stopovers while traveling on a Russian train?
A: Yes, it is, however, you will need to buy a separate ticket for each "portion" of your journey. The train tickets in Russia are issued for a specific date, on a specific date, for a specific journey, and for a specific person. So, it is not possible to buy an open ticket. For example, from Moscow to Irkutsk with a stop-over in Novosibirsk, you will need to buy two tickets: Moscow - Novosibirsk and Novosibirsk - Irkutsk. If you're not sure about the 2nd part of your journey, you can wait till you get to your first destination and then try to buy your ticket there. Usually, if you want to take a ticket for the train that departs in 3 or more days, it is possible to get tickets (except for the Trans-Mongolian and Trans-Manchurian trains, which we advise to book ahead).

Railway station: Buying the train tickets yourself directly at the railway station is cheaper, but has a few disadvantages. First, there are often long lines. Second, the operators at ticket sales offices don't speak English. Third, there might not be tickets left if you buy them before your departure. The advantages are the price and the last-minute tickets that are sold 2 hours before departure: the price stays the same, but you might get a ticket that was previously unavailable.

Ticket agencies: The agencies can provide excellent service, but charge commission. The Russian railways doesn't pay any commission to the agents for tickets sold, so the price at an agency will always be higher. The agency's commission depends on the quality of service and may be from 10% to 50% of the ticket price.

Q: Where do the trains depart in Moscow?
Leningradski railway station (usually north direction): St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Pskov, Vyborg, Murmansk, Estonia (Tallinn), Finland (Helsinki). Suburban trains to/from Klin, Tver.
Kazanski railway station: Adler, Barnaul, Izhevsk, Kazan, Novorossisk, Orenburg, Penza, Rostov, Samara, Tashkent, Toliatti, Ufa, Tchelyabinsk, Krasnoyarsk, Ryazan, Tomsk (usually south-east direction).
Yaroslavski railway station: Arkhangelsk, Ekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk), Irkutsk, Kostroma, Kirov, Novosibirsk, Perm, Vladimir, Vladivostok, Vologda, Yaroslavl. Trans-siberian trains. Suburban trains to Abramtsevo, Sergiev Posad.
Belorusski railway station: Kaliningrad, Smolensk. Belarus (Minsk), Lithuania, Germany (Berlin), Poland.
Kurski railway station: Kursk, Krasnodar, Nizhni Novgorod, Oryol, Perm, Rostov-na-Donu. Local trains to / from Vladimir, Podolsk.
Rizhski railway station: Latvia (Riga)
Kievski railway station: Ukraine (Kiev)


Q: Where do the trains depart in St. Petersburg?
Moskovski railway station: Moscow, Novgorod, Murmansk
Vitebski railway station: Belarus (Minsk), Ukraine (Kiev), Latvia (Riga), Lithuania (Vilnius).
Finlandski railway station: Finland (Helsinki)
Varshavski railway station: Poland (Warsaw)
Baltiiski railway station: trains to the cities around St. Petersburg


Q: How to find your train.
A: Usually the railway stations have the names of the directions the trains go. For example, if you need a train to St.Petersburg you should go to Leningradski vokzal (Leningrad - old name of St.Petersburg), if you need a train to Riga you should go to Rizhski vokzal.
If you want to know where your train departs from exactly, see our city guides' transportation section.
So, if you decided to check the schedule yourself, go to this railway station (vok'zal - "вокзал" in Russian) and look for the timetables (raspi'sanie - "расписание") they have on the wall or near the information (infor'matziya - "информация") offices. You can also try to ask for information at the information office, but the receptionists there will do their best to piss you off.
When you found the train ('poezd - "поезд") you need, it's helpful to write down its number ('nomer - "номер"), the departure time ('vremya otprav'lenia - "время отправления"), destination point ('punkt nazna'chenia - "пункт назначения").


Q: How to buy the traintickets at the station.
A: The ticket sales offices ("kassa" - "касса"). To buy the ticket you'll always need your passport (not id) with visa, sometimes they'll accept a copy. Foreigners are charged the same price as everyone.
Keep in mind, that you'll have to stand in line for a long time (1-2 hours), especially in Moscow, St Petersburg, and other large cities.