Getting There By Rail
Moscow has nine railway terminals connected to the Russian Federation’s extensive rail network. The state-owned Russian Railways (tel: (095) 262 2620 or 1531; website: www.css-mps.ru) network is broken into regional divisions. Moscow Railways (tel: (095) 266 9006 or 9333) operates the majority of termini and services in the Moscow area, with passenger services operating on 95% of the network. Service in standard (second class) is usually very good – the compartments are four berth, the linen is generally clean and each carriage has a helpful provodnik (attendant) who will even make a glass of Russian tea for travellers who ask nicely.
The three railway stations most likely to be used by visitors to Moscow are Belorussky vokzal (tel: (095) 973 8191), which has trains from Western Europe, Kievsky vokzal (tel: (095) 240 0415), which has trains from Budapest, Prague, Kyiv, Sofia, Venice and Belgrade, and Leningradsky vokzal (tel: (095) 262 9143), with trains from Helsinki, St Petersburg, Murmansk and Tallin. The Trans-Siberian Express leaves from Yaroslavsky vokzal (tel (095) 921 5914) daily at 1400 – destinations include Yaroslavl, Archanglsk, Beijing, Phyonyang, Ulan Bator and Vladivostock. Trains to and from Riga, the Latvian capital, leave from Rizhky vokzal. Facilities at the larger stations include toilets, shops and food and drink stalls.
The Central Railway Inquiry Office (tel: (095) 266 9000/9) provides timetable information, rail information and ticket sales (tel: (095) 266 9333). Tickets are available at the stations.
Rail services: Due to the large distances involved, almost any trip a Western visitor will make in Russia will be on a night train. Major connecting routes are from Kiev in the south (journey time – 13 hours), St Petersburg (journey time – 8 hours 30 minutes) and Helsinki (journey time – 14 hours) in the north and Western European cities via Warsaw, as well as Budapest and Prague. The Trans-Siberian Railway is a great way to see just how massive a country the Russian Federation is, although the journey takes at least a week.
Transport to the city: The train stations are all connected to the city’s Metro system. Belorussky vokzal is on Metro Belorusskaya, Kievsky vokzal on Metro Kievskaya and Leningradsky vokzal on Metro Komsomolskaya.
|
Getting There By Rail