How long will the trip be? Are you going camping, or staying at 5* hotels, or something inbetween? What class do you intend to travel in on the trains? etc. etc.

As much as you can?

seraph is right, you need to describe your trip more, there is no way we can blindly put a price tag on it.

Seraphim and SickBoy- Have you dont the trans-siberian? If yes- when did you do it? How long did you take? Do you have a travelog of your experiences? I am going next summer- as it is my boyfriends DREAM to do it- I am a little nervous though since I don’t know that much about it.
Looking forward to hearing your responses

Norah

quote:
Have you dont the trans-siberian?

Parts of it, yes. From Moscow to Khabarovsk.

quote:
when did you do it?

Last summer.

quote:
How long did you take?

I spent 2 months in the Russian Federation (including 1 month doing a language course at the university of Novosibirsk), and 1 month in Mongolia (though I didnt travel by train there – I got from Ulan Ude to Ulaan Bataar by a combination of marshrutka, taxis and hitch-hiking, spending one night in Kyakhta just before the border en route).

quote:
Do you have a travelog of your experiences?

http://blogs.bootsna…

Thanks Seraphim!! I think I have to buy a book soley dedicated to the T-S railway- you have any suggestions? I am not familiar with Siberia at all- so this is going to be a big adventure!

Norah

Not yet. Depending how much time I have this summer it is a remote possibility.

Heopfully fly to Talin or Vilnius, ccheck out the Baltics then go across Russia to Mongolia, visit friends in Beijing and off to Tokyo.

What do you think would be the best (ie. cheapest) access point for me seraph?

I would guess the cheapest way into Russia is a bus from Estonia or Latvia to St. Petersburg or Pskov. Maybe Andrew Runov would know?

If you do the trans-siberian, DON’T MISS Ulan Ude. It’s highly underrated imho. And if you go to Mongolia, I could hook you up with the contact details for a great English-speaking driver/guide.

As far as guidebooks are concerned, all I know is Lonely Planet is crap, but I don’t know if there are many alternatives, certainly not for Mongolia. Online, the best guide to Russia is www.waytorussia.net For a good reading book, I recommend[url=‘http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1840241144/102-0587895-0676155?v=glance’]Inside the Grey Area by Paddy Linehan[/url].

okay some more details.

total trip time… 1-2 months
accommodation… staying in hostels or whatever is cheapest, no camping
class… 2nd class citizen all the way!
food… bread and cheese for lunch and breakfast maybe a nice
meal for tea with the odd beer.
internet… couple of times a week.
calls… no phone calls home.
postcards… the odd postcard every now and again but probably only
sending 1 or 2.
age… 26.
stops… stopping at a few places along the way, maybe 7 stops.

anything else you need to know?

how much is the train ticket from hong kong to Moscow? not from
an agency tho from the ticket office!

I believe you will need several tickets.

Also, you will need visas for Russia, Mongolia and China.

I think there is a way to waive the Mongolian visa (or get a transport visa -Im not so sure) but if you are going to be in the neighbourhood it would certainly be worth a look!

BJ to HK is incredibly far. I would make a bunch of stops a long the way, like Tsingdao, Shanghai, and a few more.

I don’t know about China or Mongolia, but budget about 10,000 Rubles for the Russian part if you take the fastest trains. I’ve heard rail tickets are cheaper in Mongolia though, and that it’s a lot more economical to buy a ticket straight to Moscow then if you want to stop at a couple of places in Russia.

There are no hostels in Siberia. If you’re lucky you may find a dorm bed in a student dorm or bottom-end hotel occasionally (if they accept foreigners), but usually you’ll pay about 500 Rubles at least for the cheapest single room you can find. Make that 1000 Rubles for Moscow, though there are hostels there too. I payed 15$ for a home stay in Ulan Ude, but I’ve seen far higher prices for Irkutsk and touristy places on the west coast of Baikal. In Ulaan Bataar, most guesthouses charge 4$ for a bed. We payed the same to families we stayed with in the countryside, and you may find hotels in cities and "guest-gers" that charge the same. Tourist camps however charge 10$ at the very least.

If you go to Mongolia, you should see more than just UB. You can get around by (very limited) public transport and/or hitch-hiking, but the most practical is to arrange a mini-van and driver in UB. You can shop around, on the tours I took we payed 40$ a day for the driver, plus about 200$ a week for gass if I remember correctly. If you can find 2 or 3 people to share the costs with (which shouldn’t be too hard in UB), that’s quite reasonable. Don’t forget to bring presents for the nomads who’ll offer you food, drinks and accommodation.

I payed 85 € for my Russian visa, and 40 $ for the Mongolian one. If you are American, Polish or Israeli, you won’t need a visa for Mongolia.

Everything else is going to be cheap. Though it’s always nice to budget a bit extra for the occassional splurge. For example, I was really happy I could afford to take a tour with a German-speaking guide to Ivolginsk (my first Buddhist monastery), rather than going there by public transport and not understanding anything.

Disclaimer: prices in Russia are rising fast.

The Trans-Siberian Handbook by Bryn Thomas is a good guidebook for the trip, covers the route through Mongolia to Beijing as well.

There is a newly opened hostel in Irkutsk, the Downtown Hostel which you can google. It’s basically a converted flat but cozy and friendly. There’s also another hostel-type place there under a Russian-German Friendship Assn. As for other cities, try and stay in a shitty old Soviet hotel at least once, it’s an…experience.

Beijing-Ulan Bataar is about $85 if you take the direct express service or $25-30 if you take local trains to the border Sukhbataar?/Erlian. UB to Irkutsk is about $30. Can get from Irkutsk to Moscow for about $160 I think. These are winter prices purchased locally, I understand they increase the prices for summer trips.

Ways to save money are to keep your border crossing trips short as international tickets are charged at a higher rate per km, and not to take "firmenny" premium trains in Russia which charge you 50% more for not much difference. Food and stuff on the journey is cheap, in fact your Russian compartment mates are likely to keep you well stuffed with their food and alcohol for free.

Hi Whats the story with Russian Visa. I’m travelling from Beijing to Moscow in Nov. Doyou have to tell the Russian authorities where your going to kip every night in advance and the exact day of arrival and departure when applying for a visa? If you then vary it is there a problem?

Also is it easy to buy train tickets on the Trans-Sib as you make your way West?

Many thanks

quote: Doyou have to tell the Russian authorities where your going to kip every night in advance and the exact day of arrival and departure when applying for a visa?

Yes, for a tourist visa your invitation should have cities and hotels and dates.

quote:
If you then vary it is there a problem?

No, as long as you get registered at your first stop and by the company that invited you.

quote:
Also is it easy to buy train tickets on the Trans-Sib as you make your way West?

In Russia, it wouldn’t make any difference. In Mongolia it would be a hell of a lot easier to get tickets to Russia than it is to China.

Don’t try to get a Russian visa in Mongolia unless there’s no other way. The embassy there is extremely difficult, getting a tourist visa there is practically impossible, unless you go though an expensive travel agency in UB.