i8hibsh Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 Planning a journey on the Trans Siberian Railway. It has been a dream of mine for years. I have holidays and the money in the bank so I?m going to realise my dream. I?ve been doing a lot of reading up on it but would greatly appreciate anyone?s personal experiences. It simply is the trip of a lifetime. I think I fancy the Moscow to Beijing via Ulan Bator as opposed to having the final destination in Vladivostok. At least you get to see a couple of extra countries. I would appreciate advice on ? costs (I never trust the quoted prices) ? sleeping accommodation/comfort ? living expense ? enjoyment ? cities to see/ stop offs And also the length of time/difficulty in obtaining a visa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vlad-Stupid Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i8hibsh Posted June 15, 2011 Author Share Posted June 15, 2011 Sorry, I forgot to mention that I would appreciate sensible replies. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter_hmfc Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 Nice locals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homme Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 Planning a journey on the Trans Siberian Railway. It has been a dream of mine for years. I have holidays and the money in the bank so I?m going to realise my dream. I?ve been doing a lot of reading up on it but would greatly appreciate anyone?s personal experiences. It simply is the trip of a lifetime. I think I fancy the Moscow to Beijing via Ulan Bator as opposed to having the final destination in Vladivostok. At least you get to see a couple of extra countries. I would appreciate advice on ? costs (I never trust the quoted prices) ? sleeping accommodation/comfort ? living expense ? enjoyment ? cities to see/ stop offs And also the length of time/difficulty in obtaining a visa It's something i would love to do too. Maybe one day i'll make it a reality! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ultraviolet Catastrophe Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 Good luck. A poster on here broke down in Russia on the way to Mongolia and was stranded somewhere and I think he used the Trans to get to an airport. I think. Good luck though - it's a dream of mine too. Take pics etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronJambo Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 i've got friends that done it over 7 weeks for their honeymoon last year. not sure the route they done but i'm sure they finished in ulaan bataar with stopovers in germany, russia and mongolia. they done the whole journey via train starting off with the eurostar. it seems they had a fantastic adventure and they came back with some crazy experiences from their stopovers. they spent nights in teepees with strange travelling people that live off the land, travelled by camel, ummm...drank terrible russian champagne. i can't remember what else, but as good as it sounded it aint for me for a honeymoon. she's stayed in many shitehole countries through her work and he's done a pilgrimage in japan so i guess these guys weren't too worried about where they put their heads down. if i were you i'd do a lot of research on the places on the route/s your interested in and take it from there. go to somewhere like trailfinders (these guys were amazing building my honeymoon) with a rough idea of what you want, give them your budget and the time you want to be away for and they'll help you throw some ideas in the mix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redm Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 I can't possibly comment, I can't help in the slightest but I'm way too busy anyway being horribly jealous. That sounds amazing. When you thinking of doing it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bn jambo Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 I8 , my sister done it a couple of years ago , she flew out to shanghai and got the trans siberian back to moscow, stopped of all over the place and really enjoyed it, I'll give her a shout and ask her what she paid and if she has any advice on where to stop of etc etc etc, I'll post on this thread later, Ps the reason she flew out to Shanghai was because it was cheaper than flying to moscow !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe.gausden Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 I8, look out for dodgy cops and the wee russian dolls http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwHoZ7vvBIQ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i8hibsh Posted June 15, 2011 Author Share Posted June 15, 2011 I can't possibly comment, I can't help in the slightest but I'm way too busy anyway being horribly jealous. That sounds amazing. When you thinking of doing it? Ideally Aug/Sept/Oct (anything later and it may just be too cold)and i'd have to wait till the spring. Reading up and I think the visa may be the stumbling block as it takes (potentially) months Flying to Shanghai sounds a 'goer' so any more info on that would be great It is places that you simply would never go to unless doing this. Totally excited at the prospect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Sausage Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 We broke down in Russia on the way to Mongolia, but I know of some of our mates we met on the way who took it back from Ulaan Baatur to Moscow if you want me to find out pricing and whatever else for you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Das Root Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Choo choo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neon Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Went to Russia twice on a School exchange back in 88/90 - Don't think I appreciated the trip 1st time round. But St Basils Cathedral if an awesome sight with also the changing of the gaurd at Lennons Tomb. The biggest issue was the food, Russian Borsch (beatroot soup with sour cream) the meat dishes were shocking, so became a vegetarian for 2 weeks. Huge difference in 92 tho with remember a guy from Falkirk opened a bakery around the corner from red square making a small fortune selling doughnuts. As for China, I pretty much reside there at present with short trips to Hong Kong, never had a Visa issue, I use a travel agent called Japan Travel, can get a business Visa with no need to provide any details on my business, usually takes 5 days to come only condition is i need to leave the country every 30 days. I submit the application in HK though, never went through the consulate but a visitors visa should be a breeze, they will ask where you plan to stay so that maybe your only issue if you are moving cross country. I have a few bar customers who head to Shanghai on a regular basis, unlike rural China the food is not an issue, so many westerners there, however it's worth exploring the older parts of the city. One of the guys gets back on wednesday so will ask for interesting places to visit - sure he will say Hooters tho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vasco Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 This journey had been one of my dreams for years, having used the Inter-Rail card on several occasions in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1999 I decided that I would do the journey at the Millennium. I flew to Beijing via Amsterdam (always use KLM for non-Easyjet/Ryanair routes)on Saturday 18th December, stayed in the Prime Hotel until Tuesday when we took the train to Ulaan Baatar. Spent a couple of days there (temperature -28 centigrade) before heading for Irkutsk and Lake Baikal. Spent Christmas day at the border crossing point of Naushki with sun splitting the sky and the temperature gauge showing -13 centigrade. Sunday to Tuesday spent at Listvyanka on Lake Baikal. Tuesday to Friday on train to Moscow. Arrived in Moscow as Yeltsin was doing a runner. Hogmanay and New Year's Day 2000 in Moscow, before taking train to Warsaw and then on to Berlin before flying back to Glasgow. The beauty of going at that time of year was that there were very few other passengers. I'm not bothered by the excessive cold, so it was fine for me. I appreciate that not everyone can stand the cold, but I would certainly take the cold over a dose of ill-mannered loudmouth Yanks or Australians, which is what I'm told you get between spring and autumn. I researched the project quite vigorously and dealt with a company in Beijing called Monkey Business (http://www.monkeyshrine.com/) who organised all of the stopovers and visas. Excellent guys to deal with. Hope it all works out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
i8hibsh Posted June 20, 2011 Author Share Posted June 20, 2011 This journey had been one of my dreams for years, having used the Inter-Rail card on several occasions in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1999 I decided that I would do the journey at the Millennium. I flew to Beijing via Amsterdam (always use KLM for non-Easyjet/Ryanair routes)on Saturday 18th December, stayed in the Prime Hotel until Tuesday when we took the train to Ulaan Baatar. Spent a couple of days there (temperature -28 centigrade) before heading for Irkutsk and Lake Baikal. Spent Christmas day at the border crossing point of Naushki with sun splitting the sky and the temperature gauge showing -13 centigrade. Sunday to Tuesday spent at Listvyanka on Lake Baikal. Tuesday to Friday on train to Moscow. Arrived in Moscow as Yeltsin was doing a runner. Hogmanay and New Year's Day 2000 in Moscow, before taking train to Warsaw and then on to Berlin before flying back to Glasgow. The beauty of going at that time of year was that there were very few other passengers. I'm not bothered by the excessive cold, so it was fine for me. I appreciate that not everyone can stand the cold, but I would certainly take the cold over a dose of ill-mannered loudmouth Yanks or Australians, which is what I'm told you get between spring and autumn. I researched the project quite vigorously and dealt with a company in Beijing called Monkey Business (http://www.monkeyshrine.com/) who organised all of the stopovers and visas. Excellent guys to deal with. Hope it all works out. Thanks for taking the time to reply everyone. What were the stop overs like? were they 'party places'? Defo don't want to be stuck on the train for the entire 7 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tynie b Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Thanks for taking the time to reply everyone. What were the stop overs like? were they 'party places'? Defo don't want to be stuck on the train for the entire 7 days. That is a bit of an "I'm looking for an excuse for when I don't bother" type post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ultraviolet Catastrophe Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0820/1224277229539.html Just jib your way through like these tykes did. I hear the Gulags are lovely this time of year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Currahee! Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Its something I'd love to do. I travelled from Moscow to Leningrad on the overnight sleeper and it was comfy enough. I'd imagine the Trans Siberian would be much the same. The tea on board was what I remember most about it. It was superb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADAM Posted June 20, 2011 Share Posted June 20, 2011 Planning a journey on the Trans Siberian Railway. It has been a dream of mine for years. I have holidays and the money in the bank so I?m going to realise my dream. I?ve been doing a lot of reading up on it but would greatly appreciate anyone?s personal experiences. It simply is the trip of a lifetime. I think I fancy the Moscow to Beijing via Ulan Bator as opposed to having the final destination in Vladivostok. At least you get to see a couple of extra countries. I would appreciate advice on ? costs (I never trust the quoted prices) ? sleeping accommodation/comfort ? living expense ? enjoyment ? cities to see/ stop offs And also the length of time/difficulty in obtaining a visa The best website on the Internet for train travel, including a huge section on the 3 Trans Siberian Railway routes, is 'The Man in Seat 61' a fantastic site! http://www.seat61.com/ The section on the Trans Siberian routes is http://www.seat61.com/Trans-Siberian.htm It contains virtual tours of the trains, up to date costs, ticket purchases and generally gives great advice on how to plan your trip. This is the ultimate site for the Trans Siberian trip. Enjoy!.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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