How to get there
By plane
Saint Petersburg is served by the
Pulkovo Airport which is connected via the hub Moscow
by the Russian carriers Aeroflot and Pulkovo Airlines as
well as many other international carriers, such as Air
France, British Airways, Finn Air, JAL, Lufthansa etc.
Taxis from the airport to the Pulkovskaya Hotel are about
$20-25. Alternatively, buses connect the airport with the
center of Saint Petersburg and the Pulkovskaya Hotel
directly. Bus trip from the Pulkovo Airport (Terminal 2,
International) to the Pulkovskaya Hotel takes about 8-10
minutes and from the Terminal 1 (Local Flights) takes about 10-12
minutes (see more information
here).
By train
Another option for budget and adventurous travelers
is to fly to Moscow by a direct international flight, spend
some hours in the Russian capital and take an intercity
train to Saint Petersburg. Ticket prices are from $40 to $75.
An ordinary overnight train trip takes about
7 hours, an express train trip takes about 4.5 hours.
You also can get a train to Saint Petersburg from most of
the European cities.
Leave the train at one of the Saint Petersburg
railway stations (there are 5 railway stations in
Saint Petersburg, which one you arrive to depends on the direction you arrive
from), take the subway to the Moskovskaya subway station,
get out of the subway and walk the direction of your move to
the Pulkovskaya Hotel (2 blocks away or 8-9 minutes of walk).
Taxis offer their services at any of the main railway
stations as well.
By car or bus
Highways from Berlin, Helsinki, Warsaw, Minsk, Kiev,
Moscow etc. go direct to Saint Petersburg. Traffic jams in Saint
Petersburg are not so hard as they are in most of the large
world cities.
Bus travel could be more attractive for budget attendees
and students who do not mind spending extra time en route to
Saint Petersburg.
Saint Petersburg has two bus terminals
Avtovokzal and the Eurolines bus terminal. The first one
serves bus routs from Moscow, Novgorod, Pskov and
international bus routs from Finland and the Baltic States.
The Eurolines bus terminal serves bus routs from Germany,
Poland, Belorussia and the Baltic States (more information
here).
By ship
Sea cruise ships dock at several
ports and downtown embankments scattered around the city
(more information
here).
Getting around
Public Transportation
Saint Petersburg has an extensive system of public
transportation serving about 4 millions passengers a day.
The city has a developed network of buses, trams and
trolleybuses in addition to the private yellow taxi cabs which
have grown in numbers over the last years.
But the most popular and convenient way of getting around
the city is by the subway (known as Metro, see
the
map).
Taxis and Express Buses
The local private taxis have become more user friendly,
as a growing number of private taxi operators are competing
to attract more customers offering better vehicles and new
services.
Express Buses are marked by letter "K" vans that come up to a
bus stop so fast that you may not have enough time to decide
whether you need to get in or not. These express bus cabs
offer taxi-like speed at the bus-like prices.
Visas
All foreigners traveling to or through Russia must have a
passport and a visa covering the duration of stay.
Visas issued by Russian Consulates in your home country,
based on an invitation (a visa support letter) from the
Russian side.
To obtain a Russian visa, you should submit the following
papers to the Russian Consulate in your country:
1. Completed visa application form (one per person) which
can be obtained from consulates of Russia (click
here
to download PDF)
2. Original national passport (valid not less than six months after the date of departure from Russia)
3. Three applicant's photos (3x4 cm)
4. An invitation from the authorized hosting Russian travel
agency or accommodation hotel
If you stay at
the conference hotel, you can use
this form
to apply for an invitation and visa support.
5. A money order or cashiers check payable to the Russian
Consulate for visa processing.
You can also find all necessary travel and visa information via
the web sites of the following local travel agencies:
and via the other web sites that could be found by international or
Russian (Yandex or
Rambler) search
engines.
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