Simon Calder's Holiday Helpdesk: Advice please on visas for out Moscow trip

Every day our travel guru answers your travel questions

Suggested Topics

Q On a bit of a whim I booked two cheap flights to Moscow in June for myself and my 11-year-old daughter. We have both always wanted to visit Moscow to see its fabulous buildings and experience the rich culture, so it seemed like a good idea at the time! Since booking I have looked into obtaining visas and it seems like a minefield of red tape. Do you happen to know the process?

Matt Denby, West Yorkshire

A Congratulations, Matt. You are one of the very first to realise that the Russian capital is a “big, new destination” for 2013 is the. Big: this is the largest city in the biggest country in the world, and with eight million inhabitants, tops anything in Western Europe, including London. New: Moscow joins the no-frills route network, with easyJet flying in the spring from Gatwick and Manchester to the city’s best airport, Domodedovo. And after decades when it has been difficult or impossible to find a flight below £200 return, there are at last tickets at less than £100. (Usual rules for finding these apply: book well ahead, and avoid Friday/Sunday/school holiday peaks.)

The attractions, too, are immense: stand in the middle of the vast Red Square, and the domes of St Basil’s Cathedral, the walls of the Kremlin, the Lenin Mausoleum and the nation’s foremost shopping venue – GUM – stretch beyond your field of vision. And that is just the start of the repertoire of fascination that awaits you. But before you reach the fine art, grandiose architecture and gastronomic adventures, you need to jump through some bureaucratic hoops.

Obtaining a visa is an expensive and time-consuming business that has hardly changed since Soviet days. First, you have to get your ground arrangements sorted out – which for your trip presumably means just booking a hotel. But don’t imagine that an email by way of confirming your plans will suffice: you need an officially stamped and signed “tourist voucher/confirmation” from the “inviting organisation” – usually, the hotel.

Having acquired this precious document, you can start applying for a visa through the outsourced visa provider, ru.vfsglobal.co.uk. The normal price is £27.60 per person, and you need to allow plenty of time for the process.

All in all a daunting process, and one that you might want to place in the hands of a long-established expert, such as Regent Holidays (regentholidays.co.uk) – which can guide you through the bureaucracy. It may prove more expensive than the DIY experience, but the extra is well worthwhile to avoid the pitfalls that await the unwary visitor to Russia.

One final tip: between now and June, gently teach yourselves the Cyrillic alphabet and a few words of Russian. Being able quickly to comprehend signposts will make your stay much easier, in particular finding your way around on the marvellous Moscow Metro.

Click HERE to email Simon.

You can also tweet him your questions @SimonCalder

Independent Comment
blog comments powered by Disqus
Independent Travel Videos
Independent Travel Videos
Simon Calder in Amsterdam
Independent Travel Videos
Simon Calder in Giverny
Independent Travel Videos
Simon Calder in St John's
Independent Travel Videos
News in pictures
World news in pictures
       
Independent
Travel Shop
India and Shimla
14 nights from only £1899pp Find out more
Prague city break
Three nights from £199pp Find out more
4* Soreda hotel break, Malta
Seven nights all-inclusive from £399pp Find out more

ES Rentals

    Independent Dating
    and  

    By clicking 'Search' you
    are agreeing to our
    Terms of Use.

    Day In a Page

    National archives: Edward VIII’s phone calls - and how MI5 bugged them

    Edward VIII’s phone calls - and how MI5 bugged them

    Newly unearthed papers reveal a shocking extra dimension to the constitutional crisis over monarch’s abdication
    Sent down at the Old Bailey: A tour of the world's most famous court

    Sent down at the Old Bailey

    A tour of the world's most famous court
    Hollywood's random acts of red-carpet kindness

    Hollywood's random acts of red-carpet kindness

    The Hangover actor Zach Galifianakis’s date for his movie premieres isn’t arm candy  – it’s his 87-year-old friend who he saved from homelessness
    British football scores an own goal

    British football scores an own goal

    Many managers barely survive a year in post. Martin Baker talks to experts who make a case for clubs using forensic business skills to find the best staff
    James Lawton: Sergio Garcia cracks as major fault line opens up again

    James Lawton

    Sergio Garcia cracks as major fault line opens up again
    Dylan Hartley: Northampton have spent the season proving all our critics wrong

    Dylan Hartley talks tough

    Northampton have spent the season proving all our critics wrong
    Watch out Watford: Here comes the secretive Bilderberg Group

    Watch out Watford: Here comes the secretive Bilderberg Group

    A meeting of global power brokers in a Hertfordshire hotel is exciting conspiracy theorists, but what are they really about?
    'The ultimate all-in-one home entertainment system': Microsoft finally unveils its Xbox ONE console

    'The ultimate all-in-one home entertainment system'

    Microsoft finally unveils its Xbox ONE console
    Plenty of Fish dating site founder pulls 'Intimate Encounters' option to ward off sleazy men

    Plenty of sleaze

    Dating website pulls intimate 'hook-up' section to curb harassment
    Inferno author Dan Brown 'honoured' to be invited to join the Freemasons

    The Freemasons’ Code

    Dan Brown reveals the message that told him door to the lodge is open
    Not secure any more: G4S boss heads for exit at last

    Not secure any more: G4S boss heads for exit at last

    Nick Buckles survived the Olympics débâcle and a £5bn bid fiasco but a profit warning finally triggered his downfall
    How to say ‘I’m a sellout’: Tumblr’s David Karp’s message of reassurance to his staff sounded very familiar

    How to say ‘I’m a sellout’

    Tumblr’s David Karp’s message of reassurance to his staff sounded very familiar
    Why clubs are keen to take a stand

    Why clubs are keen to take a stand

    There's a real desire around the grounds for safe standing. But will the authorities listen?
    In the end the fans decided Tony Pulis had made a pig's ear of the job at Stoke City

    In the end the fans decided Tony Pulis had made a pig's ear of the job at Stoke City

    Disillusion with a siege mentality and negative playing style made change inevitable
    James Lawton: The James Hunt I knew is the subject of a new F1 movie

    James Lawton: The James Hunt I knew is the subject of a new F1 movie

    British driver was fascinating man whose epic duel with Niki Lauda in 1976 was typical of an era of glamour and glory – but also the ever-present threat of death