Am planning to spend Christmas and New Year in St Petersburg and Moscow respectively (package tour) and hopefully finish off with an add-on to Ekaterinburg early in the New Year. Need advice on train travel to/from Ekaterinburg, place to stay, and the Taiga Forest excursion. I understand that English is not widely spoken so need a reliable but above all else realistically priced guide/agent in the area.
Are there any wooden churches/monasteries that can be seen on a day's excursion either from Moscow or St Pete's? Any advice/website details/or agent contact details would be most appreciated.
Reply to this I can give you an advice on trains.
There are many good ones, the best one in relation to price-quality is 15/16 Moscow-Yekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk in railway language). Take the second class with meal, and you will be alone in the compartment, or perhaps with just one roommate. The train does not fill up very well due to its schedule (it departs a t 16.50 from Moscow). Anyway, that is the train I recommend. Buy your tickets right at the railway station to save money.
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