Visit Russia - The DON'Ts of Visiting Russia

Whether visiting St. Petersburg, Moscow, The Volga River or Vladivostok there are a few things you shouldn't do when you visit Russia. This video covers what travelers, tourists and vacationers should NOT do when they visit Russia. From the service, to the police, to the cool museums there are some good don'ts and bad don'ts of visiting Russia.

Filmed in St. Petersburg, Russia
Copyright Mark Wolters 2017
1. Don't forget to get a visa and register it when you get to Russia.
2. Don't lose your immigration card.
3. Don't forget to have Rubbles in cash
4. Don't Think Russia will be cheap
5. Don't get upset about two prices, one for locals and one price for foeigners
6. Don't mess with the cops
7. Don't let your guard down at tourist spots or late at night.
8. Don't skip the Russian Orthodox churches and don't wear a hat inside the church.
9. Don't try to exchange damaged foreigner currency.
10. Don't think Russians are as cold as the service
11. Don't Bad mouth Russia or speak about Russian politics, it will not be appreciated.

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[joeyjamison]

Another DON'T: Don't repeat the words you hear on Russian car crash videos!

[stanislavamoskalenko]

As a Russian I'm surprised how on point all the tips are. All the 'don'ts' are absolutely true. I am a tour guide in St. Petersburg and I often tell the very same things to the tourists I meet. Great job!

[CookinginRussia]

When it comes to the cost of food, the thing is that restaurants are extremely expensive but grocery stores are extremely cheap. If you are going to be in Russia for more than a few days, rent a flat with a kitchen (which costs less than a hotel) and cook for yourself. You will save a fortune!

[АлександрШведов-бз]

Couple more donts :)

1) Dont forget to offer your seat in a public transport to elderly people, pregnant women and women with little kids. It is considered very rude and unpolite if you dont do so, especially if you're a man.
2) Dont forget to take off your shoes, coming to Russian house by default. If you've been said not to do so, you may not do it. If you dont do, it may be considered as disrespect towards a host.
3) If you're going for a date with local, don't bring even number of flowers, only odd. We bring even number of flowers only in case of funeral. :)

[livinginvancouverbc]

Ah darn, I was planning on going to Russia and messing with Russian police. Oh well, I'm off to my sailing trip around Somalia.

[brentgranger]

Other tips about Russia, especially Moscow:

1. Hotels in Russia are expensive, but most hostels are not. You will meet a lot of great fellow travelers there.
2. Photos are highly discouraged inside cathedrals.
3. The Moscow Metro is world-renown for its architecture. Take a day just to ride the metro for a small price to enjoy the stations.
4. Moscow motorists only know one law - THEY have the right-of-way. Be extra careful when crossing the street.
5. Learn to read Cyrillic, as there are very few signs in foreign languages outside of Red Square. Google Translate is nice, but inconvenient.
6. Local cuisine is cheap, so make sure to try some borsch (beet soup), pelmeniy (fried dumpling similar to ravioli), and pirogi (similar to pot pies). Kvas (a soft drink made of rye) is also cheap and widely available.
7. When someone buys you a shot of vodka, you are expected to drink it in one gulp, not sipping.

[fredrika]

I visited St. Petersberg a few years back and had a blast. My son and I visited the Hermitage Museum. I wanted to walk around so I made my son sit in front of Paul Gauguin's Woman with Fruit and draw it for me. He had a box of 64 crayons and a large 50 page, drawing block. When I came back, there was a whole class sitting with him and they were all sharing the crayons and drawing pictures! My son was speaking English with them. It turned out it was a dance school for street children. One or two children had asked for paper, but my son was really generous and shared with all 20 children. The kids spent the whole day finishing their pictures of various impressionists and even shared their meager lunches with my son! The art work was fantastic and the teacher was really pleased with what the children had drawn. My son wrote a report for his school and the picture he drew won a prize for best copy of a classic. The drawing hangs in his school with a picture of the Russian class. It's one of my fondest memories of life in Russia. My boy learned it takes so little to make someone happy. As for that box of 64 crayons, there was literally nothing left after 21 legal size pictures of famous impressionists were made. My son gave the rest of the crayons to the school and we left the museum at 17:00 after arriving at 10:00! Just fantastic experience. My son also learned how to count to ten, say hello and excuse me after breaking wind! Great day! Great memory!

[AlexFG]

I'm Russian from Moscow. I will also give advice.
A foreigner can get into a very unpleasant situation in Russia if he shows disrespect to the monuments of WW2. This behavior can provoke instant aggression from others. Do not do this.

[radekfrompoland]

I visited Russia this year and I was stun how clean are city like Moscow and St Petersburg, especially underground. There is no zone and traveling by tube is astonish - stations are amazing.

[jan]

Me and my mother are from Czech republic and we have a Czech surname so when we went to Russia we got classed as Russians so we got cheaper prices😁

[Agnieszka]

I've visited Moscow two yeas ago . What a stunning city, very very clean, beautiful and people are helpful and kind . I will come back .

[Кира-вй]

Note to the Americans: "Leave the politics behind before you travel to Russia"

[AK-ccrx]

Always always give your seat to an old person or pregnant women on subway or bus.

[anyanyausagi]

As an American that has lived in Moscow for many years, I can attest to everything he said in the video:) Sometimes you'll meet really rude people/services, get really irritated at the people especially on the road, but there is also a lot of sincerity and kindness even in the places you would least expect it. Russians are just like any other people, but they do seem to possess a certain character or way of communicating that's different from other countries P.S. Russians LOVE sarcasm. Sometimes it throws me off since they can appear so serious on the outside lol

[multiro_r.leaves]

If someone is reading this in 2018, bank cards and paypass are acceptable almost everywhere. A place must be quite a hole, if they take cash only.

[mikeselectricstuff]

One tip - it is really worth learning at least the upper-case Cyrillic letters, and the letters that sound different (C, H, P etc.) - if you can read something and figure out how it sounds, it's surprising how often you can get at least some idea of the meaning.

[mickeyd]

Men shouldn't wear shorts in a church either. I got kicked out of a church for wearing shorts on a hot day

[eugenialouw]

We were 2 ladies in their 60s from South Africa travelling alone in 2017. We felt very safe where ever we went, also Moscow and St. Petersburg were not expensive at all! We went to very good restaurants, went on the day trips and slept in 4 star hotels. Definitely, cheaper than central Europe. Good for solo travellers.

[ignemuton]

*laughs in non visa required language*

[MarySmilodon]

I always wanted to visit Russia, and it was my first trip outside of North America. I was BLOWN away by St. Petersburg, I loved Moscow! I also visited Kazan, and lived in Voronezh. It's such a neat experience not a lot of people get to experience.