TRIP DETAILS FOR BEGINNERS

“The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see.” 

- G. K. Chesterton

My name is Doina, I work as a Travel Specialist and I started this blog as a headline for those who are interested in travelling within Europe, on Trans-Siberian, Trans-Mongolian and Trans-Manchurian line. However, my trip advice will not stop along with your arrival in Beijing.

First of all, I want to underline the difference between the trip itineraries:

Trans-Siberian trip: this refers to the journey within Russia, usually taken from St. Petersburg/ Moscow and finishing it in Vladivostok (with or without stops along the way)

Trans-Mongolian: this represents the journey from Russia to Beijing, China, going via Mongolia. A Trans-Mongolian trip can also end in Ulan Bator, Mongolia. It can be a direct route (Moscow-Ulan Bator or with stopovers along the way as well).

Trans-Manchurian: the journey is from Russia to China, avoiding Mongolia. Usually, it is a direct route (Moscow-Beijing, notice that it is a longer journey comparing with the direct route on the Trans-Mongolian). Also, if adding stops, this can be within Russia and from Russia to go directly to Beijing. Here is an example: Moscow-Irkutsk-Beijing.

photo credit: http://www.travelcentre.com.au/

A first step in organizing your trip in any of the above routes, you need to be aware of train differences (within Russia). The international trains are high-speed ones.

Also, before booking any ticket you should be aware of the difference for the available classes of travel. International trains have only first and second class available (no third class cabins):

Also, some short distance trains have gender separation cabins (this is not available for longer journeys, for example, Moscow-Ulan Bator or Moscow-Beijing). However, you can find it between Moscow and St. Petersburg and other short distance trains within Russia. Depending on the train you are looking at, you can find it for Moscow-Irkutsk route as well.

Another important aspect is the tickets type that can be issued for your desired journey. They can be as follows:

E-ticket: is sent via email, needs to be exchanged for the actual paper ticket at any train station within Russia. 

Electronic registration: is sent via email, is a voucher that needs to be printed and presented along with the travelers' passport before boarding the train. This ticket is not exchanged for the actual paper ticket at the station. This is available for particular trains in Russia and for some European routes (Paris-Moscow, as an example).

Paper ticket: available for international routes, such as Moscow-Beijing, Moscow-Ulan Bator, etc. and you need the actual ticket to board the train. Note that this can't be issued as an e-ticket so you can exchange it for the paper one. It is directly issued as a paper ticket. 

Some internal routes in Russia can be booked as paper tickets only as well.

When can I buy the tickets for my trip?

Yes, you are probably wondering WHEN you can buy the tickets. Let's say that you want to travel in May 2016. Sorry to let you know that the booking is not taking place like for an airline ticket.

The tickets are on sale as follows:

- tickets within Russia: 45 days before departure, for some trains it with 30 days before departure

- tickets to CIS countries: depending on the country, around 30 days before your travel starts

- international tickets (Moscow-Ulan Bator/ Moscow-Beijing, etc.): 60 days before departure

- the tickets within China are issued with around 20 days before departure.

However, this represents no step back for you to create a reservation with a travel agency and they will take care of this aspect on your behalf.