Exploring Russia on my own – legal?

Exploring Russia on my own – legal?

4/7/2016 11:26:49 PM

Here’s my understanding (based on lots of Russian travel): You can legally explore anywhere in Russia, except keep the following in mind:

1) Don’t forget about registration requirements. If you’re moving around a lot, this is likely a non-issue, but keep all your bus/train tickets, etc. If you’re using a central hub city for radial day-trips, register in the hub city.

2) “Closed cities”: Some cities require a permit to get into (typically ones with sensitive military-related industry). I don’t know whether it’s possible to get a permit unless you e.g. have a close relative there. Some cities (e.g. many cities in the north of Krasnoyarsk Krai) are closed only to foreigners, so locals may not know they’re “closed”. There’s a list here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed_city#Russia

3) Border areas. Unless you’re in the process of legally crossing the border via an official crossing point, you need a border area permit to be there. The permit is possible to get but takes a long time (around 2 months). Note that in some areas (e.g. in the Arctic) some areas may be defined as “border areas” despite being thousands of kilometers from the actual border.

4) Due to recent political tensions, I would STRONGLY advise to stay away from anything that is even remotely related to the military or any sensitive industry, especially if you’re carrying a camera, GPS-capable phone, etc. Also, stay well away from any remote place with especially luxurious houses / “dachas” that appear to be well-guarded.

5) Some nature reserves have areas that are forbidden to enter (or forbidden to enter without a special permit) for reasons of nature conservation. These are usually marked.

With all that said, seeing the little remote villages of “real Russia” can be very fun and rewarding!

4/7/2016 5:22:38 PM

Yes, it’s a completely legal, if you aren’t going to visit the restricted areas such as closed cities near the border and so on. And if you’re asking, then you’ll definitely see the warning signs near them, so you shouldn’t be afraid of breaking some local law.

However, you should check the questions I’ve linked in comments as there are a couple of advises how to deal with registration issues. If you are going to stay in a hotel at night, it would be better to create a reservation, as the service isn’t always be prepared for a visitor, unfortunately. Also the language barrier could be a problem for some places, so you should check for the English speakers at the place you’re going to stay in.

Major restricting road signs you should be aware of:

http://sporic.ru/images/stories/znaki/Zapreshhajushhie/3.17.3.jpg
There is a control point ahead on the road

enter image description here
There is a danger zone ahead on the road

enter image description here
There is a road police checkpoint ahead on the road. You can try to gather some information there, but be careful and don’t let them achieve your documents.

enter image description here
You can’t go without a stop the vehicle. If you meet this sign somewhere not near the railroad, you’ve probably got near the restricted zone, and you should get the directions as soon as possible.

enter image description here
A STOP-line 🙂

Credit:stackoverflow.com‘

About me

Hello,My name is Aparna Patel,I’m a Travel Blogger and Photographer who travel the world full-time with my hubby.I like to share my travel experience.

Search Posts

Latest posts

Popular posts