TRANS-SIBERIAN HIGHLIGHTS:
There’s something special about watching thousands of kilometers passing by, and observing ever-changing landscapes and views through the window of your train.
Despite all the books, games, and diaries you will have taken with you, most of the journey will be about getting back to the origins of life. You will eat and sleep all days through. You will feel the pleasure of pure biological life again. The philosophical question of what to eat first – either “pirozhki” (cakes) bought from an old lady at a station, or hard boiled eggs presented by your neighbor – will be the most important to solve for six days.
And this peculiar, magnificient, and expanding feeling of freedom when you are rushing to the platform to have a five-minute solid ground brake after the endless hours of life-on-board. Your compartment may become your second house after two days spent in the train.
However, to really liven up your experience, we recommend you to make a few stops along the Trans-Siberian. After Moscow, we recommend you to stop in:
Day 1:
Ekaterinburg (About 1800 km, after 1 day)
Ekaterinburg was founded in 1797, and now it is the unofficial capital of Ural region – the most industrial (and polluted) region of Russia. However, Urals are most known as the mountains that divide Europe and Asia.Ekaterinburg itself is a nice and real (unvarnished) industrial city of modern Russia with many interesting buildings and sights.
DAY 2:
Novosibirsk (about 3300 km, after 2 days)
The biggest city in Siberia region with 1442000 inhabitants, it was founded in 1893. Novosibirsk is the third main cultural and scientific center in Russia (after Moscow and St. Petersburg), the university of Novosibirsk is quite famous too. The city is developing quite rapidly, and is considered to be the capital of Siberia.The area around Novosibirsk is very good for camping and trekking. Besides, Novosibirsk is a great place to start discovering Altai mountains, which are not far.
Krasnoyarsk (about 4000 km, after 2.5 days)
If you have a goal to stop at all the main Trans-Siberian stations, then you should stop in Krasnoyarsk, which is an important Siberian industrial center. But frankly, we personally find there’s nothing interesting, except for Stolby National Park, which is outside of the city.
Day 3-4:
Irkutsk (about 5100 km, after 3 days)
Irkutsk is a nice city with unusual atmosphere and interesting architecture. Baikal lake is just 60 kilometers away, and there are also Sayan mountain range quite close. Irkutsk is a good starting point for various outdoor activities and for exploring the western side of the lake Baikal.
Baikal Lake (60 km from Irkutsk)
Irkutsk is a nice city with unusual atmosphere and interesting architecture. Baikal lake is just 60 kilometers away, and there are also Sayan mountain range quite close. Irkutsk is a good starting point for various outdoor activities and for exploring the western side of the lake Baikal.
Ulan-Ude (about 5600 km, after 3.5 days)
Overlooked by many travelers, this is a great place to stop for a few days (or even weeks – for Baikal). Ulan-Ude is the first place along the Trans-Siberian, where you feel like you’re in Asia finally (after more than 2 days travel in the Asian part of Russia!). It has a feel of a calm, friendly Asian town (quite close to Mongolia, in fact), and there are a lot of interesting things to discover. Start with a local History Museum, visit a Buddhist Datsan, go to the open-air Ethnographic museum, and then go on to explore the Eastern shore of Baikal lake, which is much less touristic than the opposite Irkutsk side.
Day 5:
Khabarovsk (about 8000 km, after 5 days)
A city, which is located on Amur river, China is just on the other shore. A nice and friendly town, and an important break from the train journey as well.
Day 6:
Vladivostok (about 9200 km, after 6 days)
Vladivostok is a small provincial town, and it wouldn’t be interesting at all, if it was not one of the most important strategic centers of Russia (and, perhaps, political and social center of Far East). For a traveler, it’s hard to continue the trip from Vladivostok – there are only occasional and quite expensive flights to Tokyo – Japan , Seattle – USA, Seoul – South Korea. Few ferries to Japan are unreliable and unsteady. All those options are quite expensive too (about $500 US for a one-way flight). So be prepared to go back by train in the same direction you’ve arrived.
