Kazan Gate, Red Square

Travelers from almost every country will need a visa. To apply for a visa you'll need an invitation from a Russian agency, business, or individual.

To help you get started, check out these sites:

The Russian consulate in Ottawa, Canada has information on requirements and visa application forms you can print off. If you're not Canadian, try the consulates in the US or the UK.

Iro Travel can set you up with visa invitations, accommodations, tours, tickets and transfers of all sorts. G & R International should be able to do the same, and their article Staying Alive in Moscow is a must-read.

For the latest traveler's safety information try the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs, they regularly update this site, as do the US State Department and the very informative British Foreign Office.

News from Moscow can be found at The Moscow Times, which has extensive entertainment listings every Friday. The Russia Journal is an insightful weekly newspaper. And of course, Moscow's infamous alternative paper, the Exile, always makes for provocative reading and has great listings on the entertainment and cultural scene.

But why wait - look at Moscow today - live!

Finally, the one book you need to pack is Moscow: The Rough Guide. Along with excellent information on all the sights, there's a bilingual metro map in the back.

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Transport

Currency

Laundry

The only problem is that some of them are rather difficult to find, but hey, that's all part of the fun!

Here are my personal favourites:

All Around Best

Outside Café Guriya

Café Guriya (Georgian)
Metro: Park Kultury (red line south) Komsomolsky pr. 7/3, near the fantastical Church of St. Nicolas of the Weavers.

You really can't go wrong here, everything on the menu is fabulous; don't even worry about understanding the menu, which does have a sort of helpful English translation.

Don't miss the khachepuri (Georgian cheese-filled bread) and Gipsandal (like a stew) also the eggplant with walnut sauce, large pork dumplings, goloptsi (cabbage rolls) and of course a bottle of red Georgian wine with Turkish coffee to finish. A feast costs about $8 per person.

Best Russian Place
That Russian Restaurant (OK, I don't know really know the name!)
Metro: Belorusskaya. The metro station is the shape of a backwards "L". Turn right at the first intersection (90 degrees from the roaring Leningradsky Prospekt). You should see a sign for Great Canadian Bagel (Velikii Kanadskii Begel) The Russian restaurant is sort of across the street from Great Canadian Bagel, with a wooden door and a window. It's smoky inside, with big wooden tables and benches.

Borscht (beet soup), pelmeni (Siberian meat-filled dumplings) and the Chicken Kiev are all great. A full meal with a beer shouldn't cost more than $5.

Absolutely the Best View
Academy of Sciences Cafe
Metro: Leninsky Prospekt. From wherever you exit the metro, you'll see a crazy building with strange metal zigzags on top. That's the building, about a ten-minute walk from the metro. Entrance is on the south side; just tell the guards you're going to the restaurant. They'll probably hit the elevator button for you; it's the top floor.

Yurii Gagarin

The food is pretty good and the view is spectacular. The café/bar side serves the same food as the restaurant, but at cheaper prices and louder music. But first, tell them you want to go out on the balcony. Straight ahead lies Gorky Park, the panorama includes the Church of Christ the Saviour, the Kremlin ahead on the left, titanium Yurii Gagarin and Sputnik statues on the right, and the incredible Moscow State University round the back. Make sure you bring your camera! Your meal and a drink should cost about $7, or just go for drinks and enjoy the sparkling lights of the city below.

All You Can eat/Vegetarian
Yolky Polky Po (Mongolian)
Metro: Pushkinskaya. Exit onto Tverskaya ulitsa. It's on Tverskaya near TGIF, just opposite and up from the McDonald's.

Grab a bowl and fill it up with veggies with or without meat, add sauces and spices to taste, and take it to the costumed guys by the giant frying pan to cook. A bowl with a drink is about $8.

Cafe
Delifrance
Metro: Mayakovskaya. Triumfalnaya pl. 4, enter through the Tchaikovsky Conservatory. Also on the Old Arbat.

Pastries, sandwiches (including panini), coffee, espresso and cappuccino, this is the best place to hang out and peruse the latest editions of The Moscow Times or the Exile, which are available here for free. Pastry and a coffee will set you back about $4.

Fast Food

Macca's, Moscow style

McDonald's
Of course. It's fast, filling, familiar and cheap. A cheesburger is about $0.50. The first one in Moscow, and still one of the biggest in the world, is at Pushkin Square, metro Pushkinskaya and there are many more all around the city.

Patio Pizza
Good selection of thin crust pizza. A salami pizza is $3, most others are $6. There are a few locations in town, one good spot is metro Okhotny Ryad, on Tverskaya just up from the Kremlin at the bottom of the Intourist Hotel.

Rostiks
There are several of these KFC-style Russian restaurants around, including one in GUM off Red Square. Greasy but good. Pay at the cashiers, get your order at the counter, then sit down. About $3 for a meal.

Self Catering
There are outdoor markets all around the city, usually located near metro stations, especially in the suburbs. These markets (rinok) are filled with fresh produce, odd things, and local folks. The most noteworthy central market is the Danilovsky Rinok (Danilov Market) metro Tulskaya, ul. Superhovski Val.

To cure your craving for peanut butter, marmite, tofu or other products that aren't yet part of mainstream Russian cuisine, head to Stockmann's. This Finnish department store has a supermarket on the basement level. Metro Smolenskaya, across the ring from the Old Arbat. You'll feel like you're in Finland, with prices to match - but they do take credit cards!

Questions?
If you want more information about this area you can email the author or check out our Europe Insiders page.