I am thinking about going to Russia/Ukraine

I was in St Petersburg in August. There is a really great hostel basically next door to the Hermitage I would recommend. Avoid crossing the road at a normal pace accepted everywhere else in the world. Walk into a restaurant and grab your seat and settle down to waiting for your order for a long time. Learn some Cyrillic! Expect long delays at borders, and alot of confusion regarding registering your visa.
Most people in St Petersburg told us to go to Moscow after, but we went to Helsinki, somewhat more relaxing I think.
As a whole, your journey should be unforgettable!

when, how long, etc. etc.

do try to spend some time learning cyrillic, it'll make things a bit less foreign.

seriously fuck Kiev. Go to Lvov instead (or also), it's much more beautiful.

Seconding L'vov (or L'viv or Lemberg or whatever you call it.) I'd rather return there than any of the other three cities mentioned.

I will be going in May for about 9 days (which is obviously not long enough, i know). We wanted to hit Kiev because it's close to Chernobyl and it's a big city. L'vov does look very interesting / tempting.

Okay, well, a few thoughts:

1. Keep in mind that May 1 is one of the two or three biggest holidays in this part of the world and May 9 remains important in marking the end of WWII. So schedules can be weird -- what's open, etc. -- during that first week, but at the same time there are street fairs, etc. Also Kyiv Day is held on the last weekend of May, more of same. Broadly speaking, though, May is the best month to visit Kyiv - the weather has finally turned the corner, the chestnut trees are blooming... it's somewhat unexplainable but it's true.

2. Lviv *is* nice. However, it's essentially just an even smaller version of charming old Eastern European city/town. That's cool and all, but it's a long way away from everything else. if you've seen Krakow or Prague, you've basically seen Lviv.

3. Kyiv's charms are... subtle. Aside perhaps from the Lavra and Saint Sophia (the latter of which is maybe an hour of your time), the best of the city comes mostly from walking around and just sucking up the atmosphere (which, as I said, should be fantastic in May)

4. St. Petersburg is fantastic. Do a canal tour. Definitely take the train between Moscow and St. Pete: if you factor in the taxi fares at both airports, you should still be able to do a sleeper cabin more cheaply (esp. considering you're not paying for a hotel).

5. Moscow is really expensive. You can find ways to do it cheaply, obviously, but if you really want a feel for the city, you want to play to it at least once (i.e. go to a nice restaurant e.g. Cafe Pushkin one night for dinner).

You might be able to do 3 days Ukraine, 3 St. Pete, 3 Moscow with good connections, but it sounds a bit high pressure to me.

Look at a more appropriate forum (e.g. Lonely Planet) than ILX.

i am interested in vladivostock. not to the point of actually traveling there, but it sounds interesting. has anyone been there?

it's because i've been reading this book about people who live in the taiga and are hunted by a man-eating tiger:

http://dana.deathe.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/1105025-gf.jpg

Oh man. I'm really interested in vladivostock because I want to ride the Orient Express and I believe it terminates there? Anyway I would also love to hear about ppl who've been there although I'd be surprised if there were many. Is that book good? Sound like something I'd dig.

Not Orient Express, btw. - Trans-Siberian.

yeah it's worth reading, it's like if you took a good new yorker article and made it book-length

A friend spent some time in Vladivostok a few years ago. She said there are some interesting elements where the Chinese and Korean influences meet the Russian ones but that there's a bigger corruption problem in the city than almost anywhere else in Russia. It's one of the most expensive parts of the country - hotels, shops and restaurants, etc are extra-flash and extremely costly but most of the money circulates between dodgy businessmen and dodgy politicians. Poverty is higher than in most major conurbations. It's apparently pretty pleasant to visit but maybe not to stay long.

The Trans-Siberian also terminates in Beijing, depending which route you take, and that's probably more of an attractive destination.

hello.

can anyone recommend me some things to go to in st petersburg that aren't the usual obvious things? my itinerary includes those - the hermitage museum, grand palace etc - but i'd like to try to get to go to attractions or spots that are less well known if i can...

What kind of things are you interested in? Have you been to Russia before?

Everyone goes to the Hermitage but lots of people miss out on the Russian Museum which is SP's equivalent of the Tretyakov. You can skip most of the 16th - 19th century stuff but the early icons and modern art are stunning.

The Yusupov Palace is really charming and gives an idea of how the minor nobility lived. It's also where Raputin was offed so there's an extra element of historical interest.

If you're a fan of Nabokov, you can visit the little museum in the house where he grew up.

Particularly if you haven't been to Russia before, it's always good to visit one of the huge street markets to get a sense of the country's less flashy, and more diverse, side. I think Apraksin Dvor's one of the biggest ones but they ebb and flow.

i've never been to russia despite having wanted to go, like, all my life. it's for a travel piece so it's less about what i'm interested in, more stuff that i can cover that isn't the obvious hermitage etc - nabokov's house and the yusupov palace sound like excellent ideas, thanks.