It's official... I will be arriving in St Petersburg on April 23rd, then Moscow on April 30th. I am planning on spending 5 nights in Moscow at the end. May 1st seems to be a holiday - can anyone tell me what to expect on that day? closures, parade, etc.? I am considering an apartment rental in Moscow. There are a few places that I'm considering through Airbnb and another through gotorussia.net. The locations of the three that interest me most are: - halfway between the Pushinkaya and Arbatskaya metro stations (most expensive) - near the Akademicheskaya metro (cheap) - near the Kozhukhovskaya metro (cheapest) My departure flight from Moscow will be at 09:30 from SVO. My feel is that the third one, the cheapest, will be most inconvenient. Will the first location really be worth paying double the price of the second, in your opinion? Would you have any other apartments, hotels, BnBs to recommend?
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
Try to stay within easy walking distance of Red Square since there are SOOOO many sights located there. We stayed at this hotel and really liked it: http://www.hotel-peter1.ru/eng/ Try using these discount hotel site. I've used them both and their prices are usually better than booking directly with the hotels: www.yeego.com
www.alpharooms.com
Posted by
Seattle, WA, United States
873 posts
Pushkinskaya/Arbatskaya is very central, hence the most expensive. It's one Metro stop away from Red Square, Alexander Garden, Okhotny Ryad, GUM, etc. all the touristy stuff. My uncle lives near Akademicheskaya/Leninskiy Prospekt, and it's a pretty nice area, as far as non-central Moscow goes. Just a couple of Metro transfers will get you to the heart of the city. In my opinion, if you feel comfortable using the Metro, it is absolutely not worth it to pay double the price for Pushkinskaya. I would probably stay away from Red Square on May 1st if you can. While it's not the huge holiday it was during Soviet times (bad memories of having to wave red flags and sing songs as a kid), it might still be busier than usual. Also, I will say that you should avoid surface-level transportation whenever you can. The city is very congested, and I've had to get off buses/out of taxis before because it was a parking lot. The Metro is far more efficient. Edit: looking at the Metro map, the third option is actually only a couple of stops from where I used to live (that line hadn't been built yet in 1995). While it's not a terrible area, it's more complicated to get to the center from there, so unless the price drop is significant, don't take that apartment.
Posted by
OP
Ottawa
1446 posts
Many thanks Tim & Anna! Thanks for the excellent feedback, Anna - it was exactly the sort of precise info that I was hoping for! Unfortunately, the owner of the apt near Akademicheskaya has not yet responded. But given your description of the area, I'll keep looking at other reasonably-priced choices in the same area. St Petersburg was very easy - I nailed a good choice right away! Moscow is turning into a bit of a challenge...
Posted by
Seattle, WA, United States
873 posts
Not a problem! I would also recommend the area near the Vorobyovy Gory station. There's a big park nearby, if I recall correctly, and the Moscow river crosses through that area, so there is a "waterfront" of sorts. This is all slightly to the west of Akademicheskaya/Leninskiy Prospekt.