If I purchase a regular (i.e., not a Eurailpass) train ticket from Amsterdam to St. Petersburg and the train goes through Moscow, can I de-train and stay in Moscow for a few days and then resume to St. Petersburg or must I go straight on through?
Thanks for any help!
An international, unreserved ticket allows two weeks to complete the trip along the prescribed route (used to be longer). Separate reservations may be needed on some legs, for instance for a bed on an overnight train. I have seen notes that you are supposed to check in with a station agent when breaking the trip. The faster train connections that I see online (40 hours) are via Minsk, not Moscow.
Almost all, if not all, of the trains between Moscow and St. Petersburg are either overnight trains with sleeper compartments, or fast Sapsan trains. These trains tend to run quite full, and I don't know if there are any unreserved trains on that route anymore. So, even if your ticket were technically good on these trains (and I'm not sure it would be), you may not be able to find a train that has space. If you intend to go from Amsterdam to St. Petersburg and then go from St. Petersburg to Moscow a few days later, I'd make sure to be ticketed that way, and get your reservation for either the Sapsan seat or the sleeper compartment of the St. Pete to Moscow section in advance.
More on Russian trains here, from The Man In Seat 61: http://www.seat61.com/Russia.htm#.U8Q5e7GGe8A
Sorry, not to have replied with a 'thank you for the information'. I have been traveling!
So, thanks!
