New Baltic info

[John F]

I saw this article posted on another site. Could present problems for cruisers in the future.

http://www.sptimes.ru/archive/times/1027/top/t_14327.htm John F

[mare s.]

I thought a visa was required already? I know the private tour companies state they will make visa arrangements for clients.

[DON M.]

I thought a visa was required already? I know the private tour companies state they will make visa arrangements for clients.

I think at the present time, if you travel on a ship's tour no visa is nessasary but tour companies or own your own you need to show a visa with the tour companies handling the paper work for you.

[wolfegizmo]

When we went with Red October last summer, we did not need visas.

[JodiBB]

According to the Red October website, as long as you have a pre-arranged tour either with the ship or a professional tour company like RO or Denrus, then a visa is not necessary and they will take care of all necessary paperwork to show you meet the qualifications of such a visitor.

[derik]

You do not need VISA to tour with Red October.

They say " ...all you need is RO's tickets and your passport".

Good luck!

[stanj]

I seriously doubt visa will be required of cruisers because of two points: the prestige of St Petersburg is well protected by the highest influences in the Kremlin walls, as Putin was Vice Mayor and called SPb home and second, the State Duma is nortoriously ineffective in getting these bills passed. A highly desired and needed land and property rights bill took 8 years to pass...when all were in agreement that it was a good thing and needed. Russia has been reaching out to Europe, if not the US, in recent years, strengthening economic ties and working out a plan for visa waivers for EU countries.

It is ture that there is a general rule of thumb in diplomatic relationships of reciprocity where fees and applications forms are adjusted by each country to approximately equate to the other. The US has become more restrictive so it has become a little harder for US passport holders to get visas to those effected countries. Russia began requiring all US males from 18-45 fill out an additional form detailing all weapons and military training and expertise as a direct response to the US requiring it of Russian men who apply for US visas.

Another principle of life in Russia: There is always more than one way to get something done. If people want to spend money to visit on cruise ships there will be a way to allow it to happen.

The real force behind this bill might be other tour operators however. Major hotels are not happy that the second largest group of foreign visitors to SPb, Americans, spend very little money and time in the city, instead living on board a ship and not eating in restaurants. Europeans and Asians who come to SPb normally come by land and stay longer while Americans come by ship primarily and stay a very short time and do not live off the local economy while visiting. I've heard hotel managers complain how they suffer when cruises come to the city. The major hotels in SPb are mostly managed by western companies and I would not be surprised if they were behind the proposed law to even the playing field, all their current customers need visas to stay in their hotel. If cruises needed visas, the hotels by their thinking would get more and longer term visitors.

Just a few thoughts...

Stan

[Host CMLA]

You do not need VISA to tour with Red October.

They say " ...all you need is RO's tickets and your passport".

Good luck!

A visa is required for Russia. When you do a ship tour or a tour with one of the companies mentioned here, your visa cost is included in the tour package. It's part of the RO ticket. That's why they have all your information before you get there.

[whenzuc]

How much does a Visa cost?

[stanj]

A 30 day Tourist single entry visa has two costs, the consular fees and the cost for the tourist invitation or Voucher. The Consulate charges $100 to issue a visa within the US. This takes 6-7 days but by expediting the processing and paying higher fees it can be accomplished in as little as a few hours. I've gotten business visas in as little as 20 minutes in the San Francisco Russian Consulate.

The Voucher or Invitation price is determined by the travel agent or hotel which provides it. Usually it is between $25-40 and can be had in a few hours via email or fax. Business visas require the original invitation document instead of a copy via fax or email attachment so they take a bit longer.

 

You can apply for a touirst visa good for 30 days in either single or 2-entry types for the same consular fee.

 

Documents needed to apply: A passport style photo, your passport which is good at least 1 month after your date of departure from Russia, an application form, your Invitation or Voucher, and the most important item, the consular fee in the form of M.O. or Cashier's Check.

A lot of people are intimidated the process but it is really simple to get your own visa to allow more independence of movements while in Russia.

If you were to stay longer that the short port call, you would be required to "Register" your visa which is free in your hotel or costs 600-700 Rubles($20-$24) if you are not staying in a hotel. A very common what to stay is short term rental of an apartment for $50-140/night. The $50 apartment will be basic and clean and the $140 end of the scale can be expected to be very deluxe, better in furnishings and decor than a 5 Star hotel. Mini-hotels have also become popular for short term visitors and are priced about the same as private flats.

A popular budget living arrangement is Home-Stay, where you rent a room with a Russian family. For the sheer adventure and excitement of getting to know your host country and it great passion for hospitality, on a more intimate level, Home Stay is great...and cheap, usually $15-20/night including real home cooked meals. Russian cooking is one of the things I have grown to really love.

Have a great visit to our city

Stan

[stanj]

Hello Alexei

I think you are mistaken with regard to the original invitation document requirements for USA based Russian Consulates. I handle visas for people on both ends of their travel as well as my own and I stopped using faxed copies 5 years ago. At one time they wanted the inviting agency to Fax directly to the Consulate but now, for several years, US Russian Consulates do not even accept Faxed documents sent directly to them, the invitation documents must be including in the application instead.

Other sorts of visas DO reguire originals such as the 12 month business visa letter of invitation. For years I used to use faxed or electronic versions while applicants in several other countries were required to submit only originals. Two years ago, all consulates alighed their requirements so now all long term Business visa applications require the original letter.

The regulation regarding the 72 hours is interpreted differently in various regions of Russia. Some still use the old time period of 3 working days while other areas specify 72 hours. Moscow in particular is getting tighter with each terrorist incident so registration is not so simple as it once was but St Petersburg is still easy. Hotels do not register visitors who are not guests of their hotels much anymore, whereas in the past, a few such as Moscow Hotel on lower Nevsky Pr would register anyone who paid 500R.

A ship based cruiser does not need to worry about changes in visitor or migration law, or changes in interpretation of those laws because they will be lifting anchor well before the 72 hours is up.

All this confusion is probably intimidating the first time visitors reading this talk of visa, registration and migration but it is really simple and nowhere as ominous as it sounds. It is just different than what a visitor might have experienced in travels to Europe and other Visa Waiver countries..

Stan

[cadreamer]

Stan - Could you please elaborate on the 2 entry tourist visa. We will actually be on a ship for 2 calls in St.P and would like to have a visa to use both times. What is the best way to go about getting this 2 entry visa. Palladium? Thanks.

[stanj]

Hello Alexi and CaDreamer

I wanted to clarify something that still sounds confusing to those reading this thread. The Russian consulates in the US accept and actually prefer printed jpg images of the voucher and confirmation, the "Invitation" for Tourist visas. Simply print out the jpg attachment your agency or hotel sends to you and include that in your visa application. The application will consist of the invitation documents sent to you by your hotel or tourist agency, a passport type photo available at any travel agent, Woolworths, Rite-Aid or camera store for a few dollars for 2-4(keep the rest, you may need them), your consular fees ( for US citizens it is $100 for 6-7 day processing, more for faster turnaround) in the form of a money order or cashier's check(no personal checks or credit cards), and a completed application form. You can down load the application from http://www.russianembassy.org/consulat/Anketa04.doc which is a fillible word document. These can be taken to your nearest consulate or mailed. If mailed or FedEx'd you need to include either a self addressed stamped envelope large enough for your passport or prepaid FedEx envelope. This should be down within about 45 days of your intended entry into Russia. They will not accept applications too far in advance of your visit, so 30-45 days is a good time to apply.

 

Cadreamer, the double entry Tourist visa costs the same to process as a single entry. Enclude a copy of your schedule to show when you will arrive and depart on each leg and it will not be any problem.

The invitation can be gotten from an agency such as Den Rus or Alexi's, most charge $25-40 unless you book tours with them and then many will provide it free of charge. Hotels will often provide it free for those with prepaid bookings also.

 

My suggestion for anyone for how to enjoy the city the most depends on their experience with Russia and St Petersburg. There is so much to learn that guide books will not prepare them for that a first visit ought to be with the aid of a good guide/interpreter. after those first few days of cram course in Russian culture and getting by, the next leg of their journey, when they return for the second entry, they will be well prepared to wing it and visit those venues and activities that interested them but for which they had too little time the first time through. No one is bored with St Petersburg not matter what their personal interests are.

 

Cadreamer, if you have any more questions about Russia and St Petersburg in particular, feel free to contact me or the board. I get the email notices when someone responds to a current thread. As an American who choses to live in St Petersburg for about the same reasons visitors like to come, I have a little different perspective on what American's would react to or be interested in than even your guide would.

Merry Christmas all!

Stan

[cadreamer]

Stan, I really want to thank you or all the info you have provided and for your offer of more assistance. We are trying to figure out how to go to Moscow on our next visit by cruise ship to St. Petersburg. Red Ocotber has no tours when we are there and we really don't want to go with the ship if we can help it. If we get visas we can get transfer service to and from the airport and a guide to meet us in Moscow but I am concerned that we can even get to the gates and find our flights since the guide can not go beyond security. I have heard the Moscow airport is very difficult to navigate.

I am thinking of getting the double entry tourist visa and doing St.Petersburg on our own or with Palladium or another guide I have contacted who said she would tour us around by public transport to help reduce the cost. We have also used Denrus in the past and were very impressed. We have been to most of the big sights and want to spend more time at some of the museums and sights and also go into the city at night. Our ship provides a shuttle into town and we will be there for 4 visits - 3 days each visit. So, we have a very unique opportunity to see St. Petersburg.We are thinking of doing a combination of on our own and on tour. Any suggestions you have would be appreciated.

[stanj]

Hi CaDreamer

You are going to get to really see a lot more of the city with those 3 day visits. Unless you really have a lot that you must see in Moscow, the most interesting sights can be visited in 3 days. Moscow has everything you might be interested in but in less visitor friendly environment. Not that is it not visitor friendly, it is a REAL big fast paced expensive city that does not specifically cater to tourists. Think New York City, facinating and exciting but where do you start? Red Square and its area is THE major tourist stop and well worth it. If you are spending so much time in SPb, don't bother with cultural performances in Moscow because in SPb(our abrv. for St Petersburg) you must visit the Mariinsky Theater. There are lots of options for guided tours of Moscow so we can help or Den Rus and I will guess that Alexi can do that also. I know a very trustworth American man who rents 12 apartments and provides tour services/cars/drivers and really takes care of visitors. He has been there a lot time and is married to a local girl who recently gave birth to their first child. A short term vacation apartment rental is a very nice alternative to hotels which tend to be pricy in Moscow.

 

 

How to get there? If you opt for the 2 entry tourist visa I would suggest skipping the plane, it is only 330 miles so the train is a great way to run between the two major cities. The reason for that suggestion is that: it is fun, cheap, fast, non-threatening dealing with decidely unfriendly domestic airport SVO I, convienent and fits your schedule....I can go on;>) Have your guide in SPb go with you to buy your ticket at the office at #7 Nevsky Prospekt, very near the Hermitage. The departing station is down the same well known street by 3/4 of a mile, a street you will become very familar with in a few days since it is the heart of the historic city center. The names of stations relate to their main destinations so the station is called Moscow Station or "Moskovsky vokzal". The airport is 17 miles south of the city center so when adding the time for check in and security, taking the slower train from right downtown SPb to downtown Moscow is about the same total duration. The difference is that you can relax in a private cabin, eat or sleep so as to avoid a night of hotel stay. Trains run all day but the overnight train is very popular. Your guide can pick you up from the station in Moscow since they will know your train which is always on time plus or minus 1 or 2 minutes, and your coach number so as to be standing in front of your door when it opens. When returning to SPb, your Moscow guide will put you safely into your return cabin. Navigaiting the Moscow SVO I domestic airport is not so much fun, it is small but very crowded and reading Russian signs is almost a must. There are 4 airports in Moscow and all are far from the city center.

Check out this web site for schedules of trains:

http://www.poezda.net/en/timetable_detail?mode=3&st_from=Sankt-Peterburg&st_to=Moskva&st_transfer=

or this site for the best general train web site for all of Europe and Russia, it is a non-commercial site created by a fanatical but extremely helpful train fan from England the famous "Man in Seat 61" http://www.seat61.com/Russia.htm

 

Another delightful way to visit Moscow is the river cruise but it takes longer than your time slot might allow. The SPb river passenger terminal is further south on the Neva River from your seagoing cruise ship docks.

 

Given the time you have, your schedule will be much more flexible and seeing the sights and including activities around any special interests you have. What are your special interests? Art, architecture, history, shopping, performance art, gardens, hiking in the woods collecting berries and having a Russian Banya, military history, night life or fine dining or even learning to cook Russian cuisine. Personally I like all these and more of the activities in SPb so I can suggest how to get the most of them. I suggest a few days with a tour guide learning your way around as completely as you can and spend the next segments on your own exploring the very easy to navigate city. One suggestion, spend some time, a few hours, learning the Cyrillic alphabet. It is easy and you will be amazed on how much more confident you will be reading signs....many words are familar English words written in Cyrillic letteriing. Simpy sound out the letters tells you what they mean. Street names and subway station stops suddenly become accessable to you with your increasing confidence getting around on your own. When you arrive get a copy of one of the English language newspapers, St Petersburg Times, Neva News, SPb In Your Pocket or Pulse, available in the lobbies of any major hotel...a giid excuse to visit the Grand Hotel Europe..and check the social calendars and you will find dozens of concerts festivals, temporary exhibits and events that you can add to your schedule. In the Summer, from mid May to September, the city is alive with special events. I used to write for Neva News part time and kept current in the activities last year and was exhausted by September after being inviolved with everything from sponsoring 2 international film festivals, concerts series in 6 palaces, drama festivals, pop/jazz festivals, you name it. It was an exciting year. You will be there during these sorts of activities so some will interest you surely.

Contact your guide or Den Rus...I recommend them because I know them personally and can attest to their skill, knowledge and great can-do attitude that makes a visit to SPb perfect. You good past experience is typcial. Their office is easy to remember #1 Nevsky Prospekt right around the corner from the Hermitage and across the street from the Admiralty. If you want a private guide to show you around on foot or public transportation let them know, it can be very reasonable. Unless you want to go some distance with a group you do not need a van or car. Given your more relaced schedule, you can spend more time exploring on foot, what SPb really reveals itself through. You will really get the feel of this unique city by spending as much time as possible on foot, feeling it, smelling it, touching it.

You have a lot of time to plan but first order of business would be to go to your local travel book store and stock up on a few guide books and one or two on history. I recommend the D&K guide books from England because they have beautiful photos. All guide books are out of date but the basics are still valid. Then ask your guide to lay out a program for the first day of what I call "city proofing" having a fun time learning everything you need to know to explore it on your own. That includes how and where to exchange money (and more important how not to), use the public telephones, exploring the metro(subway), how to order food or services, how to use trams, mini-buses, buying tickets, tips on shopping, pedestrian guidelines, postal services, main landmarks to prevent getting lost, basic sign reading, map orientation, customs and traditions that will make your host city more comfortable with you, etc. A few hours of this will open up the city to you and build your self confidence and safety. Suddenly you will feel right at home and eager to explore alone. When I have visitors come, I spend 2-3 hours teaching them these things and they quickly realize it is one of the most user-friendly cities you can find despite not knowing the language.

If you tell me what sorts of special interests you have and I can suggest specific activities, museums, venues and addresses.

 

Have a great series of visits

Stan

[cadreamer]

Stan - First I want to thank you again for all the effort you are making to help us with our visits to STb. We think we should get multiple visas and then we would be covered for all 4 entries, Moscow and also for the possibility of going to the Ukraine if we decide to do that. My husband wants to try to see Kiev also. What do you think of that plan? We have a woman /guide who says she can get the letters for us and that we do not necessarily have to do business to get a multiple visa. Do you agreee? Do we need original letters for this visa? I thought that is what you said previously.

I have checked the train schedule. Are we correct that the trains from STb to Moscow can take 4-5 hours or 8 hours. Are the 4-5 hour trains regular passenger trains and then are the the longer trains sleepers? I checked out the the British man's web site and liked seeing the pictures of the trains. The sleepers look very nice. Apparently there is no late morning train to Moscow so we will decide whether to go in the afternoon and spend the nite and tour the following day and then return late evening or go very early the second day we are in STb and come back on the overnight train. I doubt we would sleep but it would save the hotel.I really like what you said about how much easier it will be for the guides to find us on the train. The airport sounded pretty daunting.

Thanks too for the idea of having the guide for the first visit to orient us and get us feeling comfortable. We will definitley do that. Learning the alphabet sounds like a great idea too. Also I would like to contact the gentleman you mentioned in Moscow about a room if we decide to spend the nite and maybe tours. All your ideas of the kinds of places we may like to see and do are terrific and I will get some books and try to prioritize what we want to see. I know I will have many more questions as we progress and look forward to learning more from you.. Our top priority now is getting the visas. Thanks again. You must be a great typist!!

[cadreamer]

Stan - Thanks again. You are SOO helpful. Here is my next question. The woman/guide in SPb told me I could get a mulitple entry business visa even tho we are not doing business. Then I heard from Palladium that I can only get toursit visas -possibly 2 of those to cover 4 visits. The woman also indicated that the tourist or business visa from Russia would cover the Ukraine. Am I getting incorrect info from her? Do we need two separate visas for SPb and Kiev. We really appreciated you comments on Kiev and are looking into that trip. The train is too long and again we would have the navigating the airport problem unless we go with a guide from SPb which would be costly. We really would like to go there so we will try to figure something out. Sorry for wearing out your two fingers. You have given us a lot to work on but first I have to get this visa thing straight. We got the DK guide book and it is great.

[cadreamer]

Stan - I now know I misunderstood about the Ukraine visa and know we need a separate visa for the Ukraine. There is a lot of info to process. Sorry about that. I still am not clear on the multiple entry versus 2 double entry. Is it possibly because we are arriving on a cruise ship that we can not have a "business" visa? I also undertand that it is too soon to apply for the Russian visas.

I tried the tutorial on the Russian alphabet and it is fun. I recommend it to all the cruisers planning to go to SPb.

The more I research the more questions I have. Thanks again.

[stanj]

Hi CaDreamer

You can get a business visa, it is not reclusively for busniessmen. In fact it is not even legal to do some types of business on a business visa or to earn income. It allows a business representitive to visit negotiate, present information, seek opportunities.....anything except conducting commercial business resulting in personal income. As with anything in Russia, there is a law and there are a hundred ways of interpreting it, there are ALWAYS more than one way to do something...that is part of what is fun living in Russia. The law says the business visa is strictly for business activities but most business visas issued are for tourism alone A multiple re-entry business visa allows an unlimited number entries and exits during the visa's period of validity. A Tourist visa is granted for the period of your stay...up to 30 days while a multiple re-entry visa is for a fixed period with no regard to the duration of any particular visit or the number of visits. So a 30 day Tourist visa might be granted upon entry at passport control for only 3 days if you have a flight in 3 days....even if you intended to change the return date through the airline. That is why almost all frequent visitors opt for the business visas and most ex-pats living in Russia do so on a 12 month business visa despite there being other forms that might be intended for their their type of stay.

A visa application does not ask for how you are going to arrive, just your entry date and intended city of entrance. Arriving by car, train or ship is no different than by air when applying for the visa. If you are confused about any of the form questions...there are a few ambiguous questions...from my experience, (the most important item in the application is the money oder for the fee;>) ) let me know. I know the form pretty intimately after filling them out many dozens of times. I have so many visas and entries/exits in the last 6 years since I got this latest passport that I had to get an extra large extention of pages added to my passport by the US Consulate in St Petersburg. When entering the US, customs and passport control always give me the third degree as to why I visit Russian and Ukraine so often, they don't accept "tourism". Once I said "business" and I was detained for 3 hours because I had no more business cards on me, so naturally missed my connecting flight to San Francisco. You will notice it is MUCH easier to go through passport control in Russia and Ukraine than a foreigner or even a frequent traveling American coming into the US. You can take almost anything through the Green Line "nothing to declare" in Russia as long as it is not intended for sale in Russia. I get my things really torn up when arriving in the US by customs however because of the number of trips in my passport.

 

Why did an agency suggest the tourist visa only? No doubt because they don't offer one for sale. Actually it is the easiest one for a company to qualify to issue invitations. If you need an invitations from a business in St Petersburg let me know. Den Rus can supply whatever you need including a better informed guide, one that knows you need a visa to Ukraine;>)

 

Yes, Ukraine requires a visa (for now, in the future they promise to adopt a visa waiver program like the rest of Europe has with the US). Visas for Ukraine are getting easier and easier to get and they are for a longer period of time both greatly boosted their tourist industry which is nipping at the heels of crop production as the biggest industry. Most tourists are still Russians who by the way do NOT need a visa or even an international passport to cross the boarder. They do however need at least their internal passport. Internal passports are universal ID booklets that contain a person's registered residence, marital status, photo and a few other things, sort of like the the myriad of ID Americans are required to use each day rolled into one little book. Buying a tran ticket, renting an apartment, using a bank and such all require showing the internal passport as personal identification. No other id is required....none of the "3 forms of ID " often seen in the US.

 

Your guide in SPb can get your tickets for the train to Moscow and see you off. Arrange for someone like the American man, Rick, to pick up you up in Moscow and he will get your tickets for your flight to Kiev. If you use a guide (recommended) such as Julia, she will pick you up at the airport and reverse the order, probably bypassing Moscow and flying directly into St Petersburg in time to catch your ship. In the summer train tickets are harder to get due to great demand than flights. It is not a good idea to just show up at the station intending to buy tickets for a train the same day in the summer when there is a mass migration of millions of city folk leaving for annual vacations in warm beach front resort areas such as Sochi in Russia or Crimea in Ukraine. At any given time, it seems that during the summer, big cities exchange whole populations with smaller rural cities. Finding a local friend to be in the city is a 2 in 3 proposition where at any given time, 1/3 of the people are gone for their annual month or longer vacation. And the streets of St Petersburg is filled with tourist....mostly Russian tourists from other parts of the country. It is considered the "jewel" of Russia by Russians no matter where they live.

Tickets for trains can be purchased online from home but until you know for sure your travel plans, that ought to wait till much later. Internal, domestic flights are pretty easy to book from within Russia and are much cheaper than buying through an agency outside Russia....same with train tickets.

 

Don't worry about my 2 tired fingers...I have 8 others I hardly ever use;>)

Stan

[cadreamer]

Stan - Thank you so so much for the information. I was really confused about the multiple visa and glad to know we can do it since it is the only way that makes sense. We are impressed with your experience and knowledge.We can really tell you are so enthusiastic about SPb and getting us there and to the other cities. Your enthusiaasm is contagious and we are getting very motivated to plan our trip. We are very appreciative.

I think we will have to go to Moscow on one visit and to Kiev on another visit. We actually are in SPb four times. We have to allow some extra time on both ends to get to the PM train to Moscow and to insure getting back to the ship. It wil seem less stress if we do it twice even tho it will no doubt cost more. We will plan to get tickets ahead.

I will begin the process of getting the multiple entry visas. Once I get those I know I will need your help with the application form. I am thinking of giving you our email address so we can communicate directly if that seems like a good idea to you. However, thanks to you I have learned after several years to get the email notification from Cruisecruitc. I never knew about it til now. It is so much easier and it makes it easier to copy your replies which I have been doing. So either way works.

Thanks again. You got us on the path and it is great to know we have a knowledgable and motivated resident of SPB to help us. I may yet wear down your other 8 fingers! I am off to continue my tutorial on the alphabet.

[Compass Rose Monica]

Hi Stan,

 

I had sent to Ilya and Olga at Denrus our passport information for our May 2005 2-day tour. I haven't heard from them at all since November 17th and I've emailed them 3 times since then.

 

I'm wondering if Russia is really going to implement the new Visa rules where we would have to get our own, hence the reason of no emails from Denrus. But I can't imagine they wouldn't email me. Ilya has been very responsive to all of my previous emails, one of the reasons for choosing Denrus.

 

One of my cruise mates emailed me today about his booking. It took 2.5 months to process his documents, and a month to receive the packet. I suppose 2.5 months is a normal timeframe to get all this set up, but they haven't responded to any of my recent emails.

 

Do you keep in touch with Ilya? Have you heard any possibility that Denrus is out of business?

 

Has anyone heard from Denrus since December?

 

Thanks,

 

Monica

[tone]

Monica:

 

I have the same experience as you. I last contacted Denrus in October and tried to contact them again in the last few weeks without any luck. I also tried Red October and they emailed me back right away saying that they are on Christmas break until Jan 10 but would get back to me at that time. Let me know if you have any luck as I was going to go with Denrus also but this has shaken my confidence in them.

 

Tone

[stanj]

Hi Monica and Tone:

 

I have not heard from the owner for a few weeks, when he returned from a month vacation in Florida. I wrote an email directly to him but have not heard anything. I know they take their vacations in the winter when there are no cruise ships since the Neva River is covered with ice. This winter is very mild so little ice however.

I am sure Den Rus is still around, it is too well established to close. I'll call on the phone tomorrow to see what is up, not answering emails is not like them so there must be a simple explaination. I'll report back with what I find.

 

The processing of the shore excursion visas is very fast, getting the packet is dependent on mail speed. There is plenty of time. In all likelihood they are observing the holidays, the Russian Christmas and New Year is occur twice, one each for the Georgian and one each for the Julian calendars

Talk to you later,,,,

Stan

[stanj]

Hi Tone and Monica

I contacted Ali, the owner of Den Rus and he was quite surprised that your messages were not replied to because Ilya is in the office and normally replies within hours. Most of Russia is off work until the 11th but a small crew is working at Den Rus. Ali is working from home writing new articles for his web site. He should be back in the office full time on the 11th, tomorrow.

I suspect an email problem. Are you using the contact form on the web site or are you emailing directly to denrus@denrus.ru ? I wonder if there is some connection with these communications problems and the contact submittal form. Please resend your messages and if you want, add CC to ali@denrus.ru so Ali can see if there is a difference between the two mailboxes.

I am sure, after seeing their service in the past that they were not ignoring you and will do anything possible to handle what you need.

Stan

[Compass Rose Monica]

Hi Stan,

 

Thanks for your response. I'll use both those email addresses. I've been using this address: sia@denrus.ru Then someone from this web site gave me Olga's direct address, but haven't heard from her. Maybe today. I am surprised, but hope it's because Ilya is on vacation, not to hear from anyone. Yes, Ilya has always been very responsive, usually within the same day. Your message makes me feel a little better. I'll send an email today! And Tone, I'll write here again when I hear from them. I'll let them know too that you are waiting to hear from them.

 

Monica ;)