All stations have luggage storage facilities and lockers. It's advisable not to leave valuables at these facilities.

   Most Russians take food and drink with them for the journey as there is usually little available on board. However, some trains to Moscow and to international destinations offer standard Russian snacks (bread and salami) and some even have a restaurant car. In all long-distance trains, each carriage has a samovar of boiling water for tea or coffee.

   There are pay phones that accept St. Petersburg phone cards on board some trains to Moscow.

The Stations

   Finland Station or Finlandsky Vokzal is the only station north of the Neva and it serves Vyborg and Helsinki. Lenin arrived here in 1917 after the February Revolution and gave his historic speech from atop an armored car. In commemoration of this speech a statue of Lenin stands in front of the station in the aptly-named Lenin Square. In fact, your first view upon leaving the station will be Lenin's posterior.
   There are two trains a day to Helsinki: the fabulous Finnish Sibelius (number 33) train which leaves in the afternoon and a morning train Repin (number 35) and a Russian style train. Both of these trains stop in Vyborg for customs. When buying tickets you will not be offered the Sibelius unless you ask for it (likewise, in Finland you will not be offered the Russian train). For those interested in saving a little money or in visiting Russia's answer to Tijuana, take a commuter train (elektrichka) (see below) to Vyborg and change to one of the above mentioned Helsinki trains. Other local connections include Zelenogorsk, Sestroretsk and Repino. Ploshchad Lenina 6. Metro: Ploshchad Lenina.

   Moscow Station or Moskovsky Vokzal handles trains to and from Moscow, northern Russia, Central Asia, Georgia, the Caucasus, and the Crimea. There are several daily trains to Moscow with the night trains being preferable; they take about eight hours and leave around midnight so you (theoretically) fall asleep and then wake up in Moscow. The best night trains in Moscow are numbers 1, 3, 5, 9,19, 25, and 27. Day trains include 159 and the fast 157 (also called ER-200) which leaves St. Petersburg at 12:15 and arrives in Moscow at 17:16. Ploshchad Vosstaniya 2. Metro: Ploshchad Vosstaniya.

   Vitebsk Station or Vitebsky Vokzal serves the south Ukraine (Kiev, Odessa), Belorussia (Minsk, Brest), and Moldavia as well as Novgorod and Smolensk. There are several local trains each day to the towns of Pushkin and Pavlovsk. Zagorodny Prospekt 52. Metro: Pushkinskaya.

   Warsaw Station or Varshavsky Vokzal handles trains to Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Lvov, Pskov, Poland and the rest of eastern Europe. If you are travelling to Poland or beyond, it is cheaper to buy a ticket to the border city of Grodno in Belorussia and then to buy a ticket for a Polish train. Naberezhnaya Obvodnogo Kanala 118. Metro: Baltiiskaya.

   Baltic Station or Baltiisky Vokzal deals exclusively with local trains to Peterhoff, Gatchina, Lomonosov and other local destinations. Naberezhnaya Obvodnogo Kanala 120. Metro: Baltiiskaya.

By train from Helsinki

Another pleasant way to travel is to take a train from a European city to St Petersburg or Moscow. Finnair flies daily from New York to Helsinki from about $700 return. After a few relaxing days in Helsinki, take the train to St Petersburg or Moscow. (Finnair also flies daily from Helsinki to St Petersburg or Moscow.) Two trains leave daily for St Petersburg, one Russian and one Finnish. The Russian one leaves at 15.06 and arrives at 23.15. The Finnish train departs at 06.25 and arrives at 13.45: both arrive the same day as departure, with a one-hour advance time change.
The Moscow train leaves each day at 17.08, arrives the next morning at 09.10. Instead of dealing with reservations at the last minute in Helsinki, you can book and pay for the train through your travel agency (strongly recommended as the trains fill up in advance). Return trains leave Moscow at 18.17 and arrive in Helsinki at 09.02 the next day. Russian trains from St Petersburg depart at 06.25 and arrive in Helsinki at 12.07 the same day. The Finnish train leaves at 15.55 and arrives Helsinki 21.26.

By train from Moscow

The Red Arrow trains between St Petersburg and Moscow are a wonderful way to travel. Board the sleeper at night and arrive the next morning for a full day of sightseeing. Since there are several train stations in each city, make sure you know which one you are departing from. In St Petersburg, trains for Moscow leave from the Moskovsky Vokzal, the Moscow station. In Moscow, trains for St Petersburg leave from the Leningradsky Vokzal, the Leningrad Station.

Tips

The trains always leave on time with a broadcasted warning five minutes before departure-and that is all! So do not miss the train! First class has two beds to a compartment and second class has four. This is an excellent way to meet Russians. A personal car attendant will bring tea (brewed in the car's samovar) and biscuits, and wake you up in the morning. Remember to turn off the radio at night or the National Anthem will blast you awake at 6 am. The compartments are not segregated. If there is a problem, the attendant can usually arrange a swap. It is difficult for foreigners to buy train or plane tickets direct from local stations or ticket counters. Tickets are usually bought through Intourist or a hotel service desk. Each city visited must be listed on your visa. If you have some Russian friends, they can purchase a ticket in rubles at local ticket offices. If you have a ticket for rubles, the train attendant will also charge a minor fee for sheets and towels once you have settled in the compartment.