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Messages - john_st
1
« on: June 26, 2012, 07:14:25 pm »
I am having huge problems. The clerk was able to make reservations: Chop-Moscow and Vladivostok-Irkutsk, but the main reservation is creating a problem. The reservation system says that the Moscow-Vladivostok train doesn't exist even though the clerk checked Hafas (right in front of me) and there the train exists. Later I checked Poezda and the train exists.
The train is 2MJ Rossija from Moscow Iar. to Vladivostok departing Aug 1st at 23:45.
She tried all sorts of combinations 2, 02, 002, 0002, 00002 but it didn't work. She can't input letters in the train number. This is a big deal for me because now I have to either shorten my stay in St. Petersburg by one day and spend an extra day in Vladivostok (train 240 on Aug 1st) or loose 2 days (train 918 on Jul 30th).
Can anyone check what the hell is going on? If Hafas sees the train and Poezda sees it too, why doesn't the Croatian system see it? What am I doing wrong?
2
« on: June 02, 2012, 01:45:40 pm »
So, on wednesday evening I'm going to Bratislava (night train to Zagreb, morning train to Vienna) to buy my CityStar ticket  Regarding buying reservations, are they connected to a ticket or can I buy them separately i.e. I come to a croatian counter to buy a sleeper reservation from Chop->Moscow but without having the CityStar ticket itself. Is this possible? Or are the reservations for a train only issued for a specific ticket?
3
« on: February 29, 2012, 09:06:11 pm »
Well, after more than a month I can say that the agency hasn't responded, and since I was sick a lot, I checked on the train station just today.
The clerk told me that they have that ability (sell reservations for russian trains) but that they have to know which train and date (obviously) and then they will try (doesn't sound to reassuring though).
I forgot to ask her, are the reservation prices the same in every country or not?
4
« on: January 22, 2012, 05:03:15 pm »
Well, for domestic routes RZD sells tickets only 45 days in advance, thus it's reasonable to think that reservations can be bought as well only 45 days in advance. That is just a difference between East-West tariff timing and RZD domestic.
But don't they have access to EPA in Croatia? Or maybe any agency having DB terminal or something? Since anyway East-West reservations for domestic Russian travel not necessarily need to be bought in Slovakia or Russia. Actual fare will be the same no matter whether you purchase it in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia etc. (it also funny that in Russia itself they will be more expensive comparing to the above places, since there you need to add VAT, if it's still the case)
I sent a mail to a Croatian agency that says, on its website, it is connected to the DB system so I hope they will answer: "Yes, you can buy reservations in Croatia." Hold your fingers crossed!! If not... Complicationsssss!!  Just want to remind you that East-West reservations for RZD carriages in cases of UZ-RZD routes are really expensive (comparing to UZ carriages), so it's better to count on either MAV-RZD or ZSSK-RZD (and vice verso) or avoid "Tisza" with RZD carriages.
I'm not sure I understood you. Are you saying that I should buy reservations for any carriage except a Russian one? Or are you saying that I should buy the reservation for the train via Ukraine in Hungary or Slovakia, regardless of which carriage I end up in?
5
« on: January 15, 2012, 03:03:41 pm »
@John
Maybe, the best solution is to buy Split - Satoraljaujhely ticket, and then just walk to Slovenske Nove Mesto, and catch there train to Moscow.
I guess so. But it seems that there is no longer a direct train to catch. I would have to go to Satoraljaujhely by train, walk over to Slovenske Nove Mesto, catch the train to Cierna nad Tisou, and from there catch a local train to Chop, and there catch the train from Budapest to Moscow. The timetable to Moscow is very reasonable, since I would arrive in Budapest from Split at 10:54 Budapest-Keleti 16:00
Satoraljaujhely 20:09
Slovenske Nove Mesto 21:19
Cierna nad Tisou 21:57
Cierna nad Tisou 22:44
Chop 00:30
Chop 04:18
Moskva Kievskaja 10:58 +1On return, My train to Split from Budapest leaves at 17:05 so the timetable is like this Moskva Kievskaja 22:13
Chop 03:00 +2
Chop 04:10
Cierna nad Tisou 05:16
Cierna nad Tisou 05:59
Slovenske Nove Mesto 06:35
Satoraljaujhely 07:47
Budapest-Keleti 12:00This would be very rough night so I would like to avoid it. Can you or tUt please tell me, if i bought a return ticket from Split to Zahony via Budapest in Croatia with the 60% discount, how much would the regular ticket from Zahony to Chop cost?
6
« on: January 15, 2012, 02:43:52 pm »
7
« on: January 08, 2012, 05:21:33 pm »
Is it a problem to buy the CityStar ticket during the weekend? Not a problem at all, ZSSK anyway sells now everything via computer, thus any working ticket counter with access should do fine. For instance official Client Centre in Bratislava Hl. works on weekends (http://www.zssk.sk/sk/informacie-o-cestovani)
How long before can I buy them anyway? 92 days as with DB or less/more? In this part of Europe usually it's 60 days (same with any East-West ticket), and other ZSSK CityStars are also sold from 60 days in advance, so with ZSSK-RZD it's hardly different 
p.s. sorry for a bit late reply, we got carried away by the holiday season 
No problem, there is time enough to discuss these details. This 60 day thing, does that mean that if my first day of travel is July 23rd and the last is August 24th, that the 60 days start from May 23rd or June 24th? Logic dictates June, but that is maybe a problem because that would mean only 30 days between my first day of travel and the trains might be sold out. It is the midle of summer after all.
8
« on: January 08, 2012, 05:09:12 pm »
Reservation fares are the same for RZD, UZ are slightly cheaper, for BC I don't know.
Unfortunately, no more Kiev/Lvov - Bratislava direct coaches. Even afternoon cross border train Chop - Cierna goes earlier so it's impossible to change from train 7 Kiev - Chop to cross the border to Slovakia. There is additional Moskva - Bratislava coach during summer, and Moskva - Košice during winter.
Great (and updated!) source of information:
http://dijszabas.uw.hu/dijszabas/index.php
This new timetable messed everything up! I can now no longer enter into the Ukraine via Slovakia without spending an extra night either in Slovakia or in Hungary, so I must go throuh Chop via Budapest. The timetable for the direct train from Split to Budapest is: Split 21/07/2012. 18:46
Budapest 22/07/2012. 10:54and for the train from Budapest to Moskva via Chop and Kiev is Budapest 22/07/2012. 18:40
Chop 23/07/2012. 01:13
Moskva 24/07/2012. 09:55Is it a problem if I buy the slovakian CityStar but don't actually use it within Slovakia? Please say no and save me 20€ for a hostel I know that there is a 60% discount for return tickets from Croatia to anywhere in Hungary and that is what I am planning to use, but for the Zahony to Moskva part, can I maybe pay any less with some Hungarian tariff than with the slovakian CityStar?
9
« on: December 24, 2011, 04:52:11 pm »
Is it a problem to buy the CityStar ticket during the weekend? Just wondering since if not, I need to take a day off to get to Bratislava on a working day. How long before can I buy them anyway? 92 days as with DB or less/more?
10
« on: November 07, 2011, 11:56:28 am »
@rasha - Actually, I was planning on travelling in platskartny on several parts which are about 24h long: Moskva - St.Peterburg (8:32) St.Peterburg - Moskva (9:13) Kazan - Volgograd (24:18) Volgograd - Moskva (21:37) I think that the longest part (Kazan-Volgograd) is not so long to travel in 3rd class, and after all it is something I would definitely like to try @tUt - I was doing some calculating, and it seems cheaper to go from Volgograd to Moskva and then onward to Kiev on CityStar, than it is going over Harkov or Dnepropetrovsk. Also, it is far simpler and less time consuming.
11
« on: November 06, 2011, 09:28:57 pm »
My only "window of opportunity" is from July 20th to August 23rd, because I have hollidays then. Spring wouldbe nice, winter even nicer with the snow, but summer is the only time I can go, so - no discount for me
12
« on: November 06, 2011, 07:44:21 pm »
Sadly, this option via Belarus seems more complicated than the savings around it. Just the CityStar is almost twice as expensive as the Ukrainian option.
And even if it was the same, I would have to board the train Moscow-Irkutsk at 03:10 in the morning and then arrive at Irkutsk at 20:22 which means my entire day has been spent and I have to pay for an extra night for accomodation if I want to continue to Vladivostok, or to remain in Irkutsk one extra day to see everything I intended.
And on top of all that, I must go via Skalite which means paying another night of accomodation.
It would be nice to visit Warszawa and Minsk, but - Ukraine is the only real option here.
13
« on: November 06, 2011, 05:18:13 pm »
@rasha - I was aware of the Russian domestic reservation prices, not happy but aware but not that it could be even cheaper with your option via Belarus If I went the Belarus route from Split to Moskva, connections with Bratislava are far more simple, but the fact stil remains that the CityStar itself is 80€ more expensive than via Ukraine AND that there is no Belarussian embassy in Croatia! The nearest ones are in Belgrade or Wienna, and the proces takes at least 2 business days (double price) or 5 business days which complicates the whole matter. Anyways, the timings via Belarus are:Split 17:09 21/07/2012
Budapest 08:25 22/07/2012
Budapest 09:25 22/07/2012
Bratislava 12:06 22/07/2012 - spend the day in Bratislava
Bratislava 23:02 22/07/2012
Warszawa 07:38 23/07/2012 - spend the day in Warszawa
Warszawa 21:00 23/07/2012
Minsk 08:42 24/07/2012 - spend the day in Minsk
Minsk 22:18 24/07/2012
Moskva 09:20 25/07/2012and on the return part: Moskva 00:49 17/08/2012
Warszawa 17:43 18/08/2012
Warszawa 20:36 18/08/2012
Bratislava 05:40 19/08/2012
Bratislava 05:53 19/08/2012
Budapest 08:40 19/08/2012 - spend the day in Budapest
Budapest 17:05 19/08/2012
Split 08:39 20/08/2012
And the timings via Ukraine are:Split 17:09 21/07/2012
Budapest 08:25 22/07/2012
Budapest 09:25 22/07/2012
Bratislava 12:06 22/07/2012
Bratislava 13:57 22/07/2012
Moskva 10:58 24/07/2012and on the return part: Moskva 23:44 17/08/2012
Sl. Nove Mesto 06:44 19/08/2012
30minute walk from Slovenske Nove Mesto to Satoraljaujhely
Satoraljaujhely 07:47 19/08/2012
Budapest 12:00 19/08/2012
Budapest 17:05 19/08/2012
Split 08:39 20/08/2012But here is my problem: when you say BČ coaches, does that mean that I must travel from Minsk to Irkutsk on a direct train (thursday/saturday) or can I come from Moskva to Minsk, and then continue from Moskva to Irkutsk on a diferent train? If I have to take the direct train, than this is no good for me, since I would like to spend a few days in Moskva AND St. Peterburg before going to Vladivostok. @tUt - Thank you for that 50% information, but does that apply only to "whole" tickets (ticket + reservation) bought in Russia, or also just for reservations bought anywhere? If the reservations are also discounted, then this is excellent news! If not, since I can't (at least I think I can't) buy Russian domestic tickets outside of Russia. Also, something tells me that this "promotion" will only last from August 31st till December 22. Why? Because not so many tourists can travel in September, October and November, and it will stop just a few days before Gregorian calendar Christmass and of course the New Year. Regarding BAM, I thought of going from Vladivostok to Irkutsk via BAM railway, but it takes 2 days (40hours) longer, so I would have to choose between the BAM route or visiting Kazan and Volgograd. Regarding http://passport.uic.asso.fr/login.dhtml, the site requires a username and password to login.
14
« on: November 05, 2011, 11:06:27 pm »
Zdravo Rasho So, tickets for the route Moskva<->St.Peterburg I will have to buy in Moscow. I didn't have too high hopes to include it in the CityStar ticket anyway, but I had to ask The same is with the route Kazan-Volgograd and later Volgograd-Kiev. However, about the route Yekaterinburg-Kazan, if the only available route between Zernovo(GR) and Vladivostok is as rasha says (Briansk*Moskva*Novosibirsk*Habarovsk) must I return on the Transsiberian route (via Perm and Nizhny Novgorod) or can I choose to travel via Kazan?
15
« on: November 04, 2011, 12:58:54 am »
Thank you so much for your advice!
Thanks for the alternative via Slovenske Nove Mesto. I checked it out on Google and it's really close. But not practical for me because, I am from Split, and in order to catch the EN Venice-Budapest I would have to wait in Zagreb from 20:30 (last tilting train of the day) to 4:40 and that is too much. So, Chop it is.
I will buy the sleeper reservation Chop-Moskva and back in Bratislava when I buy the CityStar, and if they don't/can't sell it from Chop onward, I will simply buy a sleeper reservation Budapest-Moskva on top of my regular ticket Budapest-Chop from Hungarian railways since I will have the ticket from Chop onward with the CityStar.
The exact route I had in mind, using the same border crossing between Ukraine/Russia - Zernovo, is like this:
Chop - via Kiev - Moskva
Moskva - St. Peterburg
St. Peterburg - Moskva
Moskva - via Yekaterinburg - via Novosibirsk - via Irkutsk - Vladivostok
Vladivostok - Irkutsk
Irkutsk - Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg - via Kazan - Volgograd
Volgograd - Kazan
Kazan - Moskva
Moskva - via Kiev - Chop
I chose to go to Volgograd via Kazan, and return to Kazan later, even though it's on the way, because there is no direct train from Volgograd to Kiev via Zernovo unless I go through Kazan, and I really want to visit both towns. If this is not possible using the CityStar, I will buy the domestic russian ticket, but of course, I would like to save money if it is possible.
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