long weekend in Moscow?

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We are thinking about having a long weekend in Moscow in October half term.
Maybe 4 days including flying.
Has anyone done it, what do you think?

I think I would boycott Russia until they stop the legal persecution of gay/trans/bi people.

That is a very fair point and one I should have considered tbh.

What about visas? It used to be very hard to get a visa for Russia. Not sure if that's still the case.

Have you thought about Istanbul as an alternative? Absolutely tons to see and do. Also rather a dubious human rights record though.

Have you considered going to Finland? It's beautiful and not as complicated politically! By the way, I am not suggesting that Russia and Finland are interchangeable!

I'm not going anywhere near Russia till they stop persecuting the LGBT community.

On a more superficial level, it is a beautiful and fabulous city though!
I went when I was a teen and had an amazing time...better check the temps in October though!

Dyslexidespot We had our main winter holiday in Finland the other year.

I have been to many of the East European countries for holidays including Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Latvia and Belarus.
I noticed flights were cheap to Moscow and we are used to back packing so that's why it came up as an option. I have a friend who went years ago and loved it but she is the only person I know who has been.

This year we have had a couple of long weekends in Norway and Scotland as well as our holidays.
I'll keep thinking!

Thursdalast I am used to the cold. Lithuania was -12.

We usually go to cold countries!!

I haven't been but I think it sounds good. Enough time to see lots of stuff. I'm of to Saint Petersburg next week which is somewhere I've always wanted to go.

We've just been to St Petersburg. It was stunning. My impression is that it is a much nicer place to visit than Moscow.

We went to Istanbul at Easter and liked St Petersburg much better. It may however have helped that we had children in tow for the form er and not the latter.

We did think of flying to St Petersburg from Tallinn when we were in Estonia. we mentioned it to a local and (unsurprisingly, given the history) they were horrified that we even considered going!

We decided to save that one for another time!

Allow an extra 100 pounds or so each for visas (which are easy to arrange via an agency, just costly). I love Moscow, but St Pete is probably a more tourist-friendly city. Lots to see and do in both, for any taste and age. Eating out etc can be pricey if you are not careful (but you can keep it cheap), accommodation is getting cheaper with hostels, airbandb etc. if you are going for four days, I would consider a "red eye" flight out, that leaves London late at night and lands in Moscow early in the morning. Otherwise, with time difference and airport transfers you waste most of a day on outward journey. Feel free to pm any specific questions.

My son (20) went to St Petersburg with his aunt in January this year and they had a great time . The visa process was a pain and my sister sorted it out because at the time she was working in London so went to the place ( twice ) . You have to have a hotel booked to get a visa as they have to 'invite ' you to stay and you pay the hotel extra for that invite ! We pre booked all the sightseeing trips through Expedia and they had a private guide so that was good . My sister is keen to do Moscow next year .

I went to Moscow last Sept - wow! Took 2 of the dcs aged 18 and 8. Sorted my own visas - much cheaper and no hassle if in easy reach of London. Had to triple check I had the right stuff but not as hard as I thought.