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TRAVEL RUSSIA
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SVEZHY VETER Travel Agency
426008 Izhevsk Karla Marxa 288a
mail: 426033 Izhevsk
p.o.box 2040 Russia
tel: +7 (3412) 450037, 613080
+7 909 064 69 95
Contact us
Travel Advice
| General Information about Russia (Customs, Arrival Procedures, Transport...) |
Living in Russia (Holidays, Safe Topics, Privacy, Food, Religion...) |
| Current Prices in Russia (Clothes, Housing, Education, Leisure...) |
Banks and Currency Exchange (Bank System, Money in Circulation...) |
| Postal Service, Telephone, Internet | Internet Dating. Warning! |
| Visa Requirements (Visas, Registration...) |
Current Prices in Russia
(Prices are actual on 14/02/2009)
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Milk (one liter): 18 - 30 RUR
Mineral water (two liters): 15 - 20 RUR
Orange, apple juice pack (1 liter): 50 - 80 RUR
Bread (1/2 kilo loaf): 15 - 20 RUR
Meat (one kilo): 180 - 250 RUR
Chicken (frozen) per kilo: 100 - 150 RUR
Oranges (one kilo): 60 - 70 RUR
Potatoes (one kilo): 20 - 50 RUR
Pack of spaghetti (1/2 kilo): 20 - 80 RUR
Pack of instant noodles: 7 - 30 RUR
Bar of soap: 15 - 20 RUR
Bottle of nice shampoo: 70 - 130 RUR
One beer (1/2 liter): 20 - 80 RUR
A pack of cigarettes: 20 - 100 RUR, depending on the brand or quality
A bottle of nice red Moldova wine: 70 - 90 RUR
A chocolate bar (200 grams): 25 - 35 RUR
Ice cream cone (70 grams): 6-15 RUR
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If bought in a market, these can be a real bargain. Shopping in a
large store is not necessarily a better option. Bargaining is not very
customary in Russia, a 10~15 % discount is the most one can expect to
get. It is always wise to shop around and get an estimate of the
prices before actually buying something. An independent source of
price information can often be very helpful (like some friends there
in Russia, or anybody else directly not interested in the profit).
If someone wants really cheap good quality clothes then there is a good number of second hand shops selling mostly western clothes for the prices of a few US dollars, no matter what one intends to buy (jeans, shorts, T-shirts etc.)
Shoes:
Sport type running shoes, sneakers, trainers: from 500 RUR
A pair of good leather shoes or boots: 2000~3500 RUR
A dress shirt: 150~300 RUR
Pair of jeans: 900~1500 RUR
Pair of socks: 15~25 RUR
Sweater: 800~1,500 RUR
Warm winter jacket: 1,000~3,000 RUR
A roll of film: 70~100 RUR
A nice multi-speed bike: 3,000~10,000 RUR
A second-hand one speed bike: 600 - 900 RUR
A big 80 liter backpack: 1500 - 5000 RUR
Sleeping bag: 1500~3000 RUR
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Most of the time this is quite affordable. The majority of the bus,
tram and trolley ride prices in Russia range between 10 and 25 RUR
within city limits. Monthly passes for the various categories of
passengers are available and may offer very attractive savings if one
plans to spend lots of time using public transport. Even if staying
for a very short while, buying such a pass may be worth it.
For examle, one ground transportation ride in Moscow costs 20 Rubles,
but you can buy a month pass for 1700 Rubles, which will allowed you to
use ground transpotation unlimited and have 70 rides on metro.
Car rental is extremely rare in Russia (and expensive). Also,
considering the road quality in Russia it is hardly a wise option. It
comes out not that expensive to hire a driver and a vehicle together.
30 USD anywhere out of Moscow and a few times that in Moscow is
definitely a fair estimate.
A new Russian made car: 200.000 - 300.000 RUR
(an old second hand one can be found for less than 30000 RUR if that is what you want)
Currently petrol is 19~25 RUR per liter.
Real estate prices vary significantly throughout Russia, but generally
it is quite safe to say that a one room studio flat with the total
area of 30 sq. meters costs 750.000 - 1.200.000 RUR if bought anywhere
except for Moscow (or a couple other major cities). A single bed
apartment (two rooms) is 1.700.000 - 2.500.000 RUR. Purchasing a piece
of real estate in Moscow means paying 3 or so times more than that
anywhere else.
Renting a flat is not that difficult. It would normally cost 5.000 - 7.000 RUR per month for a studio type of a flat in a mid size city or 2~3 times more than that in Moscow or St. Petersburg.
One can buy a small house in a village for 200.000~300.000 RUR.
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Education is free in Russia. Citizens do not normally pay for studies
at a public school or a state-owned university. This does not rule out
the opportunity for the willing to pay for such service, to do so. The
numbers vary greatly, but it would not be untrue to say that the
majority of the payments range between 15000 RUR and 45000 RUR per
annum. Many people enter schools on a competition basis, and then
study for free, but quite a number, for various reasons, choose
private schools (not necessarily providing a higher quality of
education).
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Aerobics: 2-3 times a week, 700~2500 RUR a month
Swimming Pool: one visit 100 - 120 RUR, for 1/2 an hour
Yoga: 180 - 350 RUR a month, two times a week
Disco or club: 150 - 300 RUR
Pop or rock concert ticket: 1000 - 3000 RUR
Theatre ticket: 150 - 250 RUR (outside of Moscow)
Internet access : 20-30 RUR / hour
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This can be quite expensive in Russia unlike other countries with
similar living standards. One should avoid posh places, which tend to
overcharge for everything. One can easily pay 1500 - 3000 RUR for a
very modest meal (two or three courses) at a nice restaurant. A school
or university cafeteria meal of a couple of dishes (salad, tea, soup,
noodles + hamburger, bread) is approximately 40 - 70 RUR
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This is quite limited in Russia, and not very easy to locate. In
summer the best bet almost anywhere would be student dormitories
(obshezhytie), where one can arrange a one night stay for 200 -250 RUR.
Good negotiating skills are a must!
Another good option could be the hotels meant for various educational institutions (say, Academy of Science or something similar), where it is often possible to get a bed in a 4 bed-room for 150 - 300 RUR. This can be true even in the places like Moscow and St. Petersburg (proverbially considered budget busters). Smaller cities with fewer westerners and tourists are normally very economical for travellers on a fixed budget. Hostels, ironically, are normally more expensive than regular budget hotels.
There is also a large number of low-priced hotels where one can get a
bed in a twin bed room for 400 - 700 RUR.
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There are a lot of stories around about how bad life in Russia is, with
lots of newspapers and TV stations speculating on the matter.
Honestly, things are quite different from how they are often
portrayed, partly because bad news sells much better.
Yes, luxury is not found everywhere and the majority of the people live on an income equal to 170 EUR a month, but then there are quite a few with a salary of 350-650 EUR per month, or more. The fair thing to say would be that 50% of the working population live on 160-200 EUR a month, 15% have 300-400 EUR, 15% have 500 EUR - 700 EUR and the rest have greater incomes. But, then again, there are enough people who have there own businesses and earn over 2000 EUR or more per month.
The lowest paid part of the society are those who are employed in the state-owned sector of the economy and have to live only on state provided money, which is usually around 150-170 EUR.
Anybody being in the private sector of economy can count on a bit
greater income.
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