Discounts, Special Offers and Tariffs for Russian Train Tickets

For clarity, when talking about ‘Russian domestic train tickets’ these are tickets where the start and end points of the journey are both within the Russian Federation.

It is important to note that the following tariff and discount rules are not available on trains that are part of the Dynamic Price Policy, details on which can be found here.

The majority of passenger carriages within Russia are operated by the Federal Passenger Company (FPK) who use a 'coefficient index' in their pricing.

This varies the pricing throughout the year, making prices higher during peak travel times and lower during quieter travel periods. 

The table below, for example, shows it is significantly cheaper to travel during September 25th - November 2nd, where pricing is 10% cheaper than standard, than it is to travel at the start of September 1st - September 17th where it is 10% more expensive than standard.

This is useful when planning your travel budget, and if you have flexibility it can help you save money.

Note: All price changes are based on a standard price point of 1.

Firmeny trains are partially privatised, which generally gives them higher quality carriages and services than standard trains. 

Because they are partially privatised, Firmeny trains can have extra coefficients included in price calculations. 

These will be based on similar things to FPK such as route, popularity and time of year, meaning the pricing works in a similar way.

For example, train 2/1 between Moscow and Vladivostok, the Rossiya, will be more expensive during July and August than in September.

Firmeny trains are identified within our booking system by this logo - .

Plan Ahead Discounts are discounts offered when booking train journeys in advance. They only apply to certain train routes and the amount of discount can vary depending on the time of travel but our travel specialists will always be happy to advise you if these discounts apply to you while helping you plan your trip.

An example of the Plan Ahead discount would be:

Travelling on the No 32/31 Moscow-Helsinki
 

From 20th December 2019 to 28th March 2020, 29th March to 29th April 2020, 12th May to 28th May 2020, 31st August to 30th September 2020.

• 44% discount: 90-60 days before the departure of the train.
• 20% discount: 59-15 days before the departure of the train.
• 10% discount: 59-30 days before the departure of the train.

From 20th December 2019 to 12th January 2020, 21st February to 24th February 2020, 6th March to 9th March 2020, 30th April to 11th May 2020, 29th May to 30th August 2020.

• 15% discount: 90-60 days before the departure of the train.

This should help illustrate how the discount can vary depending on the time of year, how far in advance it is booked and what route it is on.

A plan ahead discount is also available on the following routes, though the discount and availability will vary from route to route

-No. 2/1 Riga-Moscow and Riga-St. Petersburg
-Certain routes between Russia and Uzbekistan
-No. 319/320 Dushanbe-Moscow-Dushanbe, No. 329/330 Dushanbe-Moscow-Dushanbe, No. 359/360 Khujand-Moscow-Khujand
-Certain routes between Russia and the Republic of Kazakhstan
-Certain routes between Russia and Belarus
-No. 33/34 Moscow-Tallinn "Baltic Express"
-No. 65/66 Moscow-Chisinau
-No. 29/30 Moscow-Kaliningrad
-When buying top seats of compartment cars of train no. 591/592 Perm-Anapa
-No. 590/589 Ekaterinburg-Adler and No. 595/596 Ekaterinburg-Anapa
-No. 147/148 Omsk-Novosibirsk since April 3rd 2016

Please note these can be subject to change and our specialist travel advisers will always keep you update through your journey planning.

Many people want to take their children along when travelling to Russia by train, but understandably worry about the cost. Luckily, there are a variety of very generous Russian train ticket discounts available for families travelling on Russian railway routes. This can make a trip on the Trans-Siberian far better value than many international vacation spots. It also offers far more variety in landscape and culture for children to experience.

A child's rate is 50% of a full adult train fare and applies to children below 10, a child under 5 may travel for free if they do not need their own seat or bunk.

The Dynamic Pricing Policy (DPP) is a pricing structure increasingly used across some of the most popular Russian railway routes. E.g. trains between Moscow and Saint Petersburg or Volgograd. The exact details of how dynamic pricing is structured are not released outside of Russian Railways but we can give some guidance on the general structure.

It is based on:

• Days until departure.
• Number of seats available on the train.
• Demand for the train. This means taking a less busy time, like 4am on a weekday is likely to be cheaper than 6pm on a Friday. 
• Degree of competition. This is especially important for routes travelling between Moscow & St Petersburg because several Firmeny trains run on this route. 

As a general rule, the earlier you book a train running as part of the DPP the cheaper your tickets will be. There are a number of other factors that influence DPP, but our dedicated team will help you to navigate this during your booking.

Sapsan Trains

For a more efficient journey, the Sapsan trains offer the fastest travel between Moscow and St Petersburg. It can make the 650km journey in under 4 hours and runs up to 6 times a day in each direction. 

The Sapsan is one of the most modern trains across Europe and, as such, has all the amenities you would expect to find including WiFi and air conditioning

If you want to travel between Moscow and Saint Petersburg in the shortest time possible, taking a ride on one of these trains is for you.

Pricing is based on a dynamic policy, much like the DPP, though with somewhat more predictability.

As Real Russia are able to take your booking at any point before travel, it is advised you book as early as possible. You can come to us before tickets are officially on sale to register and we will be ready to purchase them as soon as they become available to guarantee you the best deal possible. Trains running from Friday evening through to Monday morning are the busiest so these prices tend to go up fastest.

As the tariff information shows, the time of year and how far in advance you make your booking can affect how much you can expect to pay for tickets. This means booking outside of peak times of the year, such as in the summer and towards the end of December, can help you save money. Booking your train with plenty of time to spare (more than 31 days in advance) can also help you reduce your ticket price.

Because Real Russia are able to take your booking at any point before your travel date we advise that you always book as early as possible. We can also take reservations so if you know your travel dates before tickets go on sale we can record this on our system and be ready to purchase them as soon as they do go on sale. This should help get you the best deal possible.

There are a number of famous trains running across the Russian rail network. Many of these run using the existing pricing and discount structures already described. There are a few exceptions, however, for those iconic trains that offer something truly unique.

Two examples, that run between Moscow and Saint Petersburg, offer completely different but equally fantastic experiences the Grand Express and the Sapsan.

Grand Express

For those looking for a truly luxurious travel experience the Grand Express is THE way to travel between Moscow and St Petersburg.

Heated floors, en-suite bathrooms, double sized cabins and luxury transfers to your final destination are just some of the indulgent perks you receive on the Grand Express. Because of these extras, the pricing system is a little different to standard trains and generally higher.

Through Saint Petersburg and Moscow, Russia is linked with countries across Europe and Asia. In fact, through Russia, you could take a journey from London all the way to Singapore via Moscow and the Trans-Siberian Railway. Many of these routes offer discounts and enticements to encourage those who prefer a more scenic form of travel than airlines can provide. To learn more about the discounts available, please contact us.

Russian international train tickets are those where the journey starts in Russia and ends in another country.

There are a wide range of discounts available depending on routes and traveller circumstances, including 'Junior' and 'Senior' discounts, plan ahead discounts and Wedding celebrations. Some routes also offer bundle deals, with discounts on return journeys. 

These discounts are regularly updated and many only apply during certain times of years and on specific routes, our specialist travel experts are always up to dates on which may apply to your journey though and will always be happy to advise you on these.

As with Russian domestic journeys, many international journeys will offer discounts for children travelling with families. The age restrictions on this varies hugely from country to country though so it is best to contact our specialised travel experts to find out if child discounts will apply to your family journey. 

Across Europe's rail network, group discounts have been put in place to encourage as many people as possible to use rail travel. These discounts depend on which country you visit and the route you take. 

Please note: Many of these group discounts are not available online so if you have a group who wishes to travel and would like to find out more about the possibility of group discounts please contact one of our travel experts who will be happy to help you.

Please be aware, the ever-changing nature of the Russian train timetables, and demand of the Russian train network, tariff and discount information can change at short notice. 

We will always endeavour to ensure that you recieve the best value possible and keep you up to date on changes, but they are not within our control. 

Real Russia will always work with you to offer the best available deal for every ticket that we sell. We are able to take reservations well before the tickets are made available for purchase, ensuring that we are able to buy all tickets as early, and as cheaply, as possible.

Rather than displaying very cheap prices for these tickets, only to increase them upon booking with hidden charges, we work hard to display the price you will pay first time, every time; so you can be confident that the price you see is the price you pay.

If you would like to book any Russian train tickets please visit our booking page.

To check the schedules of particular routes, visit our Russian Train Schedules page.

To check the timetables for Trans-Siberian trains, please visit the page for the relevant route; Trans-Russian timetable, Trans-Mongolian timetable, Trans-Manchurian timetable.

If you would like further information regarding the discounts, or have any other question regarding Russian trains, please visit our knowledge base, our forum, or contact us directly.