Etienne is French, speaks Russian pretty well and already knew St. Petersburg, where he hadn’t been back since 2019. In February 2026 he returned with an electronic visa, entering overland from Riga — and his account is worth its weight in gold for anyone considering this route: choosing the right border post for your visa, changing euros before crossing, an hour of questioning on the Russian side, and even a front-row seat for Swan Lake… paid in cash via Telegram.
Etienne’s trip at a glance
| Traveler | Etienne — French, speaks Russian |
| When | February 2026 |
| City | St. Petersburg |
| Visa | Electronic visa (eVisa) |
| How he entered | By bus from Riga, via the Shumilkino border post (Pechory doesn’t accept the eVisa) |
| Money | All cash — euros changed in Riga, half into rubles, half into dollars |
| Phone and internet | No eSIM (incompatible phone) — wifi only |
| Don’t miss | Swan Lake at the Hermitage Theatre, paid in cash via Telegram |
Etienne’s route, on the map
Approximate route of Etienne’s trip: Riga → Shumilkino border post → St. Petersburg, by bus.
What follows is Etienne’s own account, with his tips and his own photos. Thanks, Etienne, for sharing it.
The bus puzzle from Riga: Pechory vs. Shumilkino
I went back to St. Petersburg in February 2026, after not having been there since 2019. I used an electronic visa, which wasn’t hard to get, and I arrived overland from Riga, in Latvia.
A complication came up when booking my bus ticket: the buses leaving from Riga that you can book from Europe enter Russia via Pechory, where the eVisa isn’t accepted (is that on purpose?). To get one going through Shumilkino, where it is accepted, you had to go through the Russian company Markatek, which can’t be booked from Europe. So I had to ask a former Russian teacher of mine, with whom I’ve kept in touch, to make the booking for me, sending her the money in Uzbekistan, where she was, through the Paysend app.
Changing your euros in Riga, before crossing
Knowing I’d only be able to pay in cash in Russia, and warned by this blog (thank you) that euros could be confiscated at the Estonian border, I changed my euros in Riga: part into rubles and part into dollars. I got the rubles at an exchange office from a clerk who was very hostile about the request, and the dollars at another office. At that second office they tried to ask me why I was making the transaction; I said “just to exchange,” and they didn’t push it.
The border: an hour of questioning, but courteous
The trip itself went smoothly, on a bus that was far from full. Apart from me, the passengers were elderly Russians living in Riga and heading to Russia. Crossing the border, on the other hand, turned out to be a bit complicated in my case. Not on the Estonian side, where they didn’t ask me too many questions, but on the Russian one. Seeing that I was French, the border officers had me fill out a questionnaire to size up my profile, my state of mind, my reasons for the trip. Then I was questioned in Russian in detail, and let’s say intrusively, by an officer for maybe an hour. That said, that officer, who must have been in his thirties, was very courteous, even friendly. He was simply doing his job and I understand how difficult the circumstances are. Once out of the questioning, I still had to take everything out of my bag in front of a uniformed customs officer and answer his routine questions.
That check delayed the bus quite a bit and drew attention to me that I didn’t necessarily want, though without, I think, anyone holding it against me — Russians being a patient people. So we set off again and the rest of the trip to St. Petersburg went without a hitch, arriving around six in the morning.
The Oktiabrskaya Hotel and a city that hasn’t changed
From the bus station I walked to the hotel I’d booked, the Oktiabrskaya Hotel on Ligovsky Avenue, an excellent historic hotel. I paid for my reservation there and, to my great relief, I was able to get my room immediately and without having to pay any surcharge.
What was remarkable about my trip has mostly to do with the ups and downs of the outward journey from Riga, which I’ve just described. Because the rest of my stay was, essentially, fairly ordinary and altogether pleasant. I noted with satisfaction that St. Petersburg hadn’t changed much since the last time I’d been there — if anything, for the better. With its calm, its preserved classical setting, its order and its cleanliness, St. Petersburg really looks like a great European city, more so than many cities in Western Europe.
I saw practically no Western tourists; there were, however, quite a few Chinese, because of the New Year holidays that were happening at the same time.
Cold on the surface, generous underneath
I had good contact with people, made easier by the fact that I speak Russian pretty well. No anti-Western or anti-French hostility was noticeable. Russians are rather cold people, who don’t have the French codes of sociability, but that often hides a very good heart, real generosity.
An anecdote on that note: I was at the hotel restaurant, where the owner — a solid, gruff Russian, fairly intimidating — had given me too much change. I went back to tell him. He then changed completely: he started smiling and offered me a free coffee.
No eSIM and everything in cash
Since my phone doesn’t support eSIMs (by the way, thanks for your explanations on the subject), I only had internet at the hotel or wherever there was wifi. I had enough cash and didn’t try to pay by card — it probably wouldn’t have worked.
Swan Lake… paid in cash via Telegram
Wanting to see a performance of Swan Lake before leaving, and unable to pay online, I contacted the company’s administrator directly on Telegram, thanks to which I was able to pay for my seat in cash. The performance was at the Hermitage Theatre. The seat I had was rather mediocre but, just before it started, that same administrator gave me a spot right by the edge of the stage and the orchestra.
The return, and my conclusion
The return trip went without any major events: Russian customs inspected my bag, but without too much zeal; Estonian customs only asked me routine questions and let me through faster than the Russians did.
In conclusion, I can only recommend the trip to St. Petersburg, even in the current circumstances. But it’s essential to prepare well (thanks in particular to this blog), and preferable to have some knowledge of Russian, or to be with someone who does.
Have you traveled to Russia recently and want to share your experience? Tell me about your trip here and I’ll publish it in this section, with your name or anonymously, whichever you prefer. Stories like Etienne’s are the ones that really help people getting ready for their trip. You can also ask your questions on the Russiable forum in English.
