As a travel enthusiast, having set foot in 10 countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, China, Singapore, Laos, India, South Korea, Indonesia, Cambodia and Russia, Luu Truong Thu is still "shocked" by the surreal beauty of the white birch country's winter.
For a person living and working in an office in Ca Mau - a place with only two rainy and sunny seasons all year round, the 9-day trip at the beginning of 2026 brought extremely special emotions to Truong Thu.
The feeling of watching the white snow covering the space is truly a priceless experience.
One of the biggest concerns of tourists today is the security situation in Russia. In fact, daily life in major cities such as Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Vladimir or Suzdal is still normal.
The only difference is that security is tightened. Tourists will pass through luggage scanners when entering the subway, shopping centers or crowded areas. This strictness brings a sense of security rather than annoyance.
Russia's current e-visa system is very convenient. Tourists can self-declare online, costing about 1.5 million VND (paid via Visa card) and only about 4 days later to get results.
The visa is valid for 120 days from the date of issuance and allows a maximum stay of 30 days.
Flights from Vietnam to Moscow can choose airlines such as Air China (transit to Beijing) with round-trip prices ranging from 10 to 15.5 million VND depending on the booking time. Flight quality is stable, on time and meals are quite delicious.
Regarding accommodation, the Zenhotels booking system is a suitable suggestion. Due to international payment restrictions in Russia, you should proactively email or text via WhatsApp to negotiate with hotels to allow deposits or cash payments when checking in.
Russian customs check very carefully. When entering, being detained in a private room to verify information for about 15–20 minutes is completely normal, tourists who have read reviews before should not worry too much.
Buying a SIM card in Russia currently requires strict security procedures, so the cost is quite high. You can choose to rent a physical SIM card (half cheaper) or buy an eSIM (a type with a Russian phone number and VPN included to access blocked applications).
The public transport system in Moscow and Saint Petersburg is extremely developed with buses and subways (Metro). You should buy combo cards daily to save costs, note that cards in these two cities are completely different.
When you need to travel by car, the Yandex Go application is the cheapest and most convenient choice. Tourists should pre-install a set of applications from the Yandex ecosystem including: Yandex Go (hailing cars), Yandex Maps (finding directions, searching for metro extremely accurately), and Yandex Translate (translating).
In particular, the Red Square area is frequently jammed by positioning waves. You should take a screenshot of the route map or train route to avoid getting lost when you want to return to the hotel.
Journey through fairytale "coordinates
The journey of 3 perfect cities for winter includes: Moscow – Suzdal – Saint Petersburg.
Moscow impresses strongly with the grandeur of Red Square, the Kremlin, St. Basil's Cathedral and the Metro system as beautiful as underground palaces.
The ancient town of Suzdal (traveling by fast train from Moscow to Vladimir and then Yandex Go) is a surprise gift in winter. This place gives the feeling of being lost in medieval Russia with snow-covered roofs and carriages of horses on the road.
However, you need to pay attention when coming to Vladimir station: sending luggage here is quite difficult because the wardrobe only accepts Russian cards or online payments. In addition, check the train number carefully at Moscow station to avoid missing unfortunate trips.
Saint Petersburg is a cultural capital with the Hermitage Palace (Winter Palace), Catherine's Palace (where there is a magnificent Cobra Room), watching ballet at the Mikhailovsky Theater and experiencing ice skating at New Holland Island. You should go early to queue to buy tickets because the outdoor winter weather can drop below -19°C.
Russian cuisine is relatively easy to eat. To save money and have more choices, you can visit Soviet-style meal stalls such as the Stolovaya No 1 chain.
In addition, the Teremok fast food chain with Blini cake (Russian pancake) with more than 20 different sweet and savory fillings is a very worthwhile experience to try.
With a total package cost ranging from 40–50 million VND/person, the winter trip to Russia brings invaluable experiences for those who want to once leave the warm sunshine to touch the magic of white snow.
