hidden europe 33

By ferry to Russia

by hidden europe

There is one very good reason for travelling by ferry to the Russian city of St Petersburg. For a short stay, ferry travellers are generally exempt from Russia's otherwise strict visa rules. So no surprise perhaps that St Peter Line, which already operates ferries from Helsinki to St Petersburg, is now adding new routes from Stockholm and Tallinn.
article summary —

Visa-free visits to St Petersburg are now a reality: the cathedral of St Isaac in the Russian city (photo © Renewer / dreamstime.com).

A small change in Russian visa regulations early last year permits passengers arriving in St Petersburg by ferry to take advantage of a short visa-free stay in the Russian city — a dispensation long enjoyed by cruise passengers but never before extended to travellers using regular scheduled ferry services. Cypriot shipping company St Peter Line was quick to take advantage of this new opportunity, launching a Helsinki to St Petersburg route last April. In the last issue of hidden europe, we speculated how well suited the Pride of Bilbao would be to cruise-ferry style operations to and from St Petersburg. At that time, the ship was laid up in Falmouth after P&O scrapped its Portsmouth to Bilbao route in September 2010.

And last November’s speculation now becomes reality with the news that St Peter Line has purchased the Pride of Bilbao. A lick of paint and a change of identity for the ship, now dubbed the Princess Anastasia, which is due to enter service on a new Stockholm to St Petersburg route this spring.

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About the authors

Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries manage hidden europe, a Berlin-based editorial bureau that supplies text and images to media across Europe. Together they edit hidden europe magazine. Nicky and Susanne are dedicated slow travellers. They delight in discovering the exotic in the everyday.

source: https://www.hiddeneurope.eu/by-ferry-to-russia

This article was published in hidden europe 33.