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World Cup in Russia - do-it-yourself travel guide

Russia World Cup travel
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World Cup in Russia - do-it-yourself travel guide written by Jens Skovgaard Andersen

Do you want to join the Danish national football team for the World Cup in Russia? Or do you want to go over and be a part of the folk festival that a football World Cup is? Then here's a guide on how to do it yourself, and there are tips, tricks and links along the way. Some of the links are for our partners, and all positions and recommendations are the editors' own and based on our and our network's experiences.

If you want to go to the World Cup, you have several options and you can read more about all the details below, but here is a quick checklist:

A: Get help from one agency, which arranges trips to the matches here, so you do not have to do it yourself.

B: Do it yourself:

  1. Buy a ticket for one or more matches through either FIFA or DBU. Pay attention to whether you need to apply to enter a draw first, or whether it is first-come, first-served.
  2. Book accommodation in the city where the match is played. There may be a rift about the beds.
  3. Book your trip. Remember to follow the good advice that you can find in ours, for example general booking guide here.
  4. Apply for Fan ID or Visa.
  5. Book transport between host cities or around Russia if you are going to be there for a long time.
  6. Have a nice trip!

The final round will take place between 14 June and 15 July 2018 in 11 different Russian cities from historic St. Petersburg in the north to the Black Sea seaside city of Sochi in the south, and from the enclave of Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea to Yekaterinburg on the Ural Mountains, which separates Europe from Asia. Moscow will in many ways be the center of the final round, as two of the city's major stadiums host matches along the way; including both the opening match and the final, and the vast majority of the visiting fans travel in to, out of and via Moscow.

Russia - World Cup, map - travel

Denmark's matches for the World Cup in Russia

Denmark will play three group matches before we know if they will advance to the knockout rounds. The matches with venue and time of play will appear here as soon as lots have been drawn.

Camp 1: June 16 against Peru in Saransk

Camp 2: June 21 against Australia in Samara

Camp 3: June 26 against France in Moscow

If Denmark becomes number one or two in the pool and goes on, it will be in the 1/8 finals in Kazan on June 30 or Nizhny Novgorod on July 1, respectively. The road to the final in Moscow on July 15 then goes via Nizhny Novgorod (1/4 final on July 6) and St. Petersburg, respectively. Petersburg (1/2 final July 10) or via Sochi (1/4 final July 7) and Moscow (1/2 final July 11). Tickets for these matches can be purchased when it is clear who will advance from the pools.

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Direct flights to Russia

Moscow's main airport Sheremetyevo with the airport code SVO has direct connections to Kastrup Airport with Russian Aeroflot. From Moscow there are flights to all 10 other host cities. You can use for example Momondo's search engine to find the best connection for you

Tip: Type MOW in the destination search box to get search results for all Moscow airports. Be aware that it can take a long time to change airport in Moscow, so remember to have good air in the schedule if you need to change airport.

SAS and S7 (Siberian Airlines) fly from Copenhagen directly to Skt. Petersburg, from where there are also connections on to the other host cities. St. Petersburg's main airport Pulkovo has the code LED, as the city was previously called Leningrad. Do not be confused by this when booking.

Ural Airlines has previously flown directly between Copenhagen and Ekaterinburg in the summer, but there is no indication that this route will resume in 2018. Ural Airlines has regular connections from Yekaterinburg to the host cities of Samara, Sochi and Nizhny Novgorod.

Read more about Russia here

Russia - World Cup, S7, air travel

Other flight options

There are countless combination options if you want to fly to Russia and do not mind stopping somewhere along the way.

From Copenhagen and Billund, Air Baltic flies via Riga in Latvia Moscow, Skt. Petersburg, Sochi og Win.

The Russian company Rossiya flies to almost all gaming cities and is based in Skt. Petersburg, from where they fly to, among other places Hamburg og Berlin.

Tip: The Turkish low-cost carrier Pegasus Airlines flies from Istanbul to Moscow and several of the slightly more peripheral host cities; Nizhny Novgorod, Samara and Volgograd as well as to the cities Krasnodar og Mineralnye Vody, which can serve as an entrance to the southern host cities.

Another option could be to have a base in, for example, Lithuania, to which you can fly cheap from Copenhagen, among other places. From there it is relatively short to Kaliningrad, and there are air connections to, among other places, Moscow.

Find cheap package holidays to Russia here

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Travel between the host cities for the World Cup in Russia

The major airlines Aeroflot and Rossiya fly between the host cities, and the Russian low-cost airline Pobeda flies between Moscow and Rostov, Sochi and Yekaterinburg. A number of other Russian airlines also operate on the routes between the host cities.

Trains are the most common form of travel over long distances in Russia - such as the Trans-Siberian Railway - and the final round provides a good opportunity to experience Russia on rails. Train tickets can be purchased online via the website of the Russian state railways. Tickets are on sale 3 months in advance. The trains in Russia are generally reliable, and train travel is a good form of travel to experience both the surroundings and the other travelers.

Tip: If you have a ticket to one of the matches during the World Cup, you can in many cases book one free ticket for a night train, which drives you to the city where the match is being played. You can find the free trains at this website. You can change the language to English in the left corner, and once you have registered as a user, you will receive an email where you have to press a button to activate your profile. The email is in Russian, but there is no danger in pressing the button.

To book a free train ticket for the night train, it presupposes that you also have a so-called Fan ID, which you can read more about later in this guide.

Russia has an extensive network of buses and minibuses called 'marshrutka' and they are generally cheap. They also run between several of the host cities, but be aware that the trip can be long and that the comfort is not always high. However, it is worth exploring the possibility if you do not get a ticket for the train. Ask around in the city you are in - all locals should know where the marshrutka station is.

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Accommodation for the World Cup in Russia

Of course, there are many options for finding a place to sleep, and you can book most online. You can do that, for example Booking.com, where you can find a wide range of hotels, hostels, apartments and so on in the 11 host cities. An advantage of sites like Booking.com is that the accommodations you find there also operate in English, which is especially useful in a country like Russia, where language confusion can be a barrier.

NB: Denmark's first match is in Saransk, which is not used to many tourists, and it can be difficult to find a place to stay after the match without having to spend large sums. An alternative to staying overnight in Saransk is to use the night trains that run to Moscow, among other places.

Tip: You can book most accommodations in advance without having to pay a deposit before you leave, so you can make sure you have something in hand while planning the details of your trip.

FIFA has also booked a strip of hotel rooms, which they sell through their hotel page. Here you may be lucky to find something that does not appear on other pages.

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Ticket to the matches via FIFA

On FIFA.com ticket sales for the matches are divided into sales phases, and the most recent phase began on March 13 and runs until April 3rd, and here it's about 'first-come-first-served', so it's about being ready at the keys. Most tickets in this phase have been sold, but there is still hope if you have not been lucky.

Last sales phase starts 18. april and runs until the actual match days. Here come the last tickets for sale on a first-come, first-served basis, and there will also be tickets that come back from someone who has bought them before. That way, you can be lucky to find tickets for the attractive matches as well. Be aware of the type of ticket in question before you buy. See more about the ticket types below.

You must register as a user, and then you can apply to be allowed to buy tickets. If you are not lucky this time around, excess tickets will be put up for sale on an ongoing basis, so stop by FIFA's website once in a while. The tickets are sold in 4 price categories, where category 4 is for sale only to those living in Russia.

The options are:

  • Tickets for individual matches (Individual Match Ticket),
  • Tickets for the matches at a specific stadium (Venue Specific Ticket),
  • Tickets for a specific team's group matches (Supporter Ticket) as well
  • Tickets for a specific team's knockout matches from the 1/8 finals onwards (Conditional Supporter Ticket). If you have purchased a Conditional Supporter Ticket and the team does not advance to the match you purchased for, your ticket will be canceled and you will receive your money back.
  • A final ticket type is the one where you buy a ticket for a particular team's matches and are guaranteed a ticket even if the team smokes out along the way (Team Specific Ticket, TST). This type of ticket is no longer on sale, but they are available in editions that include 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7 matches, where TST-3 only includes the 3 group matches, TST-4 includes the group matches plus the 1/8 final, and TST-7 includes all rounds including the final. If the team does not reach all the way, your tickets will be exchanged for neutral tickets for the matches.

The tickets from FIFA will be delivered with bids to your mailbox in April and May 2018.

DBU logo travel

Tickets for Denmark's matches via DBU

If you are only interested in tickets to Denmark's matches, then you can apply by following DBU's ticket guide here. You still have to via FIFA's website, but if you are a member of the National Team's Fan Club and / or have earned loyalty points via previous national matches, then you have an advantage over other applicants.

NB: The sale here started on 5 December and expired on 31 January. keep up here on DBU's website.

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Fan ID and visa for the World Cup in Russia

Once you have obtained a ticket, you can apply Fan ID, which gives you a number of benefits.

  • It acts as a 'multiple entry' visa to Russia in the final round period plus 10 days before and after, when you simultaneously remember to have your passport with you.
  • Your Fan ID gives you free public transport in the host cities.
  • The special night trains, which provide free transportation between the host cities, require you to have a Fan ID.

Fan ID you must apply for this website, where you can search via, for example, the English-language part of the page. A Danish-language version has been prepared, but it does not work, so if the page looks a little strange, you can try switching languages ​​to English in the upper right corner of the page (select "ONE" in the menu).

Tip: Have a picture clear of your face with all white background. It is a requirement to get the image approved that it meets all requirements.

If you do not have a ticket in advance for at least one of the matches for the final round, but still want to take part in the big party, a World Cup, then you must apply for a visa according to the normal procedures. It requires an invitation, which can be obtained through a number of agencies in Denmark, and then you must apply through the Russian embassy. See the rules for visas to Russia here on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' website.

Russia - road - travel

Tips for the World Cup in Russia

Currency and prices in Russia

The Russian currency is the ruble (RUB) and they are easy to calculate. It costs about 10 rubles on a Danish krone, so the prices of hotels, transport and so on can be calculated without the big calculator.

Rent a car in Russia

If you want the freedom to drive around and stop where you want, then a road trip is clearly an option. Rent a car at the airport or in one of the big cities and enjoy the great open landscapes. Check for example Auto europe, which has car rental in 10 out of the 11 host cities.

Tip: Find out if you can pick up the car at a place other than where you picked it up. It gives something more freedom to be able to change travel plans along the way without necessarily having to return to the starting point - not least if you are bitten by the mood and want to stay longer.

If you primarily want to stay in the big cities, then a car is not necessary. On the contrary, it can be difficult to get around as the traffic is heavy - this is especially true in Moscow, where the metro is clearly the fastest mode of transport.

Travel insurance in Russia

Before you leave, check if you have a year-round travel insurance in advance, which is valid in Russia. It can be through the bank or, for example, if you have MasterCard Gold.

See much more about insurance on the World Cup trip here in reiseforsikringsguiden.dk. If the accident is out one way or another, then it is worth its weight in gold to have one on the dry and someone you can get help from.

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Special conditions in parts of the country

Russia is a huge country and there is a big difference in where you go. Southern Russia down towards the Caucasus can be troubled areas with extra large security measures, and this means, among other things, that it is not advisable to travel from Georgia overland to Sochi or vice versa, even if it is not far in between. The province Abkhazia is located in the border area between Russia and Georgia and it is not allowed to use the province as a 'transit country'. If you are traveling in that region, be aware of the special rules and conditions that apply in southern Russia.

The same applies to the areas that Russia and Ukraine are arguing over in Crimea and in eastern Ukraine, where there is often unrest.

Important: Be careful not to comment on political issues as this can be taken badly. There are many political tensions in Russia, so be careful how you are perceived.

That being said, there is no reason to fear traveling in Russia. During the World Cup, there will be extra security measures and Russia is used to dealing with a lot of travelers.

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Follow the World Cup in Russia on Facebook

If you are going with Denmark to the World Cup or are just considering it, we recommend that you join the group 'Danish fans away' on Facebook, as you can ask questions and follow how other Danish fans plan their trip.

Have fun and good trip to unique Russia!

In this post, there are links to some of our partners. All positions are the editors' own. If you want to read more about how it goes, then check here

About the author

Jens Skovgaard Andersen, editor

Jens is a happy travel nerd who has traveled in over 60 countries from Kyrgyzstan and China to Australia and Albania. Jens is educated in China Studies, has lived in China for 1½ years and is a member of the Travel Club. He has extensive experience with the travel world as a tour guide, lecturer, advisor, author and photographer. And of course most important of all: As a traveler. Jens often goes to places where it is also possible to watch a good football match in the company of other incarnated fans and has a special fondness for Boldklubben FREM, where he sits on the board. For most people it is obvious to look up to Jens (he is barely two meters tall), and then he is a 14-time champion in the TV quiz Jeopardy and still single, so if you can not find him out in the world or on a football stadium, you can probably find him out touring in the Copenhagen quiz environment.

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