How to Read a Russian Ticket?

How to read Russia train tickets? There are four kinds of train tickets in Russia: Domestic paper tickets, International paper tickets, Domestic E-ticket and International E-ticket. In recent years, Domestic E-tickets are used more widely than domestic paper tickets in Russia, as it is more convenient to board the train with the passport or ID directly, saving people a lot of time. For International E-tickets, they can only be used for some limited International trips in Europe. On the contrary, the International paper tickets are used more widely than E-ticket, like the hot international trips of Moscow-Beijing and Moscow- Vladivostok.

To be honest, there is little difference between Domestic paper tickets and International paper tickets. Both of them will display all the basic information that people should know, including the departure/arrival date and time, the departure/arrival stations, the seat class, the train number, carriage number and seat number. Different trains may provide different services. Since Sleeper trains will cost people longer time, you can find some additional information on the tickets, like the meals, the bed number as well as the number of passengers. 

E-tickets show some essential information as well, including departure/arrival station, date and time, train number, carriage number and berth/seat number. Each ticket has its own number and it seldom duplicates with others.

Russian Domestic E-ticket

Domestic E-tickets are applied more extensively in Russia. If you purchase the tickets online, then you will get an E-ticket, like the form above, displaying all the detailed information about your trip. It is more convenient for passengers to board the train with E-tickets.

Russian Domestic Paper Ticket

Domestic paper tickets are used widely before, but now they are normally used in some distant railway lines and suburban train routes. The passengers need to collect paper tickets at the ticket window by showing their passports before boarding the train. Here are specific information for the Russian Domestic Paper Tickets.

Russian International Paper Ticket

International paper tickets are used more extensively for international routes. Taking the following international trip of Moscow- Ulan Bator for instance, you can find the detailed information on the paper tickets that you need to know. 

Departure and Arrival Stations:

There are two middle items on the ticket, with departure station on the left and arrival station on the right. Russia has many train stations, especially nine in Moscow, so you need to figure out the correct departure station shown on the ticket to board the train in advance to avoid any problems.

Departure Date and Time:

The departure time showed in the ticket is Moscow time, not the local time, since the time is different in every part of Russia, Therefore, people need to know the correct departure time and arrvial time before boarding the train.

Passengers’ Information on the Train Ticket:

The passenger’s information must include the followings:

1. The passenger’s full name. (travelers' full names must be exactly the same as what they appear on passports or ID document.)
2. The passport/ID number used when purchasing the ticket.

It is nescessary and important for passengers to know how to read a Russia train tickets and purchase the train tickets correctly. Otherwise you may fail to board the train, if your name or the passport/ID numbers are incorrect.