Best Months for Russia

Considering the weather, what are the best months for a Russa river cruise?

Thanks, cb

The Minister of Tourism for Russia was once asked how long summer was in his country. He replied: "July 22."

We've been there late May early June and all three times he weather was perfect.

We were in St. Petersburg for White Nights in late June. Chilly at night but very pleasant during the day.

I've done the cruise in September and late June. Weather was a little cool in September. I loved the June trip because it stayed light until 2-3 am in St Petersburg.

Roger

We did it August 17 through Sept. 5, 2012 and weather was fine. We started in Kiev where it was quite hot....Moscow was perfect for touring and ended in St. Petersburg where we had one day of rain and the rest of the time was fine. there were times on the boat when it was cold and raw but not enough to ruin the trip. I understand that we were on one of the last cruises because winter comes early to St. Petersburg. I LOVE the comment of previous poster...apparently there's a lot of truth in it!.:D

We were in St. Petersburg for White Nights in late June. Chilly at night but very pleasant during the day.

How crowded and crazy is the White Nights celebration in St. Petersberg?

Did it interfere with what you wanted to see? Did you go to any of the events?

We will go with Uniworld, so we spend the nights on the ship - not in hotels. We are deciding on a date for 2014.

Thanks, cb

We took this trip several years ago on Viking in June. The weather was

very pleasant, sunny and mild temps. for the entire two weeks.

Our guides said of Russian weather: Nine months of anticipation and three months of disappointment.

Sharon

We did it with Vantage in early September. Unfortunately, it was the rainiest September in Moscow history. When we were in Goritsy it actually snowed!

Below is the link to our trip story:

http://stevekathytravels.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/russia2013.pdf

One warning, however, select a cruise that puts you up in a hotel at both ends. The traffic in Moscow and St. Petersburg is horrendous!. If you are on the ship the entire time, you will have to be bused back and forth.

We did it with Vantage in early September. Unfortunately, it was the rainiest September in Moscow history. When we were in Goritsy it actually snowed!

Below is the link to our trip story:

http://stevekathytravels.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/russia2013.pdf

One warning, however, select a cruise that puts you up in a hotel at both ends. The traffic in Moscow and St. Petersburg is horrendous!. If you are on the ship the entire time, you will have to be bused back and forth.

Talisker is right!! Traffic in Moscow AND St. Petersburg is unbelievable. We sailed form Moscow to St.P...and the day we boarded our ship in Moscow it took almost an hour to go from the hotel to the dock, which is about 10 miles! They actually have underground walkways for crossing the street! Vantage had us in a hotel in the heart of Moscow that was lovely and the hotel in St.P. was beautiful and in a wonderful neighborhood. The excursions were much less stressful because we lined up outside the hotel, boarded the bus and left town!! Rather than driving an hour from the boat to the city, then parking, then walking. Unfortunately, Vantage hasn't reinstated it's Russian tours yet, so you might have no choice, but seriously look for a line that uses hotels in both cities, you won't regret it.

We did Vantage Russia and the five star hotels in the cities made a huge difference.

We did the trip in August/early Sept. We had very little rain.

Don't go in May, we heard from our guides that on the first tour in May one year, the river/canal route between STP and Moscow was blocked due to ice.