Route ideas

Where it makes sense to go along the way — and what it costs

CaucasusYerevan + Batumi: mountain Armenia and the Black Sea in one tripMoscowYerevanBatumiYerevan gives ancient monasteries and brandy, Batumi subtropics and a beach. Both countries are visa-free, and between them lies a day of travel through Tbilisi.
AfricaWindhoek + Swakopmund: the highest dunes in the world and a German town on the AtlanticMoscowWindhoekSwakopmundNamibia is visa-free, empty and built for self-driving. The red dunes of Sossusvlei, a foggy ocean and a safari in Etosha, all in one route.
Around RussiaVladivostok + Khabarovsk: the Pacific and the Amur in one tripMoscowVladivostokKhabarovskEight hours of flying from Moscow, so limiting yourself to one city makes little sense. Between Vladivostok and Khabarovsk lies a night on a train through the taiga.
AsiaUlan Bator + Irkutsk: steppe, yurts and Baikal along the Trans-MongolianMoscowUlan BatorIrkutskMongolia is visa-free and not far to fly, and Baikal lies next door — you can come back by train across the border. That is the route.
AfricaTunis + Monastir: Carthage, mosaics and an amphitheatre better preserved than the ColosseumMoscowTunisMonastirTunisia is known as a beach destination, and that is a shame: it has one of the best ancient museums in the world and an arena whose underground passages you can walk.
Middle EastTehran + Isfahan: the Persia almost nobody travels toMoscowTehranIsfahanA square the size of two football pitches, mosques under turquoise domes and bridges where people sing in the evening. A destination that is awkward day to day and very strong in impressions.
CaucasusTbilisi + Kutaisi: a city, caves and canyons in one weekMoscowTbilisiKutaisiWestern Georgia is not about the sea but about greenery, limestone and water. From Kutaisi you can reach a cave, a canyon and two UNESCO monasteries in a day.
CaucasusTbilisi + Batumi: the capital, the sea, and a mountain railway between themMoscowTbilisiBatumiGeorgia splits neatly in two: a few days in a city you want to walk end to end, and a few more on a subtropical coast. Fly into one, out of the other.
Central AsiaTashkent + Samarkand: the Silk Road by high-speed trainMoscowTashkentSamarkandTwo hours of train separate Soviet modernism and Tashkent's plov houses from Registan square. No visa needed, and the railway is the most convenient in Central Asia.
Around RussiaSaint Petersburg + Pskov: the imperial capital and what came before itMoscowSaint PetersburgPskovThree and a half hours by Lastochka separate the Hermitage from a fortress that held the western border for six hundred years — and from frescoes more than eight centuries old.
Around RussiaSochi + the Caucasus spas: sea, mountains and mineral springs in one routeMoscowSochiMineralnye VodyFrom subtropics to pump rooms is half a day of travel. Add Elbrus and a single trip holds both a beach and a five-thousander.
AsiaShanghai + Hangzhou: skyscrapers and a lake that had poems written about itMoscowShanghaiHangzhouAn hour by fast train separates China's most modern city from the place the Chinese have considered the standard of beauty for centuries.
AsiaSeoul + Busan: two and a half hours by fast train from the capital to the seaMoscowSeoulBusanPalaces and towers in the north; beaches, a fish market and a temple on the rocks in the south. Korea is small, and that is its main convenience.
Central AsiaSamarkand + Bukhara: the two cities people come to Uzbekistan forMoscowSamarkandBukharaSamarkand impresses by scale, Bukhara by wholeness: its old town was not restored in patches — it simply survived. Ninety minutes of train between them.
Latin AmericaRio + Salvador: two Brazils, the southern one and the African oneMoscowRio de JaneiroSalvadorRio is the postcard: mountains, beaches, Christ above the city. Salvador is where Brazilian music, food and capoeira came from. Two hours of flying between them.
AfricaNairobi + Mombasa: a safari and the Indian Ocean in one tripMoscowNairobiMombasaThe classic Kenyan scheme: savannah with the wildebeest migration first, then white sand on the coast. An hour of flying between them.
Around RussiaMurmansk + Petrozavodsk: the northern lights and Karelia in one runMoscowMurmanskPetrozavodskBeyond the Arctic Circle it is dark almost around the clock in winter — which is precisely why people go. And on the way back lies Karelia with Kizhi and a marble canyon.
Latin AmericaMexico City + Oaxaca: pyramids, mezcal and the best food in the AmericasMoscowMexico CityOaxacaOne of the world's great museums, pyramids an hour from the capital — and a mountain city people travel to for food, crafts and the Day of the Dead.
AfricaMarrakesh + Fes: two medinas you can genuinely get lost inMoscowMarrakeshFesMorocco is visa-free for a Russian passport, and two imperial cities give you everything at once: markets, riads, a desert within reach and a maze where the navigator gives up.
AfricaMarrakesh + Agadir: a medina, the Atlas and the AtlanticMoscowMarrakeshAgadirThree hours of mountain road separate the noise of the souk from an ocean coast where the water is cold, the wind is constant and the surf works all year.
AsiaManila + Cebu: the Philippines without connections across ten islandsMoscowManilaCebu CitySeven thousand islands make the choice frightening. Start with two points: the capital for history and Cebu as a base for reefs, waterfalls and Bohol.
Around RussiaMakhachkala + Grozny: the Caucasus you reach without a passportMoscowMakhachkalaGroznyThe Sulak canyon is deeper than the Grand Canyon, Derbent is older than any other city in Russia, and between Dagestan and Chechnya lie four hours of road and a mountain lake on the border.
Latin AmericaLima + Cusco: a food capital and the road to Machu PicchuMoscowLimaCuscoPeople come to Peru for the Incas, but it is better to start at the coast: Lima is one of the world's great eating cities, and Cusco sits at 3,400 metres, which takes getting used to.
AsiaKuala Lumpur + Kota Kinabalu: the capital and BorneoMoscowKuala LumpurKota KinabaluMalaysia splits into a peninsula and an island, and the second part is another country entirely: jungle, orangutans, a four-thousand-metre peak and reefs.
Around RussiaKrasnoyarsk + Khakassia: Stolby, Ergaki and burial mounds in the steppeMoscowKrasnoyarskAbakanThe Siberia people come to for rocks rather than for distance. The Krasnoyarsk Pillars stand at the edge of the city, and south of them begin the Sayans and the Khakass steppe with Bronze Age mounds.
Around RussiaKazan + Nizhny Novgorod: two cities on the Volga in a long weekendMoscowKazanNizhniy NovgorodA kremlin where a mosque stands beside an Orthodox cathedral, and a city that has just rebuilt its embankments into one of the most comfortable in the country.
Around RussiaKaliningrad + Saint Petersburg: the Baltic from both endsMoscowKaliningradSaint PetersburgGerman heritage, the dunes of the Curonian Spit and amber — and a second half in the city built as a window on the same Europe.
TurkeyIstanbul + Trabzon: the green Turkey that never appears in the brochuresMoscowIstanbulTrabzonA Black Sea coast of tea plantations, fog and a monastery hanging off a cliff. It is cool here in summer — which is the main argument.
TurkeyIstanbul + Izmir: the Aegean coast and Ephesus instead of another beachMoscowIstanbulIzmirIzmir is the calmest of Turkey's big cities, and around it lie antiquity, white villages and Pamukkale. For those who have done Antalya and want something else.
TurkeyIstanbul + Cappadocia: a city on two continents and valleys of volcanic tuffMoscowIstanbulKayseriNinety minutes of flying separate the Bosphorus from valleys where hundreds of balloons lift off at dawn. No visa, and domestic flights in Turkey are cheap.
TurkeyIstanbul + Antalya: a week of city and a week of sea without a second flightMoscowIstanbulAntalyaThe classic holiday scheme that somehow rarely gets built: Istanbul first, then the coast. The domestic flight takes a little over an hour.
Around RussiaIrkutsk + Ulan-Ude: Baikal from both shores and a Buddhist monastery in the steppeMoscowIrkutskUlan-UdeA train runs between them along the southern shore of Baikal. On one side Olkhon and Listvyanka, on the other a datsan, Old Believer villages and an entirely different Russia.
AsiaHong Kong + Guangzhou: skyscrapers, ferries and the home of dim sumMoscowHong KongGuangzhouAn hour by fast train between two halves of one culture: British inheritance on one side of the border, the Cantonese south of China on the other.
AsiaHo Chi Minh City + Nha Trang: southern Vietnam, a city and the seaMoscowHo Chi Minh CityNha TrangA metropolis with French boulevards and a heavy war history, and an hour away a beach town with islands in front of it.
Latin AmericaHavana + Cancun: Cuba and Yucatan on one crossing of the oceanMoscowHavanaCancunFlying across the Atlantic for a single country is a waste. Havana and Cancun are an hour apart in the air, and the difference between them is a matter of decades.
AsiaHanoi + Luang Prabang: from Vietnamese noise into Lao quietMoscowHanoiLuang PrabangAn hour of flying separates a city of eight million motorbikes from a place where the main event of the day is the dawn and the monks walking for alms.
AsiaHanoi + Da Nang: northern and central Vietnam, ninety minutes apartMoscowHanoiDa NangAn old quarter and Ha Long Bay in the north, beaches and the lanterns of Hoi An in the centre. One country, two completely different trips.
Middle EastDubai + Doha: two Gulf cities an hour apartMoscowDubaiDohaDubai is about scale and the shop window, Doha about museums and restraint. Together they show that the Gulf is not one place under several names.
AsiaBali + Yogyakarta: an island and the greatest temple in Southeast AsiaMoscowDenpasarYogyakartaBorobudur is the largest Buddhist monument in the world, and it is an hour's flight from Bali. Flying halfway across the planet and not seeing it would be odd.
AsiaBali + Kuala Lumpur: an island and a city, so the trip is not only a beachMoscowDenpasarKuala LumpurAlmost every route to Bali passes through mainland Asia anyway — so why not turn the transfer into three days in the Malaysian capital.
AfricaCape Town + Johannesburg: Table Mountain, wine farms and a safari in KrugerMoscowCape TownJohannesburgSouth Africa is visa-free for a Russian passport and fits an ocean, mountains, wine and the big five into a single trip.
AfricaCairo + Luxor: pyramids and the Valley of the Kings instead of a week in a resortMoscowCairoLuxorEveryone flies to Egypt, and almost always to the sea. Meanwhile the main thing is a thousand kilometres from the beach, and an overnight train goes there.
Latin AmericaBuenos Aires + Mendoza: tango and malbec at the foot of the AndesMoscowBuenos AiresMendozaA capital that looks European and behaves Latin American, and a wine region whose vineyards face a seven-thousand-metre peak.
Latin AmericaBogota + Cartagena: cold mountains and Caribbean heat in one countryMoscowBogotaCartagenaA capital at 2,600 metres where you need a jacket all year, and a colonial port on the Caribbean where it never drops below thirty. Ninety minutes of flying between them.
BalkansBelgrade + Sarajevo: the Balkans, where everything is close and nothing is simpleMoscowBelgradeSarajevoTwo cities six hours apart, each with its own twentieth century. Both countries are visa-free for a Russian passport, and «European prices» here are a name only.
BalkansBelgrade + Montenegro: through 254 tunnels to the Adriatic by trainMoscowBelgradePodgoricaThe Belgrade–Bar railway is considered one of the most beautiful in Europe: it crosses the mountains on viaducts two hundred metres high and ends at the sea.
AsiaBangkok + Siem Reap: Angkor an hour's flight from the Thai capitalMoscowBangkokSiem ReapThe largest temple complex in the world deserves its own flight, but you cannot get there directly from Russia. From Bangkok it takes an hour.
AsiaBangkok + Phuket: three days of city and a week of seaMoscowBangkokPhuketA scheme that works better than two weeks on one beach: temples, boats and street food first, then the Andaman Sea. The domestic flight takes an hour.
AsiaBangkok + Kuala Lumpur: two Southeast Asian capitals in one weekMoscowBangkokKuala LumpurTwo hours of flying and a complete change of scenery: Thai temples and street food give way to a Malay mix of mosques, Chinese quarters and Indian markets.
CaucasusBaku + Tbilisi: two capitals that resemble nothing nearbyMoscowBakuTbilisiCaspian oil-money modernism and a Georgian old town in one trip. A night of travel between them — and the contrast such routes are assembled for.
Middle EastAmman + Aqaba: Petra, Wadi Rum and the Red Sea in one tripMoscowAmmanAqabaJordan is small: a day of road separates the capital from the Red Sea, and a city carved into rock and a Martian desert fit along the way.
Central AsiaAlmaty + Bishkek: four hours of road between two mountain capitalsMoscowAlmatyBishkekTwo cities under the same range, a border and half a day apart. And beyond them what people actually come for: Issyk-Kul, Ala Archa and gorges with nothing in them but horses.
Central AsiaAlmaty + Astana: mountains at the doorstep and a city built from scratchMoscowAlmatyAstanaIn Almaty a cable car lifts you from the centre to the snow; in Astana there is steppe wind and architecture thirty years old. Two hours by air or a night by train between them.
Middle EastAbu Dhabi + Salalah: the only place in Arabia that turns green in summerMoscowAbu DhabiSalalahFrom late June to early September the monsoon turns southern Oman into misty green mountains with waterfalls. At the same time the rest of the Gulf sits at forty-five.
AsiaPhuket + China: two trips for the price of one flightMoscowPhuketGuangzhouThe flight to Southeast Asia is long either way — spending it on a single beach is a waste. Add a few days in Guangzhou: the city sits right on the way back.
Middle EastDubai + Oman: skyscrapers and the real Arabia next doorMoscowDubaiMuscatDubai wears thin after three days. An hour away is Muscat: mountains, forts and a coastline without a single tower. Together they make a trip that doesn't repeat itself.
Middle EastIstanbul + Tbilisi: two weeks on one ticketMoscowIstanbulTbilisiIstanbul is the connection point for half the routes out of Russia, and Tbilisi is two hours further. Instead of a layover you get the second half of a holiday.
CaucasusYerevan + Tbilisi: two Caucasus capitals in one tripMoscowYerevanTbilisi250 kilometres apart and a shared border. Flying into one and out of the other beats two separate tickets — and puts an overnight mountain train inside your itinerary.
AsiaBeijing + Guangzhou: northern and southern China on one tripMoscowBeijingGuangzhouThirty visa-free days in China is a rare window, and spending them in a single city is a waste. Beijing and Guangzhou differ more than some neighbouring countries — and they are four hours apart by high-speed rail.