Feasible plan?
 

Hello, I have the beginnings of a plan formulating, although I'm sure that it'll not be as easy as I imagine.

Here's the thing..

I was travelling by motorbike last summer, no plan, a rough idea to head East, maybe find work in Australia. Things didn't work out quite like that, cut a long story short, I traveled Europe and Turkey for three and a half months, met the right(?!) people and now I'm volunteering in Poland. My project ends in two and a half months, and I'm eyeing up Mongolia as the next destination. I've found somewhere I can work, for food and accommodation, and I'd love to take the bike there, or as much of the way as I can, across Russia.

Ok, the details.. My bike is a fifteen year old suzuki bandit 600, still alive and kicking, although not 100%. I have £2500 of my savings left, and I need to get visas (I'm British, need visas for Russia and Mongolia) and new tyres before even leaving Poland. My bike can only manage around 150miles per tank of fuel - how frequent are fuel stations in Russia? I was planning on taking the trans siberian highway as far as lake baikal, and then heading to ulanbaataar, and, if possible to the town of "Moron"(?), although I understand there aren't so many tarmac roads in Mongolia. I can ride on dirt tracks, just wondering about fuel again!

It's a hash of a plan, well, I don't like plans so much anyway, but maybe it could work, I'd love to give it a go. However, if it's completely unattainable I can leave the bike in Poland and jump of the trans siberian railway, which would also be a good laugh I think!

Basically, can somebody with a bit of experience let me know how realistic this idea is, with the budget I have. I have no fear about the bike, it can handle anything ;)

Thanks a lot!

Andy

Go for it. If you need any info on Mongolia, I can help
Goodluck

150 miles tank range will get you to Moron ... just make sure you go by Darhan and Erdenet and grab fuel wherever you can

Aha, awesome, thanks for the replies, much appreciated!
So, even with my budget and my old road bike, this is possible, if I'm camping a lot? Definitely encouraging!

Gunnermon, I'll be in touch with any Mongolia related queries I have, cheers! Although, perhaps you know what the roads are like if I follow the route suggested by colebatch.

I'm thinking I can reach Moron from Poland in three weeks, not riding too hard, maybe a month, is this more or less an accurate guess? Cheers!

Hi Drew,
From the border town of Altanbulag to Khuvsgul Lake, it's little over 800 km, more or less the first half is paved road & remaining half is dirt track over which more new roads are being built. Yes, as Colebatch suggested, you'll be going to Darkhan - 120 km from the border - Erdenet - 180 km - Bulgan - 60 km - Murun - 360 km - Khatgal - 105 km etc.

hi Andy
sounds interesting...
It means you are going to start at the beginning of June right? Im going to do Japan, but will start in July. Anyway Andy are you in Warsaw? Let me invite you for a coffee. I know nice place for Russian visa. 5 days, no problem. Regards - Romek sq5rk (at) o2.pl

Unless you have a written Residency permission for 90 days+ in Poland you will have to apply for your RUS visas in UK

Tony, Im afraid you are wrong. Ask last summer for visa for my Swedich friend. No problem for EU citizen, without ANY additional conditions. Funny was because tourist office in Malmo or Stockholm told him that he has to book at least first night in hotel. Sure hotel from their list. Short list, and expensive :)

Different terms apply to different nationalities.
The EU is not a nationality.
That may have worked for a Swedish citizen or maybe even all Schengen zone citizens (Britain is not a Schengen member).

British citizens applying for Visas in EU member countries other than Britain have been asked to produce proof, (registration or permit) of 90+ days Residency in that country. (I know of recent examples of this happening in Spain and several Baltic countries).

This Residency Right must be more specific documentation for a British applicant, than just the EU 'rule' that some EU citizens have a general right to live in other parts of the EU.

Andy needs to check this out for himself, in good time, with the Russian Embassy Visa people in Poland where he hopes to obtain his visa.

Very true, despite the best efforts of the Brussels beaureaucracy.

In diplomatic terms the UK does not have the best of relationships with Russia, (outstanding extradition requests and expat Russian oligarchs based in the UK for example) - I agree, checking the visa requirements for any country with regard to your own nationality and the rules as of today is sound advice.

Tony P is correct - Uk resident has to apply for visa in UK - ONLY exception is as per Tony's post (or you have diplomatic immunity :biggrin3: )

This comes about from strained relations (diplomatically, not on the street) resulting in "tit for tat" regulation retaliation.

I believe this one followed the British stopping postal applications for UK visas and demanding every applicant attend an Interview Centre in person. Fine?
Well think of a family of 4 in Vladivostock thinking of visiting UK. They all have to fly to the nearest Centre. It is in Novosibirsk, half way across Russia - a total of nearly 46,000 kilometers to travel just to get the visa. Visiting UK is on top of that.
No wonder Russia gets pissed off and adds more restrictions for Brits.
Alastair Campbell's Government's attempts at rock gardens in Moscow parks didn't help either!

hello gentelman.
Just phoned a minute ago and ask what they think about Russian visa for UK citizen. Hmm, there is one difference. You have to wait up to 10 days. For me 5 days only :) Talked to Russian lady in Embassy, and with well known in Warsaw Russian tourist office. Thats it.

Interesting indeed.


Not doubting you, but did she understand the possibility of the applicant only being a 'transit' visitor to Poland ? What documentation would a UK citizen have to produce?

A number of UK ex-pats living here (Russia) continuously for years on back to back visas have been refused visas in their regular visa-run destinations of Helsinki, Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius because they could not produce residency in the country of application.
The "EU right' to go to live there was not sufficient - it had to be demonstrated to be happening.
It would be useful if these people know they can go to Warsaw as being a nearer option than London.

Also I know of a UK applicant in France having to produce his Carte de Sejour (required residency permit for people living there) - similarly in Spain.

Tony, only way to check it is try to do it. Ooops, was it understable ? :) Yes, asked few times, and told them he is as a visitor here in Poland, UK is in EU but not in Shengen. Answer was, ok no problem. Paperwork: simple form to fill and photo.

Touche !

Hello there, thanks for the replies, some interesting points. I don't have residency permission, but my coordinator thinks we can arrange it. I'm living in Wrocław at the moment, but I imagine a visit to Warsaw is on the cards in the not too distant future for the visa, although a friend said I could use a travel agent here too arrange it, the fee's work out about the same as travel to and from Warsaw apparently.

I'm guessing the Mongolian visa will need specific dates of entry also, and I should probably get it here in advance?

All good fun, cheers for the information, I'll let you know how I get on ;)

Mongolia is easier ... just turn up and hand over your passport ... The limiting factor with MN visas is that tourists visas are valid for a maximum of one month and the latest date of entry to Mongolia is 3 months from the date of issue. So dont apply for your visa now, if you are going to enter in July. It wont work.

Or you get lucky! :thumbup1:

I jumped the queue (of 77) in Dushanbe, Tajikistan in full biking gear in the boiling August 2011 heat and simply asked if I could have a tourist visa and presented my paperwork (visa form and tour agency invitation).

I don't know if they were unaware of the nominal requirement for UK citizens to apply in the UK or simply wanted my stench out of their office but they were OK with it. I then pushed my luck and asked for an urgent visa which turned the 10 day turnaround into two!

I accept that there may be a complex matrix involving nationality, current location and the type of visa involved but it does no harm to ask!

Cheers,

Ian

As simple as that? No confirmed accomodation?

Also within the 'complex matrix' is you say you got a Tourist Visa.
Tourist Visas are only valid for 30 days maximum.

For most HUBB travellers this is insufficient for crossing Russia, and probably back, other than making it a race with time instead of seeing the country - with no exit/re-entry.
So the longer 90 day Business Visa is recommended. Even a one year one so detours into Stans and Mongolia don't eat into the 90 days.

But Russia being Russia there will always be someone who got away with doing it differently and beat the rules, bribes or not - it's the nature of the country.
When planning your journey you decide if you want to have everything properly done and in place or take risks about being able to complete your trip as you go - in which case it comes down to "Do you feel lucky, ****?"

Yes! ;)

To be fair, the tour invitation does suggest I was going to spend the entire 30 days in a hotel in Yekaterinburg but I had nothing to do with the hotel (I didn't book anything or pay the hotel anything and went to a different hotel in Ykb anyway, just 1200RR to the agency for the invitation). I can't read Cyrillic well enough to discover how the invitation indicates I was going to arrive in RU (eg. by air) but I was stomping about the embassy in riding gear and MX boots which should have given the overland nature of my trip away.

I'll be honest, I was quite surprised myself. I'd contacted the RU embassy in London before I left and noted that I'd have been out of the UK for a couple of months before I could use any RU visa and they told me to apply in Dushanbe/Bishkek/wherever I was at the time. The "rules" for visa applications are all in flux so by the time I was in TJ the word on the street was pretty negative so I was debating DHL'ing my passport back to the UK (and subjecting a friend to wasting half a day down at VFS -- a huge inconvenience even if they already live in London!) but even then my nominal employment status (self-employed) suggested I might have needed to make a personal visit.

Pitching up at the embassy and asking politely seemed like a cheaper first alternative! :)

Indeed, which is why I added the type of visa to the matrix. ;)

I vaguely recall that you couldn't get a business visa if you'd not been to RU before so a tourist visa, for me, was a must. But my memory is failing me and I picked up a few visas on that last trip so I could be mixing things up.

Cheers,

Ian