Sankt Peterburg/Leningrad - Helsinki Allegro FIP

[Please Explain]

Privjet tovarishe!

As it happens, I currently find myself in St Peterburg (Leningrad).. Here for the weekend and thinking of trying out the Allegro on my way back west out to Helsinki on Sunday.

My question: is FIP valid at all on this service? I know we have 50% reduction on VR in Finland -(unfortunately, I don't have any VR coupon with me out here..).
If FIP is recognised then I can already see the pantomime that will be involved with the RZhD staff at the kasse in the Finnlandskii Vokzal when I try to explain that I'm Railway personnel from Great Britain in my broken Ruskii!!

Any info about this train and tips, things, places of interest in both cities for that matter most welcome. It will be my first time in Helsinki -(and Finland).

Spaciba!
Kris

 

[rf_ioliver]

PM me - I live in Helsinki - though can't help with the FIP stuff.

The trip involves LOTS of trees puctuated by the occasional city... Vyborg, Kouvola and Lahti followed by a 220kmh run down Oikorata (Finland's high speed line). The border crossing is quite interesting with stops on both sides to check the train (I think it's the same with Allegro, certainly was with Sibelius).

Anyway...like I said, PM me and let me know how long you'll be in Helsinki and I'll forward some ideas.

t.

Ian

 

[Taunton]

Tovarish is a generally outmoded form of address in the post-Soviet world, privyet is sufficient

Have you been to the new St Petersburg railway museum, opened last autumn? I have not been since it was at the old location at the closed Warsaw station, where they had a tremendous display of just about one of everything, steam diesel and electric, from Soviet days. It was all outdoors there, but they appear to have a new purpose-built indoor (at least in part) location, with what looks like all the old stock. It would be good to have a review; I did posts here before about the former location but these will now be outmoded. At the old museum, on snowy winters' days, more than once I was the only visitor. It was both fascinating and surreal, and all the exhibits were immaculate. RZD must have got some good money to build the new facility.

https://rzd-museum.ru/en

Do have a look at the bottom of the "Visiting" page there to see the notable groupings of who gets in for free - one of the nice aspects of Russia remembering today its historic past.

The Allegro is a pleasant enough modern day service, it is of course basically a Pendolino, the trip is indeed trees, periodic lakes, and a few intermediate stations, as is the norm elsewhere in this part of the world, such as the St Pete to Moscow line. You will meet a substantial amount of freight along the line especially at the Russian end; timber flats, oil tanks, containers, all sorts.

The Finnish rail museum meanwhile is at Hyvinkaa, also good, and there was a discussion, between a couple of us posting here now, about my visit last year. For both museums, check the opening hours before committing to the journey there.

https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...ments-on-finnish-national-rail-museum.153003/

 

[Mag_seven]

My question: is FIP valid at all on this service?

It might be valid on the Finland leg but I doubt it on the Russian leg - best thing to do would be to ask.

 

[Please Explain]

Hi fellas,


Thanks a lot for the replies, ideas and info.

Well, unfortunately I've had to make a change of plan due to some immigration issues -(a long story...) And Finland will have to wait for another time, but its given me an extra day here which I'm not complaining about as I've really enjoyed it here in St Peterburg.

@Taunton,
Haha, maybe to most, but to my fellow socialist
Zheleznodorozhnyye rabochiye out here it is very much still alive and a common greeting! Go down to Tiraspol, PMR and you can hear it widespread, especially among the older citizens of the young Republic!!
Anyway, thanks a lot for heads up on the new museum, I never even heard of it so I Google'd it straight away and went there yesterday.
All can say is, if your interested in the Soviet railways and find yourself in St Peterburg then go!
I was mightily impressed, as you said there was at least one piece of just about everything from steam days until recently.
Its a huge site so allow a good few hours to get round it all and see everything. Theirs a shop and a nice cafe too.
All and all, a most enjoyable afternoon. So thanks again for bringing it to my attention or I would have missed it.
I also took a walk round to the old site at the Varshavskii Vokzal for a look around. The station building is now a shopping centre called "Varshavskii Express" which was pretty soulless inside and has hardly retained much of its railway history. Most of the units were empty too so the place has definitely seen better days. Outside, nothing at all remains of the railway land. The approaches are now being built on with luxury flats going up to the south and east of the station with an area of wasteland at the moment where the platforms once were.

And now, time for some pics! :
Looking south from the Vokzal at the old alignment..
The roundhouse in the new museum..
Missile train...

Bonus! Train no 1, Krasnaya Strela to Moskva Leningradskii waiting to depart from St Peterburg Moskovskii Vokzal last night...
There are so many night trains each and every night between these two cities, it was great fun watchhig them all them all coming and going, with TEM2 diesel shunter's on the ECS moves. Scenes like this are of course long gone in UK now...

Off now on plan-B for transit train no 79, 15h30 to Kaliningrad from Vitebsky Vokzal..!

 

[reb0118]

No FIP facilities on the Allegro service. I was on it in March this year. Pre booked ticket @ 29€ from Viipuri to Helsingfors.