Best Time to Visit Russia

Summer is the safe bet

For most of Russia, June to August is the easiest time to visit. July is the hottest month in almost every city we cover, usually around 22 to 25°C. That's warm, not scorching. It's also the wettest month in many places, so Moscow and Yekaterinburg can bring heavy summer showers.

Saint Petersburg is the exception for rain. August is its wettest month, at 104 mm, so don't count on dry canal walks. Late June is the famous White Nights period, when the sky stays light almost all night. If you want long evenings along the Neva river, that's your window.

South versus Siberia

The south runs hotter and starts earlier. Rostov-on-Don reaches 33°C in August, and Volgograd hits 32°C in July. Both are better in May, June or September, when you can walk along the Don or the Volga without wilting.

Siberia is a different story. Novosibirsk, Omsk and Krasnoyarsk are best from June to August, because summer is short there. Winters are long and very cold. Still, if you want snow, frozen rivers and a trip on the Trans-Siberian Railway in a warm carriage, winter has its own charm.

Kazan, Nizhniy Novgorod and Ufa sit in between. May and June are lovely there, and August works well too.

Holidays and crowds

High season is June to August, with Moscow and Saint Petersburg busiest. Hotels fill up around the White Nights. Schools break for summer from roughly June to August, so trains south to the Black Sea coast get packed with families.

New Year is the other big peak. The country mostly shuts down from 1 January for about ten days, and Orthodox Christmas on 7 January falls inside that break. Moscow's Red Square lights and markets are lovely then, but prices and crowds rise.

Victory Day on 9 May brings parades and some road closures in central Moscow. It's a moving day to watch if you don't mind crowds.

Low season runs from November to March outside the New Year break. You'll find quieter museums, like the Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, and better room rates. Just expect short, dark, freezing days.