Hello TCC forum-ers.
Has anyone been?
Wondering about the high lights you experienced or any other tid bits you may have for me?
thanks!
Rick
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Hello TCC forum-ers.
Has anyone been?
Wondering about the high lights you experienced or any other tid bits you may have for me?
thanks!
Rick
You need to be a member of TCC Forum to add comments!
Replies
We just went two months ago. There's indeed not a lot of standout tourist attractions save for the cathedral and perhaps the infamous "Monster" building, which is replete with the Soviet weirdness that I so love to explore.
@Alex The same is true in the other direction. They didn't stamp the Belarusian visa on arrival in Minsk from Kaliningrad. There was no problem on the way out, IIRC, because they were used to the drill.
The coolest part about it, IMO, was the interesting split between Russian and German influence along with the inexpensive pricing there relative to St. Petersburg and especially Moscow. We found some relatively excellent food there for pretty cheap, and a nice brew pub in the main mall.
Note that you can get there from elsewhere in Russia on a single-entry visa ONLY if you fly. Overland, you can't.
If anyone else wants BTDT on Belarus, we went there as well. I would disagree that it's a lot like Kaliningrad, at least relative to other ex Warsaw Pact places. It was fascinating. If you want to be one of the ~300 (!) Americans issued a visa to visit this year, I HIGHLY recommend contacting Andrei Burdenkov and hiring him to get your tourist invitations and help smooth out the process. He's a quirky guy, for sure, but he's THE contact for English speakers wanting to visit Minsk.
Oh yeah, one tip: If you do what I did and fly to Belarus from Kaliningrad, be aware that it's considered an internal flight and you won't get your Belarus visa entry stamped, and there's no way to if your flight arrives at late at night as mine did. Apparently this could be a problem when leaving if you get someone who's actually doing their job when stamping you out. But the one I got couldn't be bothered to care where my entry stamp might be, so it was all good.
I was there last September. +1 on Mike's recommendation to come in through Curonian Split -- before Kaliningrad I drove around Lithuania just about down to the border there, then retraced my steps back to Vilnius. Doing it the way Mike suggests would be better.
My only don't-miss recommendation is the B-413 submarine tour, but then again I'm the kind of computer geek that delights in classic Cthulhu-meets-steampunk Soviet engineering. Normal people are probably a great deal less fascinated with it.
Otherwise, the TripAdvisor attractions list is a fine planning guide.
You'll still need a Russian Visa to enter Kaliningrad.
Hi Rick,
Yes, I have been there, last in Aug. 2006. In fact, I was born there when it was the German Koenigsberg of East Prussia. Since my family had to flee near the end of WW II in 1944, I had no memories of it since I was just over one year old. Hence my return in 2006 was to retrace my roots. We had a guide for part of the time on a tour organized by MIR of Seattle and we also explored on our own. I managed to find the location of the house where we had lived (demolished during the war). The city was really quite beautiful before the war, but much of the enclave has been much neglected by the Russians. On the other hand, the southern half of the former East Prussia in Poland is quite beautiful, especially in the Masurian Lake District where my father came from. The most noteworthy site within the city itself was the cathedral on the central island that has been restored, including Kant's tomb. The old castle was demolished by the Russians and they built an ugly glass structure on they site, never occupied, at least until 2006. The pretty Baltic coast is worth a visit. That is where the rich Russians from Moscow and St. Petersburg have built their seaside mansions. That is in contrast to the basic shack my father had built during the war. The visit there was part of a MIR package including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania as well as Kaliningrad. Most tours usually skip Kaliningrad. Russia now offers a 3-year, multiple-entry visa for US citizens. We have used that since we traveled in Russia for two months last year. I will be giving a TCC slideshow of that trip (not including Kaliningrad) both in No. CA March 1 and So CA March 8.
Rick,
Not a lot of highlights. Only remember one - an incredible amber museum showcasing many things made from amber. Worth a brief stop on the way from Lithuania to Poland.
David
Rick,
I was there in winter a few years ago ... so it wasn't Kaliningrad at it's best and a lot was closed but a few things worth checking out from my short visit ...
The B-413 submarine is well worth a look. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g298500-d544631-Review... check out the relatively primitive equipment compared to US subs of the same era. You can walk 'end to end' inside the sub.
The cathedral is nice, as is the island park around it http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g298500-d544640-Review...
If you've ever done any maths you might remember the famous Seven Bridges of Königsberg puzzle from Euler - Königsberg is the old name for Kaliningrad. The cathedral & park is on the island that was the basis of the original puzzle. There are only 5 bridges now - two from Euler's time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Bridges_of_K%C3%B6nigsberg
On the bridges you'll find many padlocks left by newly weds -- a custom that started in that region (you'll find them in Vilnius, for example) and is now spreading to other places across the world.
This may have changed from 2009 .... what I can see online .... if you're flying into the International Terminal (ie not from Russia) then it seems to still be well away from the main domestic terminal. In fact it's on the opposite side of the main runway from the main terminal. There were no taxi's, buses etc (they are all at the domestic) and my pre-arranged hotel transfer didn't show. Only the kindness of an English speaking local got me into town in her car - otherwise I'd still be there.
Not a lot but I hope this helps ...
Cheers,
Peter D/
Hi Mike,
Excellent synopsis! Much appreciated gives me a nice sense of the character of the place and the interesting sites to see.
Very grateful
Rick
Mike Kendall said:
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