The best way to visit other interesting places outside Ekaterinburg is intercity transport. There are two types of transport — intercity buses and trains.

Intercity buses

You may take a bus from two main bus stations: North Bus Terminal and South Bus Terminal. There are daily buses going to almost every city in Sverdlovsk region. It’s fast and cheap way to visit any place you like. There are also bus routes to places of interest outside Ekaterinburg, for example, to Ganina Yama Monastery or to the border between Europe and Asia.

Before you go, please, check the bus schedule.

North Bus Terminal (“Severny Avtovokzal”)

North Bus Terminal (“Severny Avtovokzal”)

Situated in Vokzalniy district of Ekaterinburg, near the railway station (“Vokzal”). Often called “The North Gate” of Ekaterinburg.

Offers a wide range of intercity routes. Provides direct routes from Ekaterinburg to local cities and other regions – Chelyabinsk region, Kurgan region, Tyumen, Perm, Bashkiria and Kazakhstan.

You may buy tickets in advance booking offices on the second floor of the station. On the first floor there are cafés, shops and a waiting room. Ticket offices are working twenty-four hours a day. In 2007 a computer-based system was introduced. It provides quick access to time-tables changes and bus information.

Ekaterinburg, Vokzalnaya ul. 15/A (ул. Вокзальная, 15/А)
Information service: +7 (343) 358 41 68; + 7 (343) 378 16 09

How to get to the station:
Bus: № 6, 13, 57, 60 ("Vokzalnaya" stop).
Trolleybus: №1, 3, 5, 9, 11, 15,17 (“Hotel Sverdlovsk” stop).
Metro: “Uralkaya” station.
Or you may use any transport that goes to the railway station.

South Bus Terminal (“Yuzhny Avtovokzal”)

South Bus Terminal is the main station for intercity and international buses. Here you may buy tickets to a bus going to any region of the Russian Federation. You buy tickets in advance or in the day of departure.

South Bus Terminal is fully equipped to handle the thousands of passengers passing through every day. Ticket offices are on the first floor of the station. There are also cafés, shops, ATMs and a large waiting room for passengers.

Ekaterinburg, Vosmogo Marta ulitsa, 145 (ул. Восьмого (8) Марта, 145).
Information service: +7 (343) 257 12 60; +7 (343) 251 95 18.

How to get to the station:
Tram: № 1, 4, 5, 14, 15, 25, 27 (“Avtovokzal” stop).
Trolley bus: №11, 14 (“Avtovokzal” stop).
Bus: № 2, 12, 17, 20, 23, 37, 38, 50, 76 (“Avtovokzal” stop).

“Vostochnaya” bus station

Situated on the crossing of Lenina Prospect and Vostochnaya ul. Provides bus service to local cities and suburbs — Berezovsky, Gusevo, Izoplit, Kalinovsky, Kedrovka, Monetny, Sarapulka and Staropyshminsk. Buses go daily from 06.15 till 23.30 every 10-15 minutes.

Trains

The primary rail provider to the Ural is the world famous Trans-Siberian Railway (6,560 miles or 10,555 km away). It was built between 1890 and 1905 to connect Moscow with Vladivostok on Russia’s Pacific coast.

The Trans-Siberian is a major freight artery offering a fully developed container service across Eurasia from Berlin to Beijing, with links to major cities in Europe, including Helsinki, Kaliningrad, Warsaw, Minsk, Kiev, St-Petersburg, Smolensk and Ekaterinburg. And in addition to Russian stations in Siberia itself, the Trans-Sib also has connections to Astana in Kazakhstan, Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia, Beijing in China, Pyongyang in North Korea and Seoul and Pusan in South Korea.

There are more than twenty modern and comfortable trains that arrive from Moscow and Saint Petersburg to the Ural on a regular schedule for your convenience. The journey from Moscow to Ekaterinburg usually takes a couple of days and depends upon your choice of trains.

For travelers, the stop in Ekaterinburg provides a unique opportunity to get acquainted with the natural, historical, and cultural sights of the Ural.

Trains are very convenient way to explore the Ural region or other regions of Russia. Ekaterinburg has one main railway station (“Vokzal”). The railway station is served by local suburban electric trains and long-distance trains.

Types of long-distance trains

• “Firmenny” ("Фирменный"). These are high-quality trains, often with a name such as “Krasnaya Strela” (Red Arrow) or “Rossiya” (Russia). They have the most modern carriages, often painted in that train's own special color scheme, usually air-conditioned and with on-board service. These are easily the best trains to go for. The fare is a little higher than for other trains. They usually assigned have low-numbered train numbers such as 1, 8 or 10, and have a restaurant car serving drinks, snacks and affordable dinner menu. They generally have “spalny vagon”, “kupe” and sometimes but not always “platskartny” open-plan dormitory sleepers.
• “Skory” ("Скорый"). Express train. They often have “spalny vagon” 2-berth sleepers, “kupe” 4-berth sleepers and “platskartny” sleepers, and most have a restaurant car. They normally assigned one or two-digit train numbers, for example 11 or 26. Cheaper than traveling on a “Firmenny” train.
• “Passazhirsky” ("Пассажирский"). Ordinary passenger train, often relatively slow and usually using older carriages. They typically have 3-digit train numbers, for example 904. They usually have “kupe” 4-berth sleepers and “platskartny”, but not “spalny” 2-berth sleepers.

The train classes description:
There are three main classes, all designed for both daytime and overnight travel given the distances covered by many trains.

• Spalny Vagon / SV Luyx (1-st class) ("Спальный вагон / СВ Люкс") — 2-berth compartments, 9 compartments per coach, with both beds at the lower level. Bathrooms and toilets are at the end of the corridor. Its twice the price for traveling kupe, although you get twice the space per passenger, so its recommended for those who want extra privacy and space and who can afford it. SV is also known as “myagky” or “lyux”. On the best “firmenny” trains you can often buy tickets with or without service, meaning with or without bedding and meals included.
• Kupe (2-nd class) ("Купе") — 4-berth compartments, 9 compartments per coach. Bathrooms are at the end of the corridor. “Kupe” is recommended as the most often chosen carriage type by visitors to Russia. On best “firmenny” trains you can often buy kupe tickets with or without service, meaning with or without bedding and meals included.
• Platskartny (3-rd class) ("Плацкартный") — Open-plan dormitory cars. There are 54 bunks per coach, arranged in baws of 4 on one side of the aisle and bays of 2 along the coach wall on the other side of the aisle. Recommended for the most budget conscious and adventurous travelers.

The Ural Express (Moscow – Ekaterinburg)
This train has a good reputation and a very friendly staff. It is also the pride of the Ekaterinburg city administration which aspires to make it one of the best trains in Russia.
The train has economy and business class carriages and 1st and 2nd class compartments. Some of the carriages have Internet access and satellite TV and of course, the train has a nice restaurant car. In-compartment service is available.

Suburban electric train

Suburban electric train. Photo from www.tr66.ru

Suburban electric train (so-called "Elektrichka") is very popular mean of transport. It connects cities and small towns of the Sverdlovsk region with Ekaterinburg. Trains go daily from the railway station ("Vokzal").

The main directions are: Nizhny Tagil, Kuzino, Shalya, Druzhinino, Kamensk-Uralky, Bogdanovich, Bazhenovo, Verkhny Ufaley and Egorshino.

There are two types of suburban trains: electric train and express. Express is more expensive than an ordinary suburban train but it goes faster and more comfortable. Ticket prices depend on time of a trip and a distance.

Suburban electric trains are very popular among nonresident students who leave Ekaterinburg on holidays and citizens of suburbs, small towns of Sverdlovsk region and villagers.

There is also a city train that connects remote districts with central part of Ekaterinburg. It has 11 stops including the railway station (“Vokzal”) and “Pervomaysaya” station near the Ural State Technical University (UPI).

You may buy tickets at the railway station (the main building, first floor).

The railway timetable (“Raspisanie”) information can be found at the railway station near the information counters. Please, note that in all rail timetables Ekaterinburg is still called “Sverdlovsk”.

Once you find your train (“Poezd” or “Elektrichka”) information, its helpful to write down its number, the departure time and destination point.

Railway station of Ekaterinburg ("Vokzal", "Вокзал")

Situated on the crossing of Sverdlova and Chelyuskintsev ul. Though Sverdlovsk was renamed as Ekaterinburg, the rail-road station is still called by its old name "Sverdlovsk" in all rail-road time-tables. The railway station is important hub connecting European and Asian parts of Russia.

Railway station ("Vokzal"): Ekaterinburg, Vokzalnaya ul., 22
24-hours information service: +7 (343) 358 32 10

How to get to the railway station:
Tram: № 3, 5, 7, 12, 21, 23, 27, 32, А (“Railway station” stop);
Trolley bus: №1, 3, 5, 9, 11, 15, 17, 19 (“Hotel Sverdlovsk” stop);
Bus: № 1, 21, 23, 31 (“Railway station” stop);
Metro: “Uralkaya” station

Useful information

• Buying tickets
  You may buy tickets at the main building of the Ekaterinburg railway station (first floor, ticket offices – “kassa”). Please note, that for ticket purchasing you'll always need your passport (not id).
  Ticket agencies. The agencies can provide excellent service, but charge commission. The Russian railways don’t pay any commission to the agents for tickets sold, so the price at an agency will always be higher. The agency's commission depends on the quality of service and may be from 10% to 50% of the ticket price.
  You cannot book a train ticket. No ticket reservation system will be able to hold your ticket – you should purchase it right away. Should you need to return your tickets, you can only do so in the ticket offices of railway stations. Please note, that you cannot purchase train tickets earlier than 45 days before the departure of your train.
  The railway timetable (“raspisanie”) information can be found at the railway station near the information counters. Please, note that in all rail timetables Ekaterinburg is still called “Sverdlovsk”. Once you find your train (“Poezd” or “Elektrichka”) information, its helpful to write down its number, the departure time and destination point. If you are not sure what train station exactly your train departs from or have other questions, you may turn to information desk called “Spravochnaya” that is located near the ticket offices (the first floor of the station).
• Luggage
  For travelers in 2nd and 3d class, each passenger may bring aboard baggage not exceeding 36 kg. Not included in this limit are personal items such as purses, briefcases, laptop computers, baby items such as strollers, diaper bags and car seats
  For travelers in 1st class, each passenger may bring aboard baggage not exceeding 50 kg.
• Traveling with children
  Children under 5 years old are allowed to travel for free if they do not require a separate seat. In this case, the child will get a price-free ticket. This rule only applies to passengers departing from cities in the Russian Federation.
  If there are two children under 5 years of age traveling with one adult passenger, one of the children is required to have a child’s ticket.
  Children (5-10 years old) require a child’s ticket. A child’s ticket for 2nd and 3d class is usually 65% of a full adult ticket, and 1st class child’s tickets is 50% discount. Children under 10 years of age are not allowed to travel unsupervised.
  All underage passengers require ID for boarding (passport or birth certificate).
• Onboard
  Whichever class of travel you choose, each coach is looked after by a pair of attendants called a “provodnik” (male) or “provodnitsa” (female). He/she will check your ticket at the door to the sleeper when you board. Shortly after departure, the provodnik will come round to take your ticket and the small bedding fee.
  You may be asked if you would like a glass of black Russian tea (“chay”) - this costs about 25 cents. Bedding (two sheets, pillowcase and towel) is then handed out in sealed packs - blankets and mattresses will already be stacked in your compartment.
  A samovar with unlimited free hot water at the end of the corridor - pack some tea or coffee, sugar, soups or hot chocolate and bring your own mug. Most of long distance trains have a restaurant car serving drinks, snacks, and affordable dinner menu.
  There are two bathrooms at each end of every carriage. The showers are provided on long-distance trains (more than 24 hours); only in “kupe” or 1st class carriages. If your train doesn’t have a shower, you can ask a conductor to allow you to use a shower in another carriage for a small fee. The bed sheets and a set (which includes a towel) are provided in the train.
• International traveling
  If you travel outside of Russia to an international destination, you are required to have a travel passport and (if required) visa for the destination country.
  However, railways personnel are not responsible for any possible consequences if you do not have documents required for entry to international destination. Foreign travel visas are the responsibility of a passenger. Please consult with your travel agent or call consulate or embassy of your country.

Information is provided by the Russian Railways official press-service, North Bus Terminal official press-service and web-page www.trainsrussia.com