Obtaining a Visa for Kaliningrad, Russia
Reviewed 9 January 2024 ~ Russia Kaliningrad Visa Information
Airspace Closures
Russia has closed its airspace to airlines from multiple countries in direct response to airspace closures effecting its airlines, which were introduced by western governments opposing Russia’s military operation to ‘demilitarise and de-Natzify’ Ukraine. Airlines on the banned list are prohibited from landing in or flying over Russian territory. As a result, air travel disruptions are widespread. If you intend to travel in the immediate future, you should contact your airline or travel agent for further information.
Links to Airport/Airlines websites can be found at the end of this guide
Links
Kaliningrad-Gdansk-London Luton
How to get to Kaliningrad from the UK
To visit Kaliningrad, you will need to apply for and have been issued with a Russian visa. For those of you who are not sure what one of these is, it is an official document that permits you to legally enter a foreign country, in this case the Russian Federation. The visa is valid for a specific duration of time. It contains the date of entry to the country and the date of exit, as well as your name, travel document (passport) details and the purpose for which you are travelling.
There are various types of visa depending upon the nature of your visit, but, for the sake of this blog, let’s assume that you are visiting Kaliningrad as a tourist.
Russia Kaliningrad Tourist Information: Tourist Visa
A tourist visa will allow you to enter Kaliningrad, and leave, within a specified time-frame of 30 days. This means that the maximum length of stay in Kaliningrad is 30 days and no more. It is important that you leave the country before or on the date of exit.
Before a tourist visa can be issued, you will need to have confirmation of where you will be staying throughout the duration of your visit. Two documents are required, commonly referred to as visa support documents, and they consist of: (1) a Voucher; (2) a Booking Confirmation.
If you are staying in a hotel, you will need to ask the hotel to send you a hotel voucher and confirmation of tourist acceptance. Once you have received these, you should then take them to the Russian National Tourist Office. The London address is:
The Russian National Tourist Office
202 Kensington Church Street
London W8 4DP
To complete your visa application, you will need to take the following with you to the tourist office:
1. An original passport, valid for more than 6 months, containing at
least 2 blank pages for your visa and entry/exit stamps
2. An application form (obtainable from The Russian National
Tourist Office)*
3. One valid passport-type photograph
4. Payment for application
*The Russian National Tourist Office can assist you with all stages of your application, including visa support documents. You can contact them by telephone, on 0207 985 1234 and/or visit this page on their website: https://www.visitrussia.org.uk/visas/getting-a-russian-visa/
Russia Kaliningrad Visa Information: Professional visa support company
To make things easier for you there are various visa-support companies that you can contact, which will take you through the entire process. My support company of choice is Stress Free Visas, if only because if you do get stressed whilst using them you can have a good laugh at your own expense! Their website address is www.stressfreevisas.co.uk.
When using their service, you will be asked to fill an application form online. It is as well to know what to expect before you start, since when they start asking you questions, such as what is your inside leg measurement, it will be difficult to do so unless you have a tape measure already at hand. OK, it’s not that bad, not quite, but there is information that you will need that you might inconceivably not have thought of.
To this end, please see the following:
Q: Who is paying for your trip to Russia?
A: [If it is you, put ‘independently’]
####
You will be asked ‘information about your financial situation’. You will need to enter your ‘overall monthly income from all sources’ and various other financial details.
####
You will need to include your National Insurance number
####
You will be asked to enter ‘place of birth’ and ‘date and place of birth’ of your spouse
####
You will be asked to provide the following details about your parents:
Name
Date, country & place of birth
Nationality
If deceased, date & place of death
####
You will be asked to provide the name of the hotel you will be staying at, plus address and telephone number
####
And that, as Bruce Forsyth used to say, “is all there is to it!”
To assist you in all visa-related matters, here again is the web address for Stress Free Visas: www.stressfreevisas.co.uk
Russia Kaliningrad Visa Information
Visa advice pertaining to Russia: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/russia
Travel advice for entry to Kaliningrad, Russia
UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus
Poland: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/poland/entry-requirements
Lithuania: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/lithuania/entry-requirements
Links to Airport/Airlines websites
Airlines
Lot Airways
Web: www.lot.com
Aeroflot
Web: www.aeroflot.ru
Wizz Air
Web: www.wizzair.com
Rynair
Web: www.ryanair.com
Airports
Khrabrovo Airport Kaliningrad
Web: www.kgd.aero
Tel: +7 4012 300 300
Luton London Airport
Web: www.london-luton.co.uk
Gdansk Airport
Web: www.airport.gdansk.pl
Tel: 801 066 808 / +48 525 673 531
Copyright © 2018-2024 Mick Hart. All rights reserved.