How to Book the Trans-Siberian Railway Online

2016-04-27 · Updated: 2026-08-11 · Original (Korean)

How to Book the Trans-Siberian Railway (Official Website)

This post was written on April 28, 2016. Please note that website layouts may change over time. However, the basic web address shouldn't change, so you can still use this as a reference.

My original plan was to ride the true Trans-Siberian Railway all the way from Vladivostok to Moscow. However, since that didn't make sense for me time-wise or financially, I decided to take the train from Irkutsk to Moscow instead. A Russian friend warned me that buying tickets in person could be really difficult and recommended booking online. When I Googled it, I found so many different sites selling tickets that it was incredibly confusing. I'm writing this post to share how to buy tickets through the official Russian Railways website, hoping it helps others out.

First, head over to the official Russian Railways booking page. They do offer English support.

http://pass.rzd.ru/main-pass/public/en

You must create an account on the railway website to book a ticket. To avoid having to do things twice, I highly recommend scrolling down and registering first before doing anything else.

Selecting Departure and Arrival Cities

I entered my departure city, Irkutsk (Irkutsk), and my destination, Moskwa (Moscow). If you're starting from Vladivostok, select Vladivostok. Since I'm traveling one way and flying back, I chose "One way." If you plan to take the train both ways, check "Round trip." I set my departure date to May 19, 2016. To choose a date, just click the red calendar icon next to the date field to bring up the selection window. Once everything is filled out, click "Buy Ticket."

Selecting a Train

A list of available trains for your chosen date will appear. The most important thing to note here is that all times are listed in Moscow Time. So, if you're taking the 001M Rossiya train with a listed departure time of 01:28, you aren't actually boarding at 01:28 in Irkutsk. You have to add 5 hours, meaning you board at 06:28 local time.

Once you've found the train you want, select it and click "Continue."

For Russian trains, the lower the train number, the better the facilities and the higher the price. When I asked my Russian friend, they advised me to take a train with at least a two-digit number or lower.

Below are the time zones calculated relative to Moscow. Source: Wikipedia

Selecting a Seat Class

Seats are generally divided into three classes. They roughly have the following features.

There are several sub-categories as well, so check the category you want to ride on the page below before booking.

Trans-Siberian Railway Seat Categories

You can click "Car Plan" to see if your desired seat is currently available. If the blue bar is at the bottom, it's a lower bunk; if it's at the top, it's an upper bunk. Gray seats are already booked and cannot be selected. Personally, I recommend a lower bunk facing the direction of travel, far away from the restroom. The absolute worst place to be is right next to the restroom. The constant slamming of the door will probably make it impossible to sleep. You should definitely try to get a 1st-floor (lower) bed. Also, regardless of your height, the vibration and cramped space make the 2nd-floor (upper) bunk really tough. (If a couple is traveling, the woman usually sleeps on the bottom and the man on top.)

Once you've checked the seats and decided on your class, click "Continue."

Registering for a Russian Railways Account

Just when things are going smoothly, a Russian Railways registration window suddenly pops up. If you haven't created an account yet, unfortunately, you'll have to repeat the whole process above. You absolutely must register for an account to book a Trans-Siberian Railway ticket. Click "Registration."

Fill out the details above to sign up. Make sure to enter your name exactly as it appears on your passport. Oddly enough, your password must include a -, _, or ?. Once you finish signing up, they will send an activation email to the address you provided. Open the email and activate your account.

After registering like this, it makes you start your selection all over again from the very beginning. This part is just as frustrating as dealing with those terrible Korean digital security certificates.

Entering Passenger Information

After wasting some time on that, you finally get to the section where you enter the seat and the personal details of the passenger sitting there.

For "Document type," select "Foreign document," and for "Document number," enter your passport number. Fill in the rest of the information exactly as it appears on your passport. Then, click "Continue."

Payment

Verify your passport and name, check the box under "Sum for payment," and click "Make your payment."

The credit card entry form is the final step. The input order is as follows:

• Card number
• CVC number
• Cardholder name
• Card expiration date

Once you enter everything, the payment will process, and they'll send you a booking confirmation email. In Russia, the refund process after a card payment is incredibly long and complicated. It might be easy for Russians, but for foreigners—especially those using foreign credit cards—getting a refund is extremely difficult. I bought a cruise ticket in Moscow (approx. 70,000 KRW) but had to cancel due to unforeseen circumstances. The cruise company said they would process the cancellation, but the credit card company took the money, and I haven't heard anything since. You need to be very careful to avoid needing a refund if at all possible. (I say "if at all possible," but seriously, double-check everything so you never have to deal with it.)

If you have to choose between paying in the local currency or Korean Won, you should choose the local currency (RUB) or US Dollars. Otherwise (if you suddenly miss Korea and select 'Won'), you'll end up paying extra currency conversion fees.

At the time of writing this post, I haven't actually ridden the train yet. I double-checked while editing this, and it seems the system hasn't changed yet. I plan to write a separate post about the train ride itself.