Why travelling to Russia in winter is not a crazy idea

Russia was one of the countries included in my travel bucket list but i never imagined visiting during the cold months since we all knew how harsh the cold is in this country.
Then off we go and grab a Russian visa to fulfill my dream.

Call it crazy for one to brave the Russian winter months. During the coldest month of January temperature can fall down to  -18C and winter season can prevail until March.  Thus, winter here has a reputation of bitterly cold  , dark, dreary and uninspiring. In fact, travellers are frightened by the phrase "Russian winter". Many recall Napoleon's army which did not fare well in the cold in the year 1812 or even Hitler's army who lost victory because of extreme cold weather.

Take me to Russia anytime of the year.

On the brighter side , we travelled to Russia during winter and we concluded it was a genius idea after all! Here are the reasons why .

Winter is low season

The cold temperature drives away the potential visitors thus the prices are not high. Airfare and hotels are heavily discounted except during peak days such as christmas , new year , fatherland day etc. 

Enjoy glorious food 

Borsch is mainly the most popular Russian food. Enjoy a hearty bowl while drinking russian vodka. Perfect for a cold night. 

Go watch a ballet

When i was there i cannot fully declare that the cold didn't bother me anyway . So what better way to warm up is to head indoors like the GUM shopping center or watch a ballet at the Mariinsky Theater. Russian ballet can leave you wide eyed with delight.

Snow

If you're like me and comes from a tropical country , Snow is a big thing for us. It's a priviledge for us to see and experience snow from abroad. I highly think that Russia is most beautiful when covered in snow and ice. 

It was very very cold , windy and sometimes raining but it didn't bother us at all !

Fewer lines 

The most time consuming part of anyone's journey is the long queues to get into the museum or park or a historical building . One way to avoid it is to come during the less popular tourist months like winter. Less people more chances of photo ops minus the photobombers.

Red Square not so crowded in the lean months.

Discount shopping

Saleslady at the Arbat shopping district was more than eager to make a sale by giving us good discounts. Sales are low during these times and you should take advantage of it.

Inside a souveinir shop in Arbat Street 

I sure enjoyed the winter . I do hope i can go back and celebrate christmas in Russia and be able to 
say : "Pozdrevlyayu s prazdnikom Rozhdestva!" (Merry Christmas in Russia)