What you need to get to England. Getting into London without a visa is becoming more difficult. London: transit at the airport without a visa. What gives possession of an Irish passport

Cruises from St. Petersburg from PAC Group: prices, dates, routes

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the PAC GROUP cruise routes from St. Petersburg aboard MSC CRUISES, the leader among foreign companies in this segment. Having studied the preferences of the audience, the cruise department of the tour operator for the 2016 season presents a wide range of routes in the fjords of Norway, the Baltic and around Europe with access from the Northern capital. Lead Manager in her master class systematized data on bestsellers and highlighted the main arguments for travel agents - why it is worth offering these routes to tourists.

Without barriers and flights

To begin with - briefly about the advantage of cruises from St. Petersburg as a form of relaxation. First of all: landing in the Russian port. This eliminates the flight: you can get to the Northern capital by train or by car. Logistics in the city is also thought out: for the convenience of passengers, PAC GROUP organizes free group transfers from the center of St. Petersburg to the port and vice versa.

An important issue for many Russians is the lack of language barriers. All our St. Petersburg cruises are held in the format of Russian-speaking groups. If desired, tourists have the opportunity to extend their trip and spend several days - before or after the cruise - in St. Petersburg.

One of the advantages of all the cruises presented below from St. Petersburg is that children under 18 years old stay with two adults for free on cruises! While on the rest of the MSC Cruises routes, children under 13 stay free for children with two adults.

What, to whom and at what price

Now let's talk in more detail about what each of our best sellers represents, and which categories of tourists should recommend this or that route.

Duration	15 days
Liner	Msc musica
Arrival dates in 2016	26.05, 09.06, 23.06, 07.07, 04.08, 18.08
Cities	St. Petersburg - Kiel / Lübeck - Copenhagen - Hellesilt / Geiranger - Flam - Stavanger - Kiel / Hamburg - Copenhagen - Stockholm - Tallinn - St. Petersburg
Cost	From 1399 €

Reasons for popularity: the opportunity to see one of the most beautiful natural wonders on the planet: the fjords of Norway. The format of the proposed excursions allows you to see them in all their glory: both from the water, passing by boats along their narrowest parts, and from the tops of the glaciers. Tourists will also get acquainted with the culture of northern European countries and appreciate the possibilities of the comfortable liner MSC Musica.

Round-the-clock support on board is provided by the accompanying PAC GROUP, who help tourists in solving all issues, and in addition, conduct fascinating thematic lectures on the navigation region.

Duration	9 days
Liner	MSC Musica and MSC Opera
Arrival dates in 2016	01.09
Cities	St. Petersburg - Kiel - one night in a hotel in Hamburg - Warnemunde - Gdynia - Klaipeda - Riga - Tallinn - St. Petersburg
Cost	From 599 € (price includes: cruise, transfers, accommodation in Hamburg, excursions in Lübeck and Hamburg)

Reasons for popularity: novelty of the season, the author's program at an attractive cost. A rare combined route on two liners in the cities of Northern Europe and the Baltic. Tourists are waited by the excursion program - in Hamburg and Lubeck + overnight in hotel of Hamburg. The first half of September, as a rule, pleases with good weather, and the velvet season on a cruise ship is traditionally in demand.

Duration	9 days
Liner	MSC Splendida and MSC Musica
Arrival dates in 2016	01.09
Cities	St. Petersburg - Kiel - one night at a hotel in Hamburg - Le Havre / Paris - Southampton / London - Zeebrugge / Brussels - Amsterdam
Cost	From 749 € (price includes: cruise, excursions in Hamburg and Lubeck, airport transfer, flight from Amsterdam)

Reasons for popularity: another novelty of the season, bestseller from PAC GROUP. The combined program on two liners of different classes: Fantasia and Musica. A rich cruise program with a visit to the cult cities of Europe. An excursion program is also provided here - in Hamburg and Lübeck + overnight at the Hamburg hotel. An important detail: despite the fact that there is a call to the port of Southampton along the route, tourists do not need a UK visa. Under this route, we offer the package Cruise + Air with departure from Amsterdam.

Duration	9 days
Liner	Msc musica
Arrival dates in 2016	30.06
Cities	2 nights at the hotel in Billund - Kiel - Copenhagen - Stockholm - Tallinn - St. Petersburg
Cost	From 1249 €

Reasons for popularity:cruise for children and their parents, a bestseller from PAC GROUP. The excursion program is primarily aimed at young travelers - Tivoli Park, Astrid Lindgren Museum and much more, including the famous Legoland amusement park in Billund, where two nights are provided.

Duration	19 days
Liner	MSC Opera
Arrival dates in 2016	10.09
Cities	Saint Petersburg - Helsinki - Stockholm - Copenhagen - Warnemünde / Berlin - Gothenburg - Amsterdam - Le Havre / Rouen - Ferrol / Santiago de Compostela - Lisbon - Cadiz - Gibraltar - Palma - Genoa
Cost	From 1289 €

Reasons for popularity: first of all, the route itself: 11 countries and 14 cities in 19 days. This is our longest route from St. Petersburg. I can safely say that this is an option for true travelers who are ready to appreciate the diversity of European cities: from Scandinavia to the Mediterranean. This route is traditionally one of the most popular, so I recommend paying attention to it while there is still space available. The package “Cruise + Air” with a flight from Genoa will also be counted under this program.

Tell your tourists about cruises from St. Petersburg, about the whole wide range of various routes, and they will surely become your regular customers. Learn more about the intricacies of sales and the specifics of a cruise product at the PAC GROUP webinar.

Instruction manual

Contact a travel company with sufficient experience in the chosen direction. Check and analyze information about her activities, based on who visited the UK when ordering a tour with this agency. Check out the documents of the company. Contact a knowledgeable lawyer if necessary.

Consult the selected agency for any questions you may have when booking a tour to the UK. Follow all the suggested paperwork guidelines. They must be accompanied by a competent translation into English.

When applying for a visa, personally go through the necessary procedure for taking biometric data. To do this, contact the British Visa Application Center. This procedure is an electronic scan of your fingertips and digital photography. For successful biometrics, your hands should be in the proper form: without scratches, without dyes, etc. The same goes for the face. Removing biometric parameters is mandatory for everyone, except for children under the age of 5 years. To undergo the procedure, older children, from 5 to 14 years old, must be accompanied by an adult. Teenagers from 14 to 18 years old can apply at the Visa Application Center.

Get a visa. The term of its manufacture is no more than 6 months. Your package of documents should include the following: a color photograph on a white background measuring 3.5 cm by 4.5 cm. You also need a completed and signed application form and passport, which must expire at the earliest 6 months after the end of the planned trip to the UK . In addition, it should have at least one blank page. Then you will need a job certificate indicating your position, monthly or annual income. It will be useful to provide copies of documents of ownership, for example, for an apartment, car, cottage, etc. In addition, provide documents confirming your financial viability. For example, a bank account statement made no later than 28 days before the submission of documents. The balance of the account should be approximately 2 times the tour.

If you travel to the UK with, then make a copy of their birth certificate and issue a certificate from their place of study. In the case when the child is going on a trip, it is necessary to provide a certificate from the work of one of the parents. In this case, the position and income should be indicated. Make a power of attorney from the second parent to leave the child. If a pensioner travels to the UK with you, you will need a copy of his pension certificate.

Sources:

Trip to the UK in 2018
How I did not get to the UK in 2018

Often, traveling to another country requires a visa. How to get the desired document? And what documents are expected from you at the embassy of a foreign country? Most often, you can collect documents for a period of a week to several months.

You will need

- passport of the Russian Federation;
-international passport;
- bank account statement;
-Photo.

Instruction manual

You will need to present a general passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation. Note that it must be valid throughout the trip and an additional three months in addition. Therefore, timely take care of the registration of the passport of the Russian Federation (the change occurs at 20 and 45 years old).

A passport is required to stay in other countries (with the exception of a number of CIS countries). You can apply for a passport on the State Services portal (see the link in the Resources section for a link). For its registration, you will need to pay a fee in the amount of 2,000 rubles, take a picture in the Federal Migration Service and provide a Russian passport.

It is necessary to present 4-6 photos of the established sample. Usually it is 35 by 45 mm. Some embassies require a different format.

Also, the embassy is required to present a document on the cash security of the trip. An extract from your bank about the status of your account is needed. If your cash reserves are small, you can get a credit card with a high overdraft (payment limit).

If you want to get a guest visa, provide an invitation to a citizen of another country and a copy of his passport. They may require proof that a citizen has suitable housing conditions for receiving a guest.

To obtain a guest visa, you must present two tickets: to and from the country. Although officially requested by the original ticket, printouts of reservations from electronic services may also be suitable.

If a person has a ban on leaving the country in connection with professional activities of national importance (federal services, the military industry), it is necessary to present an exit permit signed by the head of the organization / enterprise and certified with a federal seal (official).

Note the additional conditions for filling out embassy profiles. Often even such trifles as pen color, font size, etc. are important. If you were born before 1992, in the “Country of birth” item, indicate “USSR”. Not all embassies issue questionnaires themselves - sometimes they are necessary.

Visa to London on your own

To obtain a visa to the UK, you must fill out an application form, pay a consular fee, collect the necessary package of documents and take it all to the British Visa Center. Five British visa centers operate in Russia: in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk and Rostov-on-Don.

Fill out an online application form for a British visa, sign up at a visa center convenient for you, and also see a list of documents required for a visa on the official website of the British Embassy in Russia (https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa ) or on the website (https://www.visa4uk.fco.gov.uk). There are three types of tourist visas to choose from: for children under 18 years of age, for visiting relatives and the so-called general visa, which is suitable for all other cases, whether it is a trip to friends or just a desire to explore the city. The questionnaire is filled out in English, but those who do not know English have nothing to be afraid of - the Internet is full of volunteers who posted the translation of the questionnaire with comments and tips for free access. Also, for convenience, a Google Translate translation immediately appears near each question in the questionnaire.

Immediately after filling out the questionnaire, you can pay an online visa fee of 83 pounds for a semi-annual visa, 300 pounds for an annual or two-year visa. After which there is only:

print the form,
to make a photo,
to collect documents about your solvency (account statement, certificate of employment - the more evidence of the availability of funds for the trip, the higher the chances of obtaining a visa),
get insurance for travelers, and you can go to the visa center.

It must be remembered that upon receipt of a bank statement or certificate of employment at a bank, it is necessary to request a document in English.
The official visa deadline is 3 weeks, but it is more likely for the tourist season. The rest of the time, a visa can be made much faster, which you will be notified by email.

How to buy a ticket to London

When buying tickets to London, the same rules apply as for the other destinations: the cost of tickets will be cheaper if you buy them a few months before the trip, if there is a transfer or if you fly on weekdays. Many airlines fly from Russia to London, and some have several scheduled flights per day. Surprisingly, London is one of the cheapest destinations. The best deals can be found with EasyJet and Transaero airlines, and also for non-stop flights.

For example, if you look for tickets to London from Moscow using the site for the summer of 2015, then the prices for a round-trip flight start at around 6150 rubles. Of course, the price may change due to dates of ticket purchase, rate growth and other factors, but sites such as help to adapt your trip to external conditions and choose the most profitable option for buying tickets. If the dates of the trip are not important, then you can select the item + -3 days to compare prices for the coming dates.
You can now try to find flights to London through this form below, just select the city of departure and date.

If you have never bought tickets on your own via the Internet, I recommend that you familiarize yourself with where the steps for buying tickets online are detailed in steps.

How to choose and book a hotel in London

At first glance, housing in London is not at all cheap. But acceptable options for any wallet can always be found. To do this, it is most convenient to use such hotel search sites as, for example, or. Using the filters in the left part of the window, you can choose the price category of housing, the distance from the city center and other living conditions. It is also important to check: were the previous residents of the hotel satisfied, did the declared level of quality correspond to the real state of affairs? To do this, on each of these sites there is a review system by which you can determine whether to book this or that housing.
For your convenience, you can use this search form, just enter the dates you need and the system will select for you the best hotel options in London.

The budget option in London is hostels - hotels where you will share a room with one or more neighbors. This is not only a great way to save money that is better spent on a trip out of town or on shopping, but also a unique experience in communicating with people from other countries, because you can find anyone in the same room - a student from China or a young couple from Canada.

For a greater immersion in the atmosphere of the city it is more convenient to book an apartment or apartments. In addition, it is significantly cheaper than a hotel when booking for a long period, for example, for a month. To do this, there is a site where you can choose an apartment in a comfortable residential area of \u200b\u200bLondon or the attic in the city center overlooking Big Ben.

UK currency

The official currency of Great Britain is GBP, which at the end of December 2014 rate is 81 rubles. A pound is divided into 100 pence or, as they are also called, a penny.

Changing rubles to pounds is best in Russia, since here you have the opportunity to choose a bank with the most favorable rate for buying and selling currency. But if you already have euros or dollars, then you can change in London, the main thing is to avoid exchange offices in the most tourist places, for example, near the tourist information office or at the airport and train station - the rate there may differ significantly from the rate at banks cities.

Having a credit or debit card can solve many problems. London is one of the most modern and advanced cities in the world, so you can pay by card in almost any store. If you have a plastic card, then cash may be needed only for going to the local market or just in case.

When is the best time to go to London

To begin with, the Foggy Albion is actually not so foggy. And the stereotype of incessant rain and eternal bad weather is just a stereotype. Due to a slight fluctuation in air temperature between seasons, London becomes a great place to relax at almost any time of the year, but still it is worth considering some nuances.

In July and August, the temperature can exceed 35 degrees, which is not very comfortable for long walks in a large metropolis. Yes, and the number of tourists in the summer increases significantly compared to the rest of the year. In the spring, an allergy can overshadow a trip to London, which unexpectedly manifests itself in response to the blooming beauty of parks and boulevards of the city. In the city there are so many different species of plants from all over the world that even Londoners themselves suffer during their flowering period - April and May.

For the rest, London will delight the tourist with its beauty and diversity at any time. At the end of October, you can also catch the celebration of Halloween, at the end of December, take part in the wires of the old year, and at the end of January celebrate the Chinese New Year, which is annually celebrated on a grand scale in the Chinatown of London. You can plunge into sports life in the middle of May, having looked at the Finals of the FA Cup in the pub together with the locals. Well, on the last weekend of August, residents and guests of the capital with pleasure come to the Notting Hill district of London to see the real carnival, which is second only to the famous Rio de Janeiro carnival.

Public transport in London

In London you can find a vehicle for every taste: the subway, the famous double-decker buses, ferries and motor ships for river walks on the Thames, trains, taxis and bicycles. Public transport in England is not cheap, but the price is compensated by convenience - this or that type of transport is available anywhere in London, so wherever you are, there will be no problem getting to the center. In addition, there is no need to run on the last bus or rush the subway before it closes - in London, there are many night bus routes daily.

The fare depends on the zone in which you are located and the one in which you need to get. London Underground is divided into six zones, and the bus route map is divided into four zones. For example, one trip by metro within 1-3 zones costs 3 GBP. To save money, you can buy an Oyster card at the subway ticket counter, an analogue of the Moscow Troika card, it will reduce the ticket price by almost half. In London, public transport routes are available at all stops and stations - this is a necessity, because, at first glance, it is a very large city with rather complicated transport links. Fortunately, workers or simple passers-by are ready to help the stray tourist and show the way. To plan your route in advance, it is very convenient to use the official website of London Transport www.tfl.gov.uk, where it is enough to set the start and end points, after which the system will offer you all the options for movement.

Within the boundaries of London and its suburbs there are as many as six airports. Flights from Russia most often land at Heathrow and Gatwick airports. You can get from them in several ways:

Metro. Heathrow Airport is located within the city, and even a blue subway line was reached to it. So from the airport you can directly get to King Cross Station or to Piccadilly Circus. One way fare to the city center is 3.8 GBP.
On the express. This method is more expensive than the previous one (and in the case of Gatwick Airport you can’t get there by metro at all), but express train is definitely the fastest way to get to London. Trains run every 15-30 minutes, and for comparison, the express train from Heathrow to the city takes only 15 minutes, and the subway takes almost an hour. You can buy a ticket in special terminals at the airport or in advance online at www.heathrowexpress.com and www.gatwickexpress.com.
Heathrow: Express ticket price is GBP 21, destination station is Paddington.
Gatwick: Express ticket price is GBP 17.7, destination station is Victoria.

By taxi. Taxis are the most comfortable, but also the most expensive way to get to London from the airport. The cost of a one-way trip can range from 40-70 GBP. It is better, as in other countries, to use the services of an official taxi, whose racks can be found in the arrival hall of the airport. But what is worth understanding is that there are traffic jams in London, so the taxi cannot be called the fastest way to get to the city. But all the inconvenience is compensated by the fact that a taxi is the only way to get with suitcases from the airport directly to the door of the hotel, while spending a minimum of effort.
By bus. Near the terminals at Heathrow and Gatwick airports, it’s easy to spot bus stops. From here you can get to a reasonable price (from 3 GBP on an Oyster card) to London, but from Heathrow Airport and other cities in the UK - there are even more intercity bus routes than local ones. Tickets, as well as express tickets, can be purchased in advance on the websites www.easybus.co.uk/london-gatwick and www.nationalexpress.com.
On a rented car. At all airports in London there are racks of companies offering car rental services. This is the most convenient option for those who are going to travel a lot outside the city or move around the country, but it is worth considering that in England there is left-hand traffic, so the driver renting a car in London should not only be confident in his abilities, but also have sufficient experience and skills.

The main attractions of London

London is very rich in attractions and entertainment. During the day, it’s nice to walk around the city, go to one of the many museums, and in the evening sit in a pub somewhere in the Soho area. You can fall in love with London instantly, but it will take a single week to learn all the fun in it. Organized excursions will only help if you need to run "gallop across Europe", superficially and selectively. But to truly know the capital of England, you can enjoy every moment in a park or in a museum only by traveling on your own.
The most recognizable symbol of London is undoubtedly Big Ben. The clock tower of the Palace of Westminster, or the Palace of Parliament - a symbol of England, her calling card. Here you can see where the House of Lords is sitting, and all the official ceremonies of the kingdom are held. And you can admire Westminster and Big Ben, strolling along the Thames embankment, or sailing by boat.

Tower of London and Tower Bridge

A special place in the history of Great Britain is the Tower. The former prison with a centuries-old past still eerily towers on the banks of the Thames, although now it is by no means worth fearing. Here is a museum, armory, and royal regalia. Entrance costs 22 GBP, but this is a fair price, because you can spend a single hour here. In the summer, the Tower of London is open from 9 to 17:30 from Tuesday to Saturday and from 10 to 17:30 from Sunday to Monday. In winter, the Tower is reduced to 4:30 p.m.

Opposite this iconic landmark of London is another world-famous building - Tower Bridge. You can walk on it for free, but if you are interested in its structure (this is one of the first drawbridges!), Then you can go up to the museum located in one of the bridge towers. From here, by the way, one of the best views of London opens.
St. Paul's Cathedral is not only a religious building, but also an important architectural monument of London, which you should definitely look at, at least from the outside. Entrance inside is paid - 15 GBP, the cathedral is open all days of the week, except Sunday.

Undoubtedly, the cathedral will impress you with its size - in size it is second only to St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, which, incidentally, the architects took as an example.
Even those who don’t really like museums will appreciate the British Museum, one of the largest in the world. It contains countless interesting things, for example, the collection of Egyptian halls is in many ways superior in importance even to the collection of the Cairo Museum. And the best part is that, like most state institutions in London, admission to it is completely free. You can visit the world famous museum from 10 to 17:30 every day, and on Friday the British Museum has an extended day - it works until 20:30.

Fans of panoramic shooting and exploring the city from a height must definitely ride the already-legendary London Eye, the largest ferris wheel in Europe. It offers a unique view of London and its surroundings, and in closed cabins it’s not at all scary! A ticket costs 18.85 GBP, and the trip lasts for half an hour.

Of course, here is just the very beginning of a long list of London attractions. Believe me, it’s much more interesting to choose your own places of visit, to plan your day in advance, or vice versa to spontaneously visit what is encountered on a walk in London, rather than become a slave to the tough time frames of a travel agency, which is likely to show you only a small fraction of the city’s beauties.

If you have doubts that you can independently book a hotel or buy a ticket, then I advise you to read the articles on this topic in the section - Independent travels. In fact, everything is much simpler than it seems, and most importantly - more interesting.

How to visit the UK without a visa?

If you fly to the final destination in transit through the UK, then under certain circumstances you can visit Britain without a visa. What is needed for this?

To visit the UK without a British visa formally need:

1. Flights that confirm that you will leave the United Kingdom within 24 hours;
2. Visa of the country - the final destination (if necessary);
3. Confirmation of hotel reservation, if docking is supposed to be at night (a fully paid reservation is better).

The main thing is transit through various airports in London.
An example of a successful connection: departure from Moscow at 20-55, arrival in London (Heathrow) at 22-55. Departure from Gatwick Airport to Jamaica at 12-10. Therefore, we have 12 hours to view London. This is the most common visa-free transit (flight data taken from the website of British Airways). But it is not necessary that there be the same airline. An example of another good and common practice of visiting London without a visa is to fly to Ireland. For example: Moscow (departure at 6-30) - London Heathrow (arrival at 7-50), BMI airline, then London - Dublin by Ryanair airline at 17-40 from Luton airport.

It is popular among students of the Work & Travel program who fly to the USA through London to connect their flights through different airports and with enough time to walk around the capital of Britain. If you have the same airport of arrival and departure, there is a possibility that you will be refused a 24-hour transit.

Some airlines may be very resistant before landing on a flight to London. In practice, there is a sad situation when airlines refuse to board passengers flying through London to Europe. For this flight you need a Schengen multivisa. Bad fame at EasyJet, WizzAir, AirBaltic, Ryanair at some airports. A number of airlines directly write that you can get on a flight to London only with a British visa. WizzAir writes on his website (even in Russian) that he does not transit through London (the case concerns the flight Kiev - London Luton). In this case, the airlines are insured, as they risk being fined if you are deported back.

For Ryanair flights from Tampere (Finland) to London, the usual situation is when Russians with multi-visas fly, for example, to Spain or Portugal, it is also much cheaper. But getting on a flight to London, say, from Riga or Gdansk is practically impossible. You need to have a lot of patience to explain your situation to the airline representatives. For this, it is recommended that you arrive at the reception earlier. Good English and knowledge of the laws is desirable.

You can warn the airline that fly through London, print the airline’s response.
It is also recommended to print part of the laws: (and reference 2). You can also make an excerpt from Timatic.

Remember, it may take a single hour to analyze the situation.

Suppose you are put on a flight and you fly to London. Now the last one is left - convince immigration officerthat your goal is only transit, that you do not want to stay living in England. The decision to authorize transit is made by him, and, theoretically, entry may be denied. But in practice, they let almost everyone. In order for the officer to be more supportive, you must have tickets along your entire route, answer the simple questions "why and why, where and for how long you fly." If visa-free transit is denied, the immigration officer may offer paid transit with police escort to another airport. But it will cost you more than one hundred pounds. There will be no choice: paid transit or deportation. There are such cases.

When speaking with an immigration officer, look tidy and communicate calmly. You will be asked a lot of questions (where, why, whether we had it, where we work, etc.) - answer with confidence. A positive decision on visa-free transit also depends on this. At the same time, your passport will be carefully studied. They are interested in British and Irish visas. They can also ask questions about them.

Also, the most important thing should not be missed - there is no transit zone at UK airports. That is, theoretically, a visa is necessary even with the usual connection in the same terminal. At the same time, if there is a docking within the same terminal of London Heathrow Airport, then you are unlikely to see border control. Another thing is if you plan to transfer from flight to flight with a change of terminal. In this case, you can’t avoid communicating with the UK Immigration Service in the same way as regular visa-free transit. At the same time, permission for visa-free transit is also requested, but without access to the city. At the same time, the hotel’s reservation is not needed and they do not let out to the city. Although, of course, there are ways to get to the city from the airport even in this case, because the stamp “24 hours transit” has been received. We do not consider all these methods for ethical reasons.

The procedure for obtaining a visa-free entry permit is usually as follows:

1. Fill in advance on the plane or at the passport control Landing card (migration card).
2. We approach the passport control desk and submit documents.
3. We explain that we want to go out into the city (at the same time we say the goal of going out into the city).
4. The immigration officer asks to wait 15 minutes and goes to the authorities to make a decision.
5. The immigration officer returns with the documents and the stamp "24 hours transit."

Bad docking examples

Many get into unpleasant situations, we will describe them:

Flights from Europe to Europe via London. It's one thing if you fly through London from Finland to Spain, and another thing when you try to fly on the route Berlin - London - Amsterdam. Such movements are incomprehensible to Europeans; this is an illogical route. This is not recommended.

Do not fly with principle airlines that do not put transit passengers on flights to London. For example, EasyJet airline easily ruined the plans of people who flew the route Munich - London - Morocco and Istanbul - London - Cuba.

If you have a docking at the same airport, do not despair. No need to tell the visa officer that you always wanted to see the Tower Bridge and drink a couple of pints in a real English pub. They may not understand. The argument may be long docking, fatigue, a desire to sleep, a hotel reservation (which is extremely necessary for night docking) would look like a good bonus. As a rule, a little more likely if night docking.

If you did everything correctly and logically, there will be no problems, and you will be allowed to transit to the UK without a visa.

For Russian citizens, there are two options to enter the United Kingdom without applying for a visa. True, we must immediately warn you that traveling around London in such cases will not be long.

Option 1: Transit Flight

You can get to the UK without a visa during a transit stop at a London airport when traveling to another country. Until 2014, it was possible to fly through London anywhere - even to visa-free Latin America for Russians, even to Africa, even to Asia.

But from December 1, 2014, the British authorities seriously tightened transit rules. Now you have the opportunity to leave the transit zone of an airport in the UK without a visa only if you fly from Russia to four states: the USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand. But there is one caveat - a flight through London should be logical. In other words, the border guard needs to prove that the route through the British capital is either cheaper or faster (or both).

Therefore, the option of traveling from Moscow to Australia or New Zealand via London is hardly suitable for Russian citizens, since it is almost impossible to explain the reason for such a “hook” to a migration officer.

But flights Moscow - London - New York or Moscow - London - Toronto look quite logical, since the capital of Great Britain is located along the way.

The maximum visa-free stay in the UK during a transfer is limited: you must leave no later than 23:59 the day after arrival at the British airport. Also, you should already have a paid and confirmed ticket for a flight from London, and a Canadian or American visa.

UK immigration law is one of the most stringent in Europe. Visa-free transit through the UK is the exception rather than the rule. Those travelers who have a long-term (more than 8-10 hours) change are more likely to leave the airport transit zone without a visa. A plus would be the availability of hotel reservations in the city or near the airport. Also, the chances will increase if you need to change the airport - for example, you flew from Moscow to Heathrow, and fly to Gatwick to the United States or Canada.

But the most important thing is whether or not to let a foreigner across the border always remains at the discretion of the border guard. Therefore, if for some reason he refuses, the next flight will have to wait at the airport.

Option 2: Sea Cruise

Another way to get to the UK without a visa is as a passenger on a cruise ship. In this case, your chances are almost 100% (remember that the last word still remains with the border guard).

The right to visit the United Kingdom without a visa for cruise ship passengers is specified in paragraph 3 of Chapter 19 of the UK Visa Code.

However, in this case there are several nuances.

The first is that for a Russian tourist without a visa to be released from the liner onto British soil, the cruise should not begin and end in the Kingdom. In other words, British ports should be intermediate while sailing.

The second - a cruise ship should not be in the British port for more than 24 hours.

And the third - if during the voyage the liner should call at several British ports, then they should not go in order.

Most cruise routes, during which Russians can visit the United Kingdom without a British visa, pass through the seas of Northern Europe. As a rule, ships to the UK come to two ports - Dover and Southampton.

Dover is located 120 km from London. It is connected to the trains of the railway company South Eastern with the Victoria or Charing Cross stations in the British capital. Travel time in one direction - 1 hour 15 minutes.

Southampton - 130 km from London. South West Trains trains travel this distance in 1 hour 20 minutes. They arrive at Waterloo Station.

Considering that the cruise ship costs about 10-12 hours in the port, it’s enough time to go to London, see the Big Ben parliament building, the London Eye wheel, walk to the Queen Buckingham Palace residence and even have a pint of beer in a London pub.

It is better to buy train tickets on the Internet on the websites of railway operators and immediately in both directions. So you will save not only time in line at the box office, but also money.

Before leaving from the port to London, specify whether there is a plan for an afternoon strike of railway workers on this day. Recently in the UK this is not such a rare occurrence, and being late on a cruise ship threatens with huge problems.

The ship is not waiting for anyone - it will leave the port on schedule. In this case, the passports of Russian citizens, as a rule, are stored in the safe on the liner during the cruise. Being late, you will be left in the UK without documents, and in order to leave the United Kingdom and catch a cruise ship at the next port, you will have to contact the police and the immigration authorities. The trial may take a long time, and exceeding the 24-hour stay in the Kingdom is a violation of migration law. For this later you will not see the UK for a very long time.

How to apply for a UK visa

London deserves to stay there much more than a few hours, and for this, Russian citizens will have to apply for a British visa.

An electronic application form must be completed on the website of the UK Visa Application Center. In addition, you will have to personally visit the center for biometrics. They are located in Moscow, Novosibirsk, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Rostov-on-Don.

Consideration of an application for a standard tourist visa takes 15 days, for an urgent one - from three to five days.

An application for a visa can be submitted six months before the planned date of travel. At the same time, the consulate does not require pre-purchased airline tickets and hotel reservations (if your visa is refused, you will not lose money).

The cost of a semi-annual visa is $ 120, a two-year visa is $ 455, a five-year visa is $ 826 and a ten-year visa is $ 1,035.

According to official figures from the United Kingdom Consulate in Russia, 96 percent of Russians who apply for a British visa get it.