So, you enjoy surfing the net and want to continue this past time while you are visiting St. Petersburg. Sasha has put together a summary of services and prices of the city's major e-mail and Internet providers…Just read on and you'll see easy it can be to get hooked up to the Internet and e-mail
Regular Post
If you want to send something by post from Russia, you can do it either through government post service or courier services - the difference is price and speed.
STATE POST SERVICE. The government post system in whole Russia is unexpensive, not quality enough and slow, either if you send it inside or outside of Russia. Besides, sometimes the letters don't come. It'll be ok in the most cases with the parcels though.
How to send it. You should buy the post stamps at the post offices, which you can find by "Ïî÷òà" (Pochta) sign. Post offices usually work monday - friday from 9.00 to 19.00 and saturday - 9.00 to 17.00, sunday is day off. It costs around 12 roubles (0.5$) to send a letter in western Europe. For that price your letter will arrive in around 3-4 weeks.You can send your letter or a postcard using any of light blue post boxes on the streets or directly at the post office (better). Sending an average (around 500gm) parcel costs around $15.
Where to send it from:
Central City Post Services (Pochtamp).
International and domestic post. Less expensive, than courier services. Open: mon-sat 9.00-19.45, sun 10.00-17.45. Address: Pochtampskaya St., #9 (metro Nevsky Prospekt, near St.Isaac cathedral and Astoria hotel). Phone: 312-8302
Express mail and courier services
You need to send a letter or parcel express and don't know where to start in an unfamiliar city? Here’s where to find and how to best use express mail and courier services in the Northern capital:
Courier Exprex Services 30 Nevsky Prospect
+7 812 322-9666, +7 812 278-8434 (fax) http://www.courierservice.ru cs@spb.cityline.ru
DHL International 4 Izmalvosky Prospect
+7 812 326-6400, +7 812 326-6410 (fax) http://www.dhl.ru
Dimex 54 Sadovaya Ulitsa
+7 812 320-8671, +7 812 314-42-69 (fax) dimex@peterlink.ru
EMS Garatpost
4 Konnogvardeisky Ulitsa
+7 812 325-7525, +7 812 311-9288 (fax)
Federal Express
16 Naberezhnaya Kanala Griboedova
+7 812 327-0480
Post Operator 20 Nevsky Prospect
+7 812 318-4472, +7 812 318-4473 (fax) http://www.post-int.spb.ru post-int@post-int.spb.ru
Postamt (St. Petersburg Central Post Office) 9 Pochtamtskaya Ulitsa
+7 812 312-8302
Svyaz-Service Ltd5 Zverinskaya Ulitsa
+7 812 325-6333, +7 812 325-6333 (fax) http://www.postexpress.spb.ru post@svs.sp.ru
TNT 14 Sophiskaya Ulitsa
+7 812 118-3330, +7 812 118-3495 (fax)
URS 51 Shpalernaya Ulitsa
+7 812 327-8540, +7 812 327-8197 (fax) http://www.ups.com
Westpost 86 Nevsky Prospect
+7 812 327-3092, +7 812 275-0806 (fax) http:///westpost.ru/ mail@westpost.ru
Zest-Express 1 Zaozernaya Ulitsa (Block 3)
+7 812 380-0660
Internet cafes
QUO VADIS?
To our mind, this is the best internet cafe in St. Petersburg and the most centrally located. Opened 24 hours a day, internet access for $2 / hour from 12.00 to 9.00, $1 / hour from 9.00 to 12.00, $5 / 8 hours from 0.00 to 8.00), printing service ($0.15 a page), scanning service, copying service, CD recording, fax services, IP telephony (US, Europe: $0.20 / min, Moscow: $0.05 / min)
There's also a free library (opened 10.00-22.00) with Russian and international press and books.
Address: St. Petersburg, Nevsky Prospekt, #24, next to Griboedova channel on the opposite side from Kazansky cathedral, metro Nevsky Prospekt. Contact: 311-8011. Internet: http://www.quovadis.ru
SOFIT.
The internet cafe and bar with about 10 computers installed on the large tables, where there's space for your papers, books, stuff, and even a glass of beer and food. In the middle of the bar there are just small round tables for those who came there for a drink. A tv is installed above the bar. Nevskoe beer on tap 25 roubles ($0.9).
Prices. For 1 hour 10.00-13.00 – 50 roubles ($1.8), 13.00-18.00 – $2, 18.00-23.00 – $2.8. For students: 50 roubles ($1.8) after 13.00.
If you take something in a bar and use the computer for not more than 3 minutes, you don't have to pay for the internet (and it's enough time to check email).
Address: Mira street, or Avstriiskaya square #10.Location: close to many history museums near Gorkovskaya metro. Directions: metro Gorkovskaya, walk along Kamenoostrovski prospekt in the direction opposite of Alexandrovski Park, until you reach Avstriskaya ploshchad (square). Opened: 10.00-23.00 daily. Phone: 232-2022, 232-9360, 232-0896. Internet: http://www.sofitspb.ru/header/framefin.htmM
WWW CAFE.
Nice, neat internet cafe close to the centrum, located in the basement of an old building. Nice interior, small bar, 9 computers, friendly staff.
Prices. For 1 hour: 50 roubles ($1.8), and 30 roubles ($1) for students.
Address: Nekrasova (Íåêðàñîâà) Ul, #4. Location: just next to Puppet Theater Hostel, 10 minutes walk from Nevski Prospekt along Liteiny Prospekt. Directions: walk along Liteiny prospekt from Nevski prospekt and take the second street on your right - Nekrasova.
ARKA.
This internet cafe is located just 5 minutes walk along Griboedova channel from Nevski Prospekt street (the main avenue of St. Pete). There's also a game hall, and the interior isn't cozy. The price is standard for Piter 50-60 roubles ($1.8-$2) an hour.
Address: Griboedova Channel (Êàíàë Ãðèáîåäîâà).Location: close to Church of Bleeding Saviour, close to Kazanski cathedral. Directions: walk along left side of Griboedova channel from Nevski Prospekt (direction opposite from Kazanski cathedral) 5 minutes, the cafe will be on your left, after a large building with "Fellini" restaurant advert on it.
TETRIS.
See the location (and a map) on their site. Prices are from 30 to 60 roubles an hour ($1 - $2 US). Opened mon-fri – 10.00-21.00, sat-sun – 13.00-21.00.
.Address: Chernyakovskogo street, #33. Location: closer to Vitebski railway station. Phone: 325-4877, 164-4877, fax: 164-0827. Internet: http://www.netcafe.spb.ru/location.htm
Dial-up Internet Access:
The easiest way to get access to the internet through a phone line is to buy an internet card of any St. Petersburg internet provider: WebPlus, CityLine etc. These cards are sold either in the offices of these companies or in the news stalls at any metro stations. Usually the connection through the card costs about $1 US for an hour. The minimum price you'll need to pay for a card is from $3 to $10 US.
After you bought the card, you'll need to follow the instructions written on the card, to be able to connect.
Telephone
The phone code of St. Petersburg is 812.
Abroad - St. Petersburg. If you're phoning to St.Petersburg, Russia from abroad you should dial 00 for international access, 7 for the Russian country code, 812 for St.Petersburg code and then the 7-digit number.
St. Petersburg - Abroad. Dial 8, wait for a tone, then dial 10 (international access), then the code of the country, the area and the phone number. The price of a phonecall to Europe will be around 20 roubles ($0.7) a minute in the daytime. In the nighttime and weekends the tariffs are 30 to 50% less.
Russia - St. Petersburg. If you're phoning to St.Petersburg from some other Russian city, dial 8, wait for a tone, then dial the St. Pete phone code 812, and then the 7-digit phone number. The price of a phonecall from Moscow to St. Pete, for example, is about 4 roubles a minute ($0.15).
St. Petersburg - Russia. If you're phoning from St. Petersburg to some other Russian city, dial 8, wait for a tone, then dial the code of the city (e.g. Moscow - 495, Novgorod - 8162), and then the local city number you need. The price of a phonecall to Moscow will be around 4 roubles a minute ($0.15).
Inside St. Petersburg. If you're in St.Petersburg and calling inside St.Petersburg, you should dial the 7-digit number without any codes. The local phonecalls are free.
Calling to a Russian Mobile. Russian mobiles have either direct (cities they were registred in) numbers, or indirect numbers. The indirect number is of this form: 8 tone *** *******. The phonecalls to mobiles registred in St. Petersburg from the local phones are free. The outcoming and incoming phonecalls from and to a mobile cost around $0.25 a minute or more.
PUBLIC PHONES.
The "phone" in Russian is "tele`fon". The public phones are called "taxofon". The public phones in St. Petersburg work with chip cards, some pay phones in the metro work with coins.
There are two systems of public phones in St. Petersburg, each requires a different type of card.
The phones of one system are installed outside, they are in green booths, and they work only with chip cards. One minute of a local phonecall costs about 2 roubles ($0.08). You can buy a phonecard for 25, 50, 100 units (each unit is one minute) at any metro station ticket sales offices, or at the newstands. Besides, on each phone there's info on where's the nearest place to by the card.
The phones of another system are installed in the metro only. They use either cards or coins (two different types). Don't buy the cards for these phones, beacuse you'll be limited to using it only in the metro. Use coins better - the same price.
HOW TO PHONE FOR FREE IN ST. PETERSBURG.
There's a great option to phone for free: there's a cafe chain called "Ideal Cup" (see our “Food” section), the cafes are spreaded all around the city. Each cafe has a free phone inside, which you can use for not more than 3 minutes. Besides, the phones have phone numbers (obviously), so somebody can phone you at specific time as well. There are also message desks next to every phone, so you can leave a message for your friends.
