ADVICE FOR IRISH SUPPORTERS TRAVELLING TO MOSCOW FOR THE IRELAND-RUSSIA EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFIER
The Department of Foreign Affairs hopes you enjoy your trip to Moscow. Early and thorough preparation for your trip will help to prevent problems later on. The Department wishes to issue the following advice:
The crime rate in Moscow is not high for a city of its size and crimes against tourists are generally not common. The Department always advises travellers to take normal precautions for their personal safety when abroad, and to ensure that their possessions, especially money, credit cards and documents, are secure. Travellers are advised to only use official taxi companies. The Department also advises those who travel to heed the instructions of the local police.
BEFORE YOU GO
Passports and Visas
The Department wishes to advise all travellers to check that their passport is current and valid for their stay.
All travellers require a visa for Russia. Applications can be made to:
The Embassy of the Russian Federation,
184-186 Orwell Road, Dublin 6.
Tel: (01) 4923492
The Consular Section of the Embassy works from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Monday to Friday. Your travel agent may be able to assist with the visa application. Travellers will require a visa for exit as well as for entry - if you try to leave the country after your visa has expired, you may be fined up to twice the cost of your flight home. If you lose your passport, you will need to report it to a police station, and the assistance of the Irish Embassy will be required to issue you with a new passport (US$63.00) and to request the Russian authorities to issue you with an exit visa allowing you to leave the country. The exit visa costs about US$150.00
Travellers should carry their passport and visa with them at all times, the local police can arrest anyone unable to produce their passport on request. Your hotel will take your passport on check-in for registration with the authorities. If you are going out before your passport is returned, you should ask the receptionist to mark on your photocopy, in Russian, that the passport was submitted for registration on such-and-such a date. This should be shown to any police who may ask you to produce your documents for inspection.
If you are not staying in a hotel, and are staying for longer than three working days, you are required to register with the Department of Visas and Registration (OVIR). The organisation which issued your visa invitation should help with this procedure. When leaving your passport for registration, you should ask the official to mark your photocopy as described above.
If you plan to bring money with you when leaving the country, be sure on arrival to fill up a Customs Declaration, go through the red channel and get it stamped by the customs officers - if you try to leave the country with money without a declaration to prove that you brought it in, or with a declaration that is not stamped, the money may be confiscated.
Insurance (Travel and Health)
The Department advises all travellers to ensure that they have valid travel insurance and comprehensive worldwide medical insurance.
Booking Your Trip
It is important that all travel arrangements are made with a bonded travel agency only.
Match Tickets
The only official sources of tickets for Irish supporters are the FAI and agents in Ireland which have been approved by them.
The Department advises all travellers to be careful of ticket “touts” or “scalpers”. Tickets bought from such sources may not be for the Irish supporters section.
Access to the vicinity of the stadium is likely to be limited to those in possession of match tickets. Supporters may be asked to identify themselves. A copy of their passport would be acceptable. Alcoholic drink or anything which may be used as a weapon (bottles, flagpoles etc.) will not be permitted in the stadium.
Match Locations
The senior match will take place in the Lokomotiv stadium, located at 125, Bolshaya Cherkizovskaya Street, in the north-east of the city, on Saturday 7 September 2002, at 19.00. The under-21 match will also take place on Saturday 7 September, in the Torpedo stadium, located at 4, Vostochnaya Street, in the south-east, at 15.00.
Travelling from the city centre by Metro, the nearest station to the stadium for the senior match is Cherkizovskaya, which is the second last station on the red line, heading in a north-easterly direction. For the under-21 match, the nearest stations are Dubrovka (light-green line) or Avtozavodskaya (dark green line).
Emergency Contact Numbers
If you need emergency Consular assistance, the following are the details of the Irish Embassy in Moscow:
Embassy of Ireland,
Grokholski Pereulok 5,
Moscow 129010
Tel : +7-095-9375911
Fax : +7-095-9752066
There will be a special Embassy telephone number (+7-095-2326000) with operators available 24 hours in case of emergency. This number can be contacted between 6 p.m. on Thursday 5 September and 9 a.m. on Tuesday 10 September.
Nearest Metro station to the Embassy is Prospekt Mira
Issued by:
Consular Services Section
Department of Foreign Affairs
Hainault House,
69-71 St. Stephen's Green,
Dublin 2
(Tel: + 353 1 4780822)
(Fax:+ 353 1 4082798)
