Backpacking in Belarus: Minsk
Reposted: October 15, 2024 | Tagged: Belarus
Blog post based on my travels in 2018, featuring My Top 10 Sights in Minsk, Belarus and lots of other travel information.
This was the first KFC in Belarus:
This was the first KFC in Belarus:
This post is based on my visit to Belarus in May 2018 and originally appeared on my other, now-defunct travel blog. Visiting Belarus now is a lot easier than it was, but I am including notes on how it was for me when I visited. Always check official sources before you travel.
Belavia flight 852 from Gatwick to Minsk:
Entry stamp for Belarus:
When I toured Belarus in May 2018, I visited under the fairly new 5-Day Visa-Free Regime. These were the rules:
- You had to fly in and out of Minsk International Airport
- You had to purchase the mandatory travel insurance upon arrival:
Upstairs on the 'check-in' floor, you'll find the money changers. I cashed 5 Euros. Enough to get me downtown and some dinner. 5 Euros got me 11 BYN. So your ball-park figure is 2 BYN is 1€.
Buses from the airport to the city centre leave from outside gate 5/6, ground floor arrival hall, that's to the far left when you enter the arrivals hall from immigration. There are a number of services but the 300Э and the 1400-TK are probably the most useful as they run until late.
The 300Э is a regular bus and the 1400-TK is a 19 seater minivan known as a marshrutka.
I took the 1400-TK. The fare downtown is 4BYN. You can pay the driver. It takes about an hour. The last stop is Tsentralnyi, the central bus terminal, just up from the train station, which has a few snack stands and a money changer.
Buses from the airport to the city centre leave from outside gate 5/6, ground floor arrival hall, that's to the far left when you enter the arrivals hall from immigration. There are a number of services but the 300Э and the 1400-TK are probably the most useful as they run until late.
The 300Э is a regular bus and the 1400-TK is a 19 seater minivan known as a marshrutka.
I took the 1400-TK. The fare downtown is 4BYN. You can pay the driver. It takes about an hour. The last stop is Tsentralnyi, the central bus terminal, just up from the train station, which has a few snack stands and a money changer.
Where to stay in Minsk:
I stayed at the Dreamy Castle Hostel, near Victory Monument, a 4km walk from the main station (or 2 stops on the Metro). 8-bed dorm rooms cost from 8USD per person per night (price is 2018). It was the same block as where Lee Harvey Oswald is said to have lived.
The airport bus trundles right down the main boulevard, Praspiekt Niezaliežnasci and I got off at Victory Monument. Very convenient!
The airport bus trundles right down the main boulevard, Praspiekt Niezaliežnasci and I got off at Victory Monument. Very convenient!
Transportation in Minsk
I generally walked everywhere within the city but rode the metro for fun.
You can buy one-trip tokens called 'jetons' and in 2018 the cost was just 0.65BYN. The Official Website of the Republic of Belarus has a very clear metro map. It's very efficient. In rush-hour, they go every 90 seconds.
Plošča Lienina Metro Station:
You can buy one-trip tokens called 'jetons' and in 2018 the cost was just 0.65BYN. The Official Website of the Republic of Belarus has a very clear metro map. It's very efficient. In rush-hour, they go every 90 seconds.
Plošča Lienina Metro Station:
With directions clearly stated using Roman characters too:
There's an extensive bus and tram network, though I didn't make use of it and even a Minsk Transport App on Google Play. A one-trip fare is 0.65BYN. Buy the ticket from the driver, and don't forget to validate it!
Cheap Eats in Minsk
The receptionist at the Dreamy Castle Hostel told me about a place up the road called Lido.
It is in fact a Belorussian version of Puzata Hata that I know so well from Ukraine. Buffet-style food, where you pay per gram. I took rice and gretchka. More than enough at such a late hour and it cost me just 0.98BYN - 50US cents. Really not bad. They serve beer too.
It is in fact a Belorussian version of Puzata Hata that I know so well from Ukraine. Buffet-style food, where you pay per gram. I took rice and gretchka. More than enough at such a late hour and it cost me just 0.98BYN - 50US cents. Really not bad. They serve beer too.
My Fav cafe/bar in Minsk:
On my first morning, I got a coffee and a croissant at Stories. An Americano cost me 2.50BYN (1€ was about 2BYN):
My favourite place to get a beer was Happy Point Café where 500ml draft beers cost just 2.50BYN
My Top 10 Sights in Minsk, Belarus:
Below, images of monuments, statues, churches and memorials in the city of Minsk:
Victory Monument:
Vorota Minska, Arkhitekturnyy Ansambl':
Admire the outstanding architecture of the Gates of Minsk:
Lenin Monument:
"Mother Belarus" at the Patriotic War Memorial:
I called this Mother Belarus after Mother Georgia in Tbilisi, Georgia:
Minsk Hero City Obelisk at the Patriotic War Memorial:
Son of the Fatherland Monument:
St Peter and St Paul church, Minsk:
First catholic church in Minsk:
Holy Spirit Cathedral, Minsk:
Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theatre, Minsk:
Footnote, assuming you've got this far:
All businesses, cafes, bars, and hostels mentioned in this post are for information purposes only. I receive no kickback or commission. This is an information post after all!
I also made an excursion where I visited both Mir and Nesvizh on a single day using public transport but I didn't have enough photos to make the blog post complete, so I ditched the idea of re doing the post. Here are two photos anyways:
All businesses, cafes, bars, and hostels mentioned in this post are for information purposes only. I receive no kickback or commission. This is an information post after all!
I also made an excursion where I visited both Mir and Nesvizh on a single day using public transport but I didn't have enough photos to make the blog post complete, so I ditched the idea of re doing the post. Here are two photos anyways:
|
|
