Siberia Voyage Tips and guide

Contents

Siberia (Russian: Сиби́рь see-BEER') is a region in Russia. Historically, the term Siberia includes all Russian territory in north Asia, with the Urals and the Russian Far East; this article however only covers the Siberian Federal District.

Western Siberia (Altai Krai, Altai Republic, Khakassia, Kemerovo Oblast, Novosibirsk Oblast, Omsk Oblast, Tomsk Oblast)

Krasnoyarsk Krai (Evenkia, Krasnoyarsk, Taymyria)

Eastern Siberia (Buryatia, Zabaykalsky Krai, Irkutsk Oblast, Tuva)

• 55.03333382.9166671 Novosibirsk
• 53.35666783.7872222 Barnaul
• 52.283333104.33 Irkutsk
• 56.00888992.8719444 Krasnoyarsk
• 55.33333386.0666675 Kemerovo
• 53.7587.1166676 Novokuznetsk
• 54.96666773.3833337 Omsk
• 56.48861184.9522228 Tomsk
• 51.827222107.6063899 Ulan Ude

• 53.302778108.0047221 Lake Baikal. The pearl of Siberia. It is the deepest and one of the purest lakes in the world.
• 51.52916787.7147222 Lake Teletskoye . Biggest and deepest lake on Altay mountains.
• Siberian Route One of the longest historical routes from Tsar Russia times spanning 8888 km from Moscow or Veliky Novgorod to Beijing.
• Chuysky Trakt One of the most picturesque old mountain roads of Russia. Historical part starting from Biysk ending in Mongolia.
• Sayany Ring Circle mountainous road from Abakan to Kyzyl, Ak-Dovurak, Abaza ening in Abakan.

See also: Russian Empire, Soviet Union

The name is of Turkic origin, "su" (water) and "bir" (wild land). With an area of nearly 10 million sq km., Siberia is vast. While the popular view of Siberia is of howling Arctic wastes dotted with penal colonies, the truth is more complex. The west of Siberia is covered by a swampy plain, the central plateau is heavily forested, and the east has mountains soaring to above 3,000 m. Only the extreme north is true tundra, with permafrost and temperature means that don't get over 10 °C (50 °F) even in July, but all of Siberia has cold winters.

The indigenous Siberians, like most indigenous Asian Russians, are more closely related to Turkic peoples or to the Inuit than to ethnic Russians. However, during Imperial Russian and Soviet times the government spent money to attract Europeans to Siberia's larger cities. Today the population of Siberia is majority ethnic Russian, though rural areas remain largely populated by the indigenous Siberians.

As with anywhere else in Russia, Russian is the dominant language in Siberia. However, there are also many indigenous languages that are spoken by their respective ethnic groups, particularly in rural areas. Almost everybody speaks Russian regardless of what their native tongue is, but learning some phrases in the indigenous languages can help ingratiate you to the locals.

English is rarely spoken.

The Trans-Siberian Railway, connecting Moscow to Vladivostok, is by far the most famous method of transportation in Siberia. Covering a distance of 9,289 kilometres, making it one of the longest railways in the world, the full trip takes over 6 days and crosses 8 time zones. Its branches the Trans-Manchurian and Trans-Mongolian connect to Beijing in China, the first directly, the second via Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia.

Less famed is the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM), a northern line running parallel to the Trans-Siberian for 4,234 km. Completed only in 1991 and built mostly for military reasons, further away from the border of China, the BAM is less popular with tourists.

The Trans-Siberian Highway, an unofficial grouping of seven Russian federal highways, open the path for a 11000km cross-country journey from St. Petersburg and Moscow to Vladivostok. The last section, the Amur Highway, was paved in 2010.

Primarily natural attractions.

• Mountainous Altai (Gorny Altai) — this region of Siberia is very popular among eco tourists. Mountaineering and mountain rivers' rafting are wide spread here. The area is famous for its stunning scenery. The mountains straddle the border between Altai Krai and the Altai Republic.
• Siberian Traps is a large region of volcanic rock, originating in supervolcano activity 250 million years ago, continuing for 1–2 million years and causing extinction of most species of life. With an area of 7 million km² (3 million sq mi) it covers much of Siberia.

With its vast areas of wilderness, Siberia is a challenging destination for outdoor life.

• Mushroom picking
• Hot and mineral springs in Siberia are numerous and offer services from wild stone bath to luxury resorts
• Hiking/cycling
• Downhill snowsports
• Whitewater sports
• Cross country skiing
• Kayaking and rafting both white water and flat water has official sports associations and informal clubs
• Dog sledding
• Ice skating on Baykal
• Nature observation - birdwatchers number are steadily growing
• Astrophotography and observations of the sky - Siberia due to its vastness and scarce population mostly has zero light pollution.

  

• Enduro touring in Siberia offers nearly endless possibilities with many rent stations and almost no restrictions on offroad activities

See also: Russian cuisine

• Vodka (водка) and tea (чай)