Sheremtyevo - not all it could be? (Moscow Sheremetyevo International Airport (SVO))

Member Name: RotweilerC

Product:	Moscow Sheremetyevo International Airport (SVO)
Date:	30/04/04 (488 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Planes land there, It's nearer than the other one

Disadvantages: Its basic, Its hostile

Never land in Moscow after a plane of Koreans! I landed in Sheremtyevo and it was early afternoon on Ladies Day (this is a National Holiday for, you guessed it, Ladies!)
Once you get off the plane, you have to go through the dreaded immigration. Oh boy, that is fun! There are five channels for foreigners and two for Russian citizens. Fine, a bit like the UK. Except that for each foreigner, you need documentation, plus visa and this takes between 5 to 10 minutes per person (and for the Koreans, because of the communication difficulty, we are talking 10!) Multiply that by about 150 and you get the idea!
So, you wait, and wait, and wait, and wait. After one and a hald hours of not moving, I chanced going through the Russian channel. After all, I reasoned, I already was at the back of the queue, so what more could happen to me? Be sent back there? Another difference between Sheremtyevo and Heathrow is that the Security personnel on show are all young ladies in very fetching mini-skirts. Very distracting, but I guess they knew that the foreigners would be there for a while and the girls would stop a riot. I figured if I was going to get pulled in and questioned, it could be worse than these girls...
Anyway, getting through the immigration is a long process and took over two hours. Then you go through the Customs, filling in the forms to describe all items of value (laptop, mobile phone, currency, watch etc) Then you get out into the zoo area - crowds milling and general chaos. But then you get outside the airport and try the car park system and the roads! When it is snowing in Moscow, everything looks wonderful, but the roads and pavements are filthy! Beware, shoes, trousers and coats will all get filthy very quickly!
Sheremtyevo is a long way from the centre of Moscow,a
bout an hour in the taxi. The driving is OK, a bit scary at times! Whe you get dropped off at Departures though, expect to walk a ways to get into the Terminal. Then you need all baggage X-rayed and you walk through the metal detector...just to get into the building.
Getting into the terminal is OK, but they will not let you check in before exactly two hours prior to the departure. Once they announce the Gate, the problems begin. You need to fill in nother Customs formin duplicate and get that signed and your passport checked. Then you check in - but you have to get all your bags X-rayed again of course. Check in, drop the bags and then you get to the immigration again. Oh boy, they make you feel uncomfortable - repeated checks against the passport photo (OK, so I look a miserable s**, but that's no excuse!!!)
Once you get through this, you are into the duty free area. This is a relatively small area and not the cheapest, nicest or most friendly. There are cheap things to be had (Crnberry vodka, for example, but I would be careful - evrything is charged in dollars, not as it seems)
The airport itself is very Eastern European - that will only mean something if you've been to Hungary or Poland or Slovenia for example. The buildings are functional, without charm, cheap wood panelling (like bad 70's G-Plan) and, although clean, have an air of decay and neglect about them. The windows are saved for the holding pens before you get on the plane (would call them gates, but they are more like a pen!)
You need the airport, it is functional, but don't expect to look forward to spending quality time there - it is basic, functional and that's as good as it gets!

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