Do you plan to visit Belarus?
Tourism in Belarus - Plan

So, that informations may be very useful for you:

Passport and Visa

To visit Belarus, foreigners need a valid passport and a visa. Visa is required for citizens of almost all countries except those, which have an agreement about "non-visa regime" with Belarus.

There are differrent types of visas: diplomatic visa, tourist visa, business visa, official visa, transit visa, guest visa, work and study visa, permanent residence visa. A consular duty depends on the type you need. To obtain a tourist visa from the embassies of Belarus you will need an invitation from your travel agent arranging the tour with dates of entry and exit, places to be visited in Belarus and a voucher. The voucher is issued only by travel agencies which have tourism licence of the Ministry of Sport and Tourism. Residents of those countries, where there is no Belarusian diplomatic mission, receive Belarusian visas at the "Minsk-2" Airport at the Consular Department of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus (tel.: 375 17 279 20 58).
Registration

Foreigners who come to Belarus must be registered at one of the Offices of Visas and Registrations or at Ministry of Internal Affairs. If you stay at a hotel in big cities, you will be automatically registered there.

Minsk Head Office of Visas and Registrations - 48b, Nezalezhnasti Ave.

(tel.: 375 17 231 32 02/231 38 09)

Ways to Travel to Belarus

By air

Tourists can easily fly to Belarus with different airline companies such as Lufthansa, AirBaltic, Czech airlines, Austrian Airlines, Etihad Airways, Turkish airlines, LOT, TRANSAERO, EL AL, National Carrier "Belavia", which offer direct flights to big European cities.

By railway

Belarusian Railway is highly developed. It takes 8-10 hours to get to many capitals: Moscow, Warsaw, Kiev, Riga. Train remains to be one of the cheapest types of transportation.

By bus

Nowadays there are quite enough companies, which arrange trips from and to Europe through Belarus at low prices, and vou can get to European and Baltic countries without changing.

Public Transport

Minsk has a developed public network system including buses, trolleybuses, trams and metro. The daily service runs from 5.30 a.m. till 1.00 a.m. Tickets for ground transport are available in newsstands on the streets, in shops as well as from drivers. In order to get to the Metro you should buy a token. Tickets should be punched immediately upon entering a vehicle. Ticket is valid only for a single ride. There are no timetables at the stops. Any transport is often crowded during rush hours.

Taxis

There are three large taxi parks and a lot of private taxi companies in Minsk. Each taxi should be equipped with a taximeter. The government fixes the sole tariff.

Generally credit cards are not accepted in taxis. To call for a taxi dial 157, 181, 161 or private taxis 107, 169, 152, 184.

Telephone and Post office

Each region in Belarus has its own area code. The code for Minsk is 017, but if you are calling within the city, you don't need to dial the code. In order to call Minsk from other cities in Belarus, you must dial 8, wait for a dial tone, and then dial the city code and the telephone number. When calling from other countries of the world, dial +375 (code for Belarus), 17 (without a zero) and the phone number of 7 numbers. You can call abroad from Minsk from a private telephone or you can order a phone call at the post office. In order to call other countries of the world you should dial: 8 + dial tone + 10 + country code + city code + telephone number.

In Belarus there are is one standard of cellular phone: GSM which is presented by VELCOM and MTS; and life:).

Postal service is very slow and very often unreliable; airmail to and from Western Europe may take from 10 days to 1 month. But you can send mail by EMS, FedEx, DHL or other express postal services, which deliver any parcel or letter within 1 or 4 days.

There are a lot of Internet cafes in Minsk, the majority of them work 24 hours and the most famous are:

•3, Chyrvonaarmejskaya St.

Tel.: (+375 17) 226 02 79 •24, Surhanau St.

Tel.: (+375 17) 232 76 01 •1/15, Kulman St.

Tel.: (+375 17) 284 74 26 •13, Krasnaya St.

Tel.: (+375 17) 284 41 64 •8, Niamiha St.

Tel.: (+375 17) 226 42 43

Money

The national currency of Belarus -the Belarusian rouble, appeared in 1992. No coins are in circulation in Belarus.

Banknotes of US dollars, Euro and Russian roubles can be exchanged into Belarusian roubles at currency exchange offices situated in hotels, banks, big shops and numerous kiosks. Other currencies can be exchanged, as a rule, at banks only. Black market dealers might offer you changing money for more profitable rate, but it is illegal and strictly persecuted. Probably, you will find slight difficulties in exchanging Belarusian roubles back into foreign currency.
BELARUS • information

Health Services

You are advised to take any medicine you need with you. You should be insured against medical expenses, although free medical service exists along with service requiring payment. Most hotels provide guests with emergency medical service. You can also call an ambulance - 103 (free of charge). Emergency rooms in hospitals provide with first aid free of charge.

Since 01.10.2000 all foreign citizens and stateless persons arriving in the Republic of Belarus for a temporary stay must have the Insurance Policy issued by the authorized Insurance Company.

Police

Being compared to the majority of cities in Russia and CIS countries Minsk is rather a quiet and safe city. However, you should be careful in peripheral areas, especially at night. In case of emergency dial the police number 102 (free of charge).