Way to Russia Talk Lounge

mev · Frequent Guest Joined: 01 Apr 2004 Posts: 28

Which Russian cell phone provider has the most complete coverage network? In particular, I am curious about coverage in European Russia as well as in cities along way through Siberia and Eastern Russia, e.g. Omsk, Novosibirsk, Irkutsk, Chita, Khabarovsk, etc.

nikir · Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 5:06 am Post subject:

OK I just did that trip recently and can tell you that all the providors are much the same. None of them have good coverage outside the cities, especially in Siberia.
I used MTS with roaming but you should check when you get there and find out who has the best deal at the time as competition is fierce and changes frequent.
Also a tip if you are going on the train. Turn your phone off when you lose signal as you can't recharge easily on the train.

KHARKOV · Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 11:10 pm Post subject: Cell Phones

Would it be recommened to get a phone from the airport Say DC and then use that in Russia for the duration of one's stay? Is that the best way?

surfguy · Lounge Wizard Joined: 13 Apr 2006 Posts: 6996

I would rent one when you get to Russia...or if you have a GSM phone bring it. But it will be expensive for calls

mev · Frequent Guest Joined: 01 Apr 2004 Posts: 28

Thank you for the replies. My plan is to travel through Russia by bicycle and be there for an extended time. Hence, I'll bring with me a GSM phone that accepts Russian SIM cards and buy some prepaid Russian SIM cards on arrival. This worked well on a five week trip through Ukraine and Russia in 2006. In that case we used Beeline.

So, my question is if there are big differences if one uses Beeline, MTS, MegaFon or some other carrier - particularly for coverage beyond the most populated parts of European Russia (where I assume all the big carriers have reasonable coverage).

vox16 · WayToRussified Joined: 01 Jun 2006 Posts: 324