Medical facilities in general vary, despite being well-above western standards. A large majority of hospitals are extremely well equipped, clean, and possess all of the latest technologies, while there are some that are well below western standards, with shortages in medication, cold, and have neglected technology.
Ensure that all of your vaccinations are up to date, and you have sufficient amounts of any prescription medicine you may be taking. Pharmacies are common in major cities and carry a large supply of quality western medications.
Quality of tap water varies dramatically around the country, and even may be very different within one city. Especially in old buildings, tap water can be non-potable. In the big cities of European Russia, the water is clean of biological contaminants, but often suffers from the presence of heavy metals, due to outdated city plumbing. If you can't buy bottled water, boil water before drinking, or better yet use a special filter for tap water, which you could buy in any supermarket. But normally price for bottled water should not be an obstacle: bottled water costs only about 20-30 rubles ($0.8-$1.1 USD) for 2 liters, but watch out for scam bottled tap water.
A fairly typical country church in wintry Staraya Ladoga
Besides local doctors (generally good quality but often working in poor facilities) there are several Western-run medical centers in major Russian cities. These all have different policies for payment (some take credit cards, some require payment in cash up front, even if you have insurance) so make sure you know what you are paying for (and when and how) before you agree to any services.
Be careful not to buy fake vodka, which can be dangerous (seriously here, 'dangerous' doesn't mean 'strong'; it can contain methanol). Only buy vodka in large stores or specialized ones like Aromatnyi Mir in Moscow, with the sticker over the cap and/or the region's barcode on the side.
Some kiosks may sell bad quality meals. If you are unsure, just throw it away. Although most of them are quite good, take note of who buys and what they buy. That could help you make a good choice.
The country's HIV prevalence is steadily rising, mainly for sex workers, young adults and drug users. Be Safe.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Russia
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Russia - updated Apr 2024
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Russia Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
