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Best Russia Tourist SIM cards for Indian Travelers

Russian SIM card for Indian Travelers

If you’re planning to make a short trip to Moscow or St. Petersburg, likely, you don’t need SIM card because hotels usually have Wi-Fi and so do cafes, restaurants, and public areas. Using the Wi-Fi, you can make WhatsApp calls, and text at the same time. But if you’re planning an extended stay in Russia or you’re on the Trans-Siberian trip, then it’s worth purchasing a Russian tourist SIM card. Using your home phone network gets expensive. A local tourist SIM will help you cut down your phone bill expenses.

There are several Russian tourist SIM cards which offer a great deal of data. Calls to India, however, are costly. This post explains the best Russian tourist SIMs for Indian travellers and the options available.

Documents Required

To acquire a SIM card in Russia, you need to produce your passport. With your passport, you shouldn’t have any problem purchasing a SIM.

Availability

All the mobile phone carriers have an extensive network of stores that are easily recognizable on the street. You can buy a SIM from official stores or approved sellers. You can also purchase a SIM from the airport, near metro stations, and shopping streets. Credits can be purchased from the same retailers and convenience stores across the country.

Phone Carriers in Russia

There are five leading operators in Russia: MegaFon, Beeline, Tele2, MTS, and Yota. Most of the country has a good network signal. Some of the northern regions can suffer from poor reception. There are a few approved resellers of the telecom mentioned above companies. They operate as MVNOs.

List of MVNOs in Russia

•    Aiva Mobile

•    Allo incognito

•    Almatel

•    Atlas

•    Central Telegraph

•    Danycom Mobile

•    Easy4

•    Ekomobile

•    MCN Telecom

•    MGTS

•    Rostelecom

•    Sbermobile

•    Tinkoff Mobile

•    Virgin Connect

•    Wifire

Best Russia SIM card for Indian Travelers

The Russian Federation is divided into 85 federal states, which sometimes use different plans. Therefore, it gets difficult to list all the deals. Here’s the list of best offers that can be purchased in main cities like Moscow.

NetworkMegafonMTSBeeline Tele2Yota
Name of the Product Hello BundleSuper MTSWelcome PrepaidClassicalYota for Smartphone
Price 750 RUB0 RUB700 RUB0 RUB880 RUB
Incoming FreeFreeFreeFreeFree
Outgoing Local 30 mins3.50 RUB/minute 
12 RUB/minute to other networks
30 minutes (post usage 5RUB/minute)2 RUB/minute in home region
3 RUB/minute to Tele2 networks
9 RUB/minute around Russia
2000 minutes
Outgoing India75 RUB/minute80 RUB/minute30 RUB/minute69 RUB/minute70 RUB/minute 
SMS local 4 RUB/SMS2 RUB/SMS2 RUB/SMS1.50 RUB/SMS in the home region
3.50 RUB/SMS across Russia
Unlimited 
SMS India9.90 RUB/SMS8 RUB/SMS8 RUB/SMS5.5 RUB/SMS 8 RUB/SMS
Data30 GB100 MB (post usage 25 RUB/20 MB)Unlimited in the Beeline network
200 RUB/110 MB
3 GB/200 RUB12 GB
 Validity 14 Days30 days14 days30 days
Notable InfoNo data usage for FB, Instagram, Snapchat WhatsApp, and Viber
Dial *100# to check your balance
Dial 05001374 to activate #Hello bundle
No Obligatory paymentsYou can check the remaining minutes and
the internet traffic included in the subscription fee by calling *102#.
No subscription feeUnlimited access to “WhatsApp”, “Instagram”

Buying a Russia SIM card in India

Though Russian SIM cards are easily available at the airports and across the country, making calls to India is still expensive. If you’d want to make cheaper calls to India then we have a SIM for you which is economical than the local SIM cards.

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