The carrier may sell travel documents (tickets) for the transportation of groups of passengers on long-distance trains at the request of organisations.

An organised group of passengers (OGP) is a group of passengers travelling in trains on the same route and ticketed based on the same request.

An organised group of children and/or schoolchildren (OGC) is a group of passengers consisting of pre-school children and/or schoolchildren accompanied by an adult person travelling on the same train route and ticketed based on the same request.

The minimum number of passengers travelling in the same direction on the train (carriage) route (hereinafter referred to as an organised passenger group) shall be:

  • on domestic routes and routes with CIS countries, the Baltic states and Abkhazia – at least 10 people who have paid the fare;
  • on international routes (non-CIS destinations) – from 6 adult passengers (two children count as one adult passenger).

The reservation of seats for an organised group of passengers on a long-distance train is subject to the availability of sufficient seats for the transportation of the passengers, which shall be determined in accordance with the existing passenger flow.

Requests for group transportation can be submitted online.

Different rules apply for the transportation of organised groups of passengers on Sapsan trains. These rules can be found here.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED WHEN RESERVING SEATS FOR ORGANISED GROUPS OF PASSENGERS

  1. Letter of application in the prescribed form, accepted from legal persons and public institutions. The application must contain the name of the organisation, number of seats required, train number, type or class of carriage, departure date, departure station and destination station.
  2. A list of the names of all passengers containing personal data and details of their identity documents.
  3. When requesting the transportation of an OGC, a list shall be attached to the application that shall separately identify the group leader and adult accompanying persons, with no more than one adult accompanying person per 12 children and/or schoolchildren.

Requests for the carriage of OGPs and OGCs are accepted from 90, 60, 45 and 10 days before the train’s departure. Requests submitted less than 10 days before departure are accepted subject to availability.

The period of keeping reserved seats for OGPs and OGCs is 20 days from the date of reservation but no later than 10 days before the departure of the train. If seats are reserved less than 10 days before departure, the reserved seats must be paid for on the following day.

The carrier charges a fee for reserving seats on long-distance trains for organised groups of passengers. The fee is charged per seat upon application for the reservation of seats. If the reserved seats are cancelled, the fee received is be refunded.

When reserving seats on trains on domestic routes and on routes with the CIS countries, Baltic states and Abkhazia, the fee is differentiated: one fee for organised groups of passengers, and another for organised groups of children and/or schoolchildren. When reserving seats for organised groups of children and/or schoolchildren, the fee for reserving seats on long-distance trains established for these groups shall be charged to the accompanying adult(s) (at the rate of not more than one adult attendant per 12 children and/or schoolchildren).

Charge from 1 December 2024:

  • for the transportation of Organised Groups of Passengers – 537,10 roubles for each seat/berth as set by Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service.
  • for the transportation of Organised Groups of Children – 134,30 roubles for each seat/berth as set by Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service.

WHERE TO APPLY

Requests for group transportation can be submitted online.

Different rules apply for the transportation of organised groups of passengers on Sapsan trains. They can be found here.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED WHEN ISSUING TRAVEL DOCUMENTS FOR ORGANISED GROUPS OF PASSENGERS

  1. Application and a list of the names of the passengers in the prescribed form.
  2. Miscellaneous charges receipt (MCR) confirming payment of the reservation fee.
  3. Power of Attorney Form M-2.
  4. A copy of the notification of assignment of the individual payer’s code when paying by bank transfer.
  5. For the transportation of organised groups of children (schoolchildren), written confirmation, stamped and signed by the head of the relevant institution:
    • That the children and their accompanying persons have the necessary documents authorising them to cross the state border (border and customs) at the time of the trip;
    • Medical support with a copy of documents confirming the professional suitability of an accompanying medical worker for organised groups of children with more than 30 people when travelling for more than 12 hours. Travel documents for specialised trains can only be issued if the organisation provides a document to ensure medical support by a qualified medical practitioner (doctor);
    • That meals will be provided en route (depending on the duration of the journey), agreed with the Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare (Rospotrebnadzor) for railway transport.

When processing the travel documents, the sending organisation must provide written confirmation that the children will be provided with hot meals during journeys lasting more than one day (the relevant contract must be concluded no later than 15 days before the departure of the train). For journeys lasting less than one day, the sending organisation must provide written confirmation that the children will be provided with dry rations, based on the recommended list of products approved by the railway transport authorities.

A legal entity shall collect the travel documents no later than the deadline set by the railway. If the travel documents are not duly collected by the representative of the organised group within the set deadline, the application will be cancelled. The application fee is non-refundable.

If it is necessary to make changes to the composition of an organised group, the transportation organiser should send an application to the Railway Agencies of the Federal Passenger Company.Sample application form.

DISCOUNTS ON DOMESTIC RUSSIAN ROUTES

In accordance with Resolution No. 1172 of the Government of the Russian Federation dated 30 December 2009, organised groups of schoolchildren are entitled to a discount of 50% on the cost of travel in passenger and express trains operated by Russian Railways and Federal Passenger Company, in couchette carriages and seated carriages, as well as in double-decker carriages with four-berth compartments on all categories of long-distance trains (a discount of 50% on the fare for the transportation of passengers in couchette carriages over the same distance) during the period from 1 January to 31 May inclusive and from 1 September to 31 December inclusive.

When boarding organised groups of children (schoolchildren) with discounted travel documents, certificates from full-time general education institutions confirming that they attend the institution, as well as birth certificates, must be presented.

The certificate must contain the pupil’s full name, details and registered address of the school, its number and the date. The document shall be certified by the stamp of the school and the signature of the head of the educational institution or the person acting in his/her stead.

DISCOUNTS FOR OGPs ON ROUTES WITH THE CIS COUNTRIES, BALTIC STATES AND ABKHAZIA

The following discounts for organised groups of passengers travelling to/from the CIS countries, Baltic states and Abkhazia apply to the total cost of the journey throughout the year:

  • 20% for organised groups of 10 to 24 passengers who have paid adult fares (regardless of the distance travelled);
  • 30% for organised groups of 25 or more passengers who have paid adult fares (regardless of the distance travelled).

DISCOUNTS FOR OGPs ON LONG-DISTANCE INTERNATIONAL JOURNEYS

Information on discounts can be found here.