Transport in Belarus
How can I travel in Belarus? How much travels by public transport cost? Where can I book and buy tickets?
Belarus is a country with a well-developed transportation system therefore if you intend to go to Belarus without the assistance of a travel agency, you can put together your own route and choose the most convenient way of transportation.
Railway transport in Belarus
Travelling by railroad is one of the most comfortable and reliable options. Railroads inside the country can get you to over 2,100 destinations.
Belarusian Railways offers a convenient format of passenger transportation:
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Urban lines – within limits of Minsk or an oblast capital and up to stations in satellite towns
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Regional lines – within limits of an oblast or up to the nearest oblast subordination city in a neighboring region
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Interregional lines – between Minsk and oblast capitals, between oblast capitals
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International lines – connect Belarus and other countries
Depending on the speed of trains, the time spent at stops in populated communities regional and interregional lines are divided into business class and economy class.
Train timetable for Belarus can be found here.
You can buy train tickets personally in ticket offices at stations, and also book by phone or online – with delivery (in Minsk, Gomel, Mogilev) and without delivery (you have to pick up tickets in ticket offices before the deadline).
For domestic and some foreign lines you can get digital tickets by paying for tickets online using bank plastic cards, digital money systems EasyPay and WebMoney. If you opt for digital registration, you only have to produce your passport to board the train.
The cost of travel along Belarusian railways is not high and depends on the line, class, and category of the railway car. For instance, a ticket from Brest to Vitebsk – virtually across the entire breadth of the country – on an interregional line train costs:
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reserved seat – about Br18 (USD7-8)
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compartment – about Br25 (USD9-10)
Commercial and free services are rendered in trains of Belarusian Railways.
For free you can:
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get bed linen delivered and taken away, get your bed prepared if you need aid (you have to pay to use bed linen unless the cost is covered by the ticket)
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get table games
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get first medical aid
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get safety belts
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get helpful information
Smoking is not allowed in railcars except for international trains, which have dedicated smoking areas.
In Belarus there are 20 major railway stations with a well-developed infrastructure and services for passengers. You can also get good service at stations in cities and towns. Ticket offices and vending kiosks operate at small stations.
Automobile transport of Belarus
You can travel about Belarus on a bus or a minibus.
The timetable of suburban, intercity, and international routes as well as the cost of tickets and information about the availability of seats you can learn here.
You can buy tickets for international and suburban buses online using digital systems WebPay and iPay.
There are bus stations or bus stops in all the cities and towns of Belarus where you can buy tickets, wait for your bus, or have a snack.
In Minsk there are bus terminal Tsentralny (Central) and bus stations Yugo-Zapadnaya, Avtozavodskaya.
In addition to bus operators of the Transport and Communications Ministry there are multiple private bus companies operating in Belarus.
Air transport in Belarus
Belarus is a comparatively small country, therefore there are no regular domestic air flights. The National Airport Minsk welcomes international flights that connect the Belarusian capital with many countries across the globe.
Existing airports in oblast capitals welcome charter flights, cargo aircraft, and airliners that need an emergency landing. Apart from that, airports in Gomel, Grodno, and Brest offer regular flights to the Russian city of Kaliningrad.
Water transport in Belarus
In Belarus there are ten river ports, waterways are open on the rivers Dnepr, Berezina, Sozh, Pripyat, Zapadnaya Dvina, Neman, Mukhavets, and the Dnepr-Bug canal. However, nowadays the demand for passenger transportation by water is low. During the navigation period journeys from ports of Rechitsa, Gomel, and Pinsk are offered several times a week.
However, during the warm season water sightseeing tours are hugely popular. Travels on motor ships are arranged in:
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Brest (Mukhavets)
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Vitebsk (Zapadnaya Dvina)
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Grodno (Neman, Augustow Canal)
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Gomel (Sozh)
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Mogilev (Dnepr)
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Bobruisk (Berezina)
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Mozyr (Pripyat)
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Pinsk (Pripyat)
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The national park Narochansky (Naroch Lake)
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The national park Braslavskiye Ozera (Drivyaty Lake)
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Zaslavl reservoir (Minsk Sea)
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Vygonoshchanskoye Lake
You can travel along the famous Augustow Canal on board of a 12-passenger water bus: it is faster than a motor ship, can handle sluicing easier, and produces less noise.
The floating hotel Polesie has cast anchor on the Pripyat River in the town of Turov. This comfortable hotel with eight suites offers travels along six waterway routes that last for up to three days. The motor ship Pripyat also has five cabins for holiday makers.
Urban transport in Belarus
In Minsk and other towns and cities of Belarus you can use mass transit systems:
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buses (nearly in all towns and cities of the country except for the smallest one where you can reach the stop you need using intercity transport)
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trolleybuses (Minsk, Gomel, Mogilev, Vitebsk, Grodno, Brest, Bobruisk)
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trams (Minsk, Vitebsk, Mozyr, Novopolotsk)
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private buses (in Minsk and major cities)
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taxi (in Minsk and major towns and cities)
Belarus’ only metro is located in Minsk.
Tickets to pay for your passage in public transport you can buy in a vending kiosk at the stop, from the conductor or from the driver.
At present in Minsk the cost of a public transport trip (by bus, trolleybus, tram) is Br0,85, and in metro – Br0,90. In other towns and cities of the country the cost of passage is lower, as a rule.
For multiple travels in a city you can buy a seasonal ticket for one or several kinds of transport for 10, 15, or 30 (31) days.
Developed taking into account international experience, a new system to pay for passage was introduced in all the kinds of surface urban transport in the Belarusian capital in 2014.
You can learn about routes and timetables of urban transport in Minsk here.
Fine for fare dodging
Fines are levied for dodging fares in public transport in Belarus:
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all kinds of urban transport – Br20-Br40
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regional trains, suburban buses – Br28
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interregional and international trains, intercity buses and private buses – Br40
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