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I arrive to Vladivostok Airport in the afternoon, and would like to stay for the night somewhere near the airport. Taking a taxi would be too easy, so here is my challenge:

Is it possible to go from Vladivostok Airport to a nearby hotel without using any money?

I don't mind walking for kilometers.

Judging from what I can see on Google Street View, the main road does not seem very pedestrian-friendly, and I wonder whether the grass below is walkable (by the way, there is a hotel just behind the green-roofed building):

enter image description here

This dirt track running parallel to the main road on its east side might be more manageable, it is connected to the airport but I wonder whether it is gated or not:

enter image description here

Note: There will be no snow.

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    Alone? Single people that do strange things are still classified as spy, so with risk to be taken to police for questioning (the good: you get free ride to center).
    – Giacomo Catenazzi
    Commented Sep 4, 2018 at 8:53
  • Why not bring a (folding) bicycle?
    – gerrit
    Commented Sep 4, 2018 at 9:04
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    @GiacomoCatenazzi: Yes, alone. Are you speaking from experience? If not, please let us know your source, thanks!
    – nic
    Commented Sep 4, 2018 at 9:24
  • @nic: one of my friend, on rural (Asian) Russia. In general Russian are friendly, but sometime one will not understand that normal people do something "special", so they think one is a spy, a saboteur or a "bad press" journalist.
    – Giacomo Catenazzi
    Commented Sep 4, 2018 at 9:41
  • @GiacomoCatenazzi And then, what happens next!? Please don't stop, unfold the story that did begin so intriguing!
    – bipll
    Commented Sep 4, 2018 at 10:42

3 Answers 3

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I actually did it. Not easy but not dangerous either. Here is my solution:

  • Zero road crossing (the road from the airport, and even more so the highway to which it leads, are large roads with fast traffic, crossing them would be suicidal).
  • One hour of walk.
  • OK with a backpack and hiking shoes, not OK with a rolling suitcase or light shoes.
  • Itinerary:
    1. Exit the airport building, cross the parking.
    2. Walk through the parking gate, no questions asked.
    3. There is a 3 meters-wide grass area between the guardrails and the marsh. Walk along it for 1.7 km (so, you are not on the road, but besides the road).
    4. The curve has the highest point, and the path is getting narrower, down to 50 cm at some points, but just continue walking.
    5. After the curve, just continue walking along the highway, still besides the road, for 1.7 km again.
    6. Turn right at the ramp exiting the highway towards "Doroga V Aeroport Vladivostok", and walk again for 1.7km. This time there is no space behind the guardrails, but the side of the road is large, and there are not so many cars.
    7. You are now at the old airport terminal, nowadays called "Terminal B".
    8. There are two hotels: Hotel Avia and Hotel Venetsiya.

Step 3: Walk on the grass enter image description here

Step 4: Getting narrower but still walkable enter image description here

Step 5: On some portions there is even a walkway. Also, if you want an hotel in Artem then that pedestrian bridge is your only option to cross that highway. enter image description here

Step 7: Terminal B enter image description here

Step 8: Home sweet home enter image description here

Map: enter image description here

Don't trust Google Maps, it makes you cross military camps. OpenStreetMap has the best information about this area (and Vladivostok in general).

Bonus: To go to Vladivostok the next day, take bus 7 to Artem intercity bus terminal (43.3531, 132.1685), then take an intercity bus to Vladivostok, then another bus within the city, the sum of the three will be about RUB200, which is just a bit less than what bus 107 costs from the new terminal. As the hotel receptionist told me, good luck!

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The nearest hotel seems to be Кедровый Дом

It's a 2km walk along a road that none of maps consider walkable, but on OSM it is accompanied by minor roads which should be walkable. Note that they're not 2GIS, but on satellite view they're visible. They seem to degrade at the end of path but not impassable. The real challenge here is crossing major road at the end.

minor roads

Or, you may take a long detour through dachas. Note that you can usually trail along any road in Russia just on the other side of bumper.

It's also one bus stop on "7" bus.

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    Would you mind detailing which minor roads your are talking about, ideally with a freehand drawing over an OSM screenshot? Thanks!
    – nic
    Commented Sep 4, 2018 at 10:49
  • @nic please consider
    – alamar
    Commented Sep 4, 2018 at 12:18
  • Cool, thanks! This is the track dirt shown in the second picture of the question. I wonder whether it has a gate or is freely accessible?
    – nic
    Commented Sep 5, 2018 at 2:51
  • @nic on satellite view I can see no gate. It looks accessible. Note that in Russia there's less inclination towards gates than one might imagine - most of space is public.
    – alamar
    Commented Sep 5, 2018 at 8:59
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    Note for readers: Don't even think about crossing that highway.
    – nic
    Commented Oct 22, 2018 at 13:48
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According to booking.com, the hotel mentioned by alamar offers a free shuttle: https://www.booking.com/hotel/ru/cedar-house.html, so technically you won't spend money on transportation since you plan on staying in a hotel anyways.

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