Hi, I did the Greek Isle trip, which was not budget, but some of the hotels were not so clean, I am wondering how these hotels were in Russia and Scandi?

Reilly,

I just finished my travelogue on the Scandi and Russia tour. www.giraffegirl.net/scandi_and_russia.htm

I have a bunch of stuff on my site, but here's the short story. You do stay in hostels in Copenhagen, Helsinki and Berlin - they were all pretty good and you're rooming with people from tour. In Russia, Belarus and Poland you're in hotels - they are of pretty similar quality to my euro discovery tour, one was worse, but it was only 1 night. Stockholm is a campsite, the biggest problem with that was that the cabins were tiny.

I just came back from my trip in August, and you'll love it. As for the hotels.....it's all good, some are beter then others, but in the end what does it matter. Some advice for you:
-if you're just doing the 22 day Russia Scandi tour (the one not going up to Norway) you don't need a sleeping bag, trust me, but bring a sleep sheet and your own pillow case.
-Budget for the extras, incl the Russian experience. It may look like alot of money, but you get to see and do everything. That amount is for your whole time in Russia. A ballet, Moscow circus, we went to a folk night, dinners.........and much more. Also everyone does this extra and Russia on your own may not be fun, a little scarry.
-Do all your market shopping in St Petes, Moscow doesn't have the souvenir markets like St Petes does. Also for Russia, you should bring US cash, they love it and most places they take the US dollar for the same as the EUR, so in the end it is much cheeper to use the US dollar.
-We never had problems using our cards, but they tell you not to in the markets so make sure you have the cash.
-Also for a budget, just remember, Russia is probably going to be a once in a life time experience, so don't penny pinch, if you like something buy it, you'll never see it again.
-The Vodka bar is the coolest. (Stockholm)
-Stockholm is absolutely beautiful.
-Warsaw Old Town is awesome.
-Eat a hot dog in Copenhagen.
-Oh and an other thing about Russia..... Make sure to bring Hand and Body Wipes with you, also, before entering Russia you'll be buying a lot a water, which trust me, is very important. Also I think to do it again, I would bring some energy type bars, the food in Russia was most of the time good, but not much of it. Everyone on the trip lost a few pounds....
-Bring a towel, and flip flops for the showers. Especially in Russia, really it's not that bad, but it will make you feel better if you have them.
-Also for the trip don't count on too much for laundry facilities. "Tide To Go"

I have so many things to say...if you do decide to take this trip and want more info....my email is vasseurcg@hotmail.com

Hope this helped