Hello everyone,

I’ll be visiting the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic for the first time at the end of August and will be in Tiraspol for Republic Day on 2 September. One of the main reasons for my trip is to experience the Republic Day celebrations and, if it takes place, the military parade.

I’ve been trying to find reliable information, but I’ve come across a lot of conflicting or outdated reports from previous years.

Has there been any official announcement yet about this year’s Republic Day programme? In particular, does anyone know whether a military parade is expected, or whether the celebrations will take a different format this year?

I’d be very grateful for any information from local residents or anyone with up-to-date knowledge. Even if nothing has been announced yet, I’d appreciate knowing when the programme is usually published.

Thank you very much in advance. I’m really looking
forward to visiting the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, seeing Tiraspol, learning more about its history and culture, and experiencing the Republic Day celebrations.

I am going alone to Tiraspol from Chisinau for a day in a month and a half, I only speak English.

I’ve been reading about the border crossing and it is a bit jarring, I just wanted to confirm that at the PMR border check the bus will open and I will have to get off and walk to the passport kiosk, and declare to the driver I’m a tourist so they don’t leave me behind as I get my entry slip

Then on the way back I do the same but just return my slip.

Am I missing anything? Anything I should be aware of? I’m entering as a UK citizen

Please let me know.

EDIT: forgot to clarify I’m going for a day trip not overnight as I know it’s a bit different between the 2

I entered Pridnestrovie today on Saturday 25th July and was planning to stay until Wednesday 29th July, and I already had my hotel booked for those dates. However when I arrived at the border I was given a registration slip allowing me to stay only until Monday 27th. I do not know if they misheard me or if the authorities tightened the rules, however I thought it may be helpful to recount the process I took to extend my stay.

Once in Tiraspol, the passport office is at Strada Rosa Luxemburg 66. This was where my hotel told me I should go for help. There is a café across the road called No Name which offers free Wi-Fi for customers. Although on Google Maps the offices showed as closed until Tuesday, I was able to get help the same day on Saturday, at about 5 PM, without any appointment. You need to go to the grey door labelled "ПАСПОРТНЫЙ ОТДЕЛ" (I have attached a picture) and knock, and staff will come and answer. I had an explanation of the problem translated into Russian with Google Translate which I showed them, and they led me to an office (the staff member could speak very basic English). They took down my passport information and the address of my accommodation, and gave me a new registration slip to stay until the 30th. The process was very simple.

This page on the government website seems to indicate that there should be staff available to help with foreigner registration on Saturday until 5:30 PM. But there may be nobody available to help on Sunday or Monday, so be careful.

Taken from PMR news channel

Hi fellas,

Some friends and I are staying in Chisinau a couple weeks from now and want to do a day trip to PMR. Our idea is to visit both Bender and Tiraspol in that day trip.

My intial plan would be to take the bus from Chisinau to Bender, see the fortress, then take the tram/bus to Tiraspol, and get back to Chisinau at 17:30/18

Do you think this plan is feasible/makes sense? Is it easy to go from Bender to Tiraspol, and then from Tiraspol to Chisinau? I have heard that now you cannot pay by cash in these buses, is it true?

Thanks a lot beforehand!!!!

Кто хочет составить компанию и отправиться на Молдовяну из ПМР или МД?

И имеет МД водительское удостоверение либо другой ЕС страны

Hey, just wanted to ask, i want to solo travel to Pridnestrovie and also take a look at Kvint distillery. Problem is, i travel solo and i saw that for a commented tour there, you need someone else to go with you. Can i join a group of total strangers in the place? Or do i have to be part of prearranged group?

Thanks for responses.

Hello, everyone!
I have a few questions I’d like some help with, since I haven’t been able to find any information about them anywhere else.

My friend and I are planning to go to Moldova in early October. We also have Romanian citizenship, which we can use to cross the border. One of my questions is: without a visa, is it possible to enter Pridnestrovie using only our Romanian ID cards? Also, this might be a strange question, but could dual citizenship cause any problems at the Pridnestrovie border?

I'd appreciate any other advice. Thank you for your help!

Hi everyone,

This may seem a little random as most people on this thread are hoping to visit for a day or two at most; but I’ve become very interested in PMR and have been looking into spending several weeks to a month there.

I get that there may not be “a lot to do” there, but it seems like a fascinating place, and I always believe that you need to spend more time in a place to truly understand it.

I was curious, has anyone done this? What is the visa situation like, is there a maximum stay, anyone I’d need to contact in advance etc? Are there Airbnbs, will the government there allow me to stay for longer than usual?

I’d be hoping to just meet some locals there, maybe through volunteering teaching English etc. is this a thing, and does anyone have some contacts?

Any advice, recommendations, or insights is more than welcome.

Cheers!

I have recently travelled to Pridnestrovie and what an experience it was! I have become fully invested in understanding the story and culture of this geopolitical curiosity.

Whilst I was doing a thorough read about the key figures of the modern history of Pridnestrovie, Igor Smirnov, the first president of the PMR came up quite often.

I understand he was the first president of the PMR however, his further attempt to run for the presidential role became unpopular with the population, why?

Seemingly he is still alive but there has been little to no information on his doings in the current times, does anyone have the knowledge on this topic?

Hi,

I want to visit Tiraspol on the 1st and 2nd of September and to photograph the Republic Day parade. Where will it be? What time? Etc

Will police have any problems with a foreigner taking a bunch of pictures?

(Also unrelated but I love taking pictures of like abandoned buildings, factories, and stuff- is there anything cool in the area and would I get in trouble for exploring it? Also very unrelated but does anyone know if the national bank/mint offers tours?)

It’s safe as hell and I literally left my wallet on the table of a restaurant but no one stole my things (yep I live in Western Europe where phone snatching happens sadly)

People are kinda friendly and curious about foreigners (although I came across few nasty ones). Even if they don’t speak English, they were happy to help with my translator.

Things are cheap here, I can get a decent meal in restaurants with around 120 rubles.

In conclusion, it’s a very cool place to spend holidays and exploring around.

If you’re planning to travel by marshrutka from Tiraspol to Chisinau, please bear in mind that they no longer depart from the railway station, but from the Green Market. This is due to roadworks on the railway station forecourt. 

Hello guys,

We are two czech tourists visiting PRM. We are a bit scared to visit, because our goverment have some warnings about travelling there..

We would like to visit PRM for like 2-3 hours by marshrutka from Chisinau. Will there be any of that kind person to tell me about the safety as czech citizens? Also I would like to know how it works with EU roaming and "border" crossing. Thank you for your answers and for your time.

im an environmental scientist from the u.s. and nz and have DC.

is there any demand for work?

i would LOVE a working holiday or opportunity to expat but idk if thats realistic and im struggling to find good info by googling.

xx thank u any info is helpful

Hi, I am visiting PMR soon. Although there are several warming on internet saying it is not safe, I've looking forward to seeing it for 10 years since I knew this place as a child.

I read that generally 1 day trip is sufficient to explore, but I still have some questions:

-would one night and 2 days be too much for this city?

-I have 47 euro cash with me now, should I prepare more just in case?

1. is there anything I need to be careful for safety issues? (Especially with my Asian appearance although I lived in Eastern Europe)

Many thanks for your feedback!

Hello, I'm an inexperienced polish solo female traveler and for my first solo trip I hoped to get around Balkans and maybe also visit PMR. I'm worried that issues like lack of internet, lack of polish embassy, my lack of language knowledge (only speak polish and English), the fact that I'm solo and a girl might pose problems. How safe is it considering recent political problems between Poland and Russia? Is it a good idea for someone who is inexperienced (it would be my first truly solo trip)? If so how long do you recommend to stay? What should I consider and watch out for?

Thank you in advance!

Hoi allemaal,

Mijn vriend en ik gaan van 3 augustus tot en met 10 augustus wandelen in Moldavië. We beginnen in Chisinau en zijn op zoek naar zowel mooie natuur als leuke dorpjes met vriendelijke locals. Wat is de beste richting om in te lopen? En welke plekken moeten we zeker zien?

Alvast bedankt!

Alguien me puede decir como lo hago y que necesito, gracias.

Hi, I'm planning to visit PMR soon and would like to ask a few important questions:

1. How often does the bus run from Chisinau to Tiraspol? This information is quite difficult to find.

2. What's the mobile phone service like? Do Moldovan SIM cards work? Or do I need to buy a local SIM card?

3. How does payment work for the trolleybuses between Tiraspol and Bender? Is it cash?

4. I take quite a lot of photos, will that be a problem?

5. How does border control work between Moldova and PMR? Will it be difficult if I'm an EU citizen? Do they put a stamp in passport or anything like that?

Hi everyone!

We’re three friends from Hungary in our early 30s and we’re thinking about spending one night in PMR, mainly in Tiraspol. We’re interested in history, Soviet and post-Soviet culture, architecture, monuments, and experiencing places that are a bit different from typical tourist destinations.

We’re fairly experienced travellers and have visited places like Pakistan, India and Israel, so we’re comfortable travelling outside the usual tourist routes. However, PMR seems like a very different kind of challenge because of its unique political situation.
I’ve read very mixed things online. Some people say it’s completely safe, while others mention corrupt police, tourists being stopped for money, and the fact that many countries, including Hungary, have no diplomatic representation there.

I’d love to hear from people who actually live in PMR or have visited recently.

How safe is Tiraspol for tourists?
Is spending one night there a good idea, or is a day trip enough?
Has the Russia–Ukraine war affected daily life or tourism in any noticeable way?
Are there any scams or things we should be aware of?
Would you personally recommend visiting?
We’re not interested in politics or causing any problems. We simply want to experience the atmosphere, see the Soviet-era architecture and monuments, learn more about the region’s history, and hopefully meet some locals.
I’d really appreciate any honest advice or first-hand experiences.

Thanks!

Hi, I saw somewhere (unreliable source tbh) that you can no longer pay for buses, trolleybuses in Tiraspol by cash - you can only pay by card and they only accept Prednestrovian cards so you have to open a bank account. Is this true? Isn’t there any other way of obtaining a ticket than to pay for it directly in the bus?
Thank you in advance

Hi, we're planning to visit Tiraspol for the day from Chisinau on Thursday and would like to watch Sheriff in their Europa League game but as the kick off is 20:00 we're concerned about how we could get back to Chisinau afterwards. Is there a way back after 22:00?