Post: #1

Hi,
Will have a business trip to there and I'm considering overstaying for vacation.

Haven't found much info on the forum, if someone been there and can report from his experience it would be great.

Post: #2

English Teacher X lived in Samara for years and blogged about it.

Post: #3

Yeah, I have spent a lot of time there, what would you like to know?

In short, its a shithole. Its a large industrial base and transport hub. Its also the region that for my tastes, produces some of the hottest women. Its been about 4 years since I have been, but there are worse places to be stuck if you are chasing pussy.

Russian is an absolute must. If you dont speak it, then I suggest you pipeline in advance.

Post: #4

Hottest women which are accessible is already far from shit hole for me

Location- Does Rossia hotel is in good location for nightlife/ shopping malls/ day game areas?
Will it DHV?
http://www.booking.com/hotel/ru/rossia.e...097;dcid=1

Does the city has large students population?
Can I find party place almost any day of the week?
Specific venues would be great.

How are costs? Assuming I can expense my hotel stay then I will spend mostly on transportation, food, nightlife, girls.
Pipelining- the usual mamba.ru and VK? any other sites?

Gaming style?
Attitude of girls toward foreigners, are they money oriented, wish to leave this shit hole or it is not so bad in terms of economics?
Safety?

Kinda of full datasheet, any advise would help.
I only know some words in Russian, cant really speak.

Post: #5

I've spent some time in Samara. It's a very spread-out city geographically, and there isn't any one region that can be considered a "center." There's the "old center" with run-down wooden houses, many without plumbing. This area also has the main pedestrian street, Leningradskaya, where you could run day game. That will only work in the summer months though (June, July, August). The other option is to walk up and down the Volga embankment, where lots of people gather to promenade and sit on benches.

The best option, if you're in great shape, is to hit up the beaches along the Volga embankment and go for a swim, play volleyball, etc. The hotel you linked is at one end of the embankment (at the far southern edge of old town).

There are many universities, so lots of students.

The club that I liked the most was Metelitsa-C, but it's far inland from the embankment (not walkable). There are clubs relatively close to the embankment: Aura (not so great), Lust (upscale, good), and there is an entertainment complex with three clubs together near the embankment (Skvoznyak which is rock/alternative, Zvezda which is techno, and Long Bar which used to be the most upscale club in the city).

The rock club Skvoznyak from what I saw has the best one-night-stand potential. I had a friend who did consistently well there. The girls tend to be sluttier as it's more of an alternative crowd.

There is one club called Poljot, which is ostensibly a student club as it's located right next to the biggest university in the city (Aerokos University). I would avoid that club like the plague, as fights break out several times each night and you will be a target as a foreigner. English Teacher X called it "the house of pain" for a reason. It's further from the beach and you would take a taxi to get there (although it can be walked).

There is also a big entertainment complex immediately on the embankment in a big yellow building. I forget the name, but it also has a disco and billiards, air hockey, etc.

The embankment used to have tons of outdoor cafes, but English Teacher X told me they've closed down in recent years. I'm sure there is still stuff to do in the vicinity though, as people tend to go to the beach and then party all night in the areas near the beach.

It's a fun city in some ways, but I wouldn't recommend it as the logistics are very challenging. And as is common in the FSU the women want something from you, so having some kind of established business connection to the locals would be really important to getting laid. I wouldn't expect game tourists to do very well as there is less of a one-night-stand cosmopolitan culture than in Moscow, St. Petersburg, or Kiev. Opportunities to score a 9-10 for dating are high though, and if you lived there and had a good job with a nice apartment you could certainly date several such girls simultaneously (and they would expect you to).

In short, a great place to live if you have some money and time, but not on my recommended places to visit for tourists.

Post: #6

Also I would STRONGLY recommend you try to get an apartment instead of staying in a hotel. See if you can get an apartment right along the embankment.

Post: #7

Some club links.

Samara Night is the "what's on" of Samara, which has club reviews, addresses, and upcoming concerts at all the clubs.

Metelits-C - This and Poljot are the biggest clubs in the city. Metelitsa is higher-end, but still a mid-range club (Poljot is the lowest end and dangerous). Several dance floors, many bars, can hold a few thousand people I would think. The two dance floors on the first floor are R&B and the best place to game.

Poljot Club - Big club and aerosopace-themed, so kind of fun. Cosmonauts and heroes of the Soviet Union get in free. Several dance floors on two-floors. Downstairs is 80s music, upstairs techno and R&B.

Rock Bar "Skvoznyak" - The best place for ONS in the city IMHO. Lots of slutty women from mid-20's to mid-30's. You won't find the 18 year old stunners here, but still very good babes who are into American/Western culture.

Rock Bar "Podval" - The other rock bar. This one is not a club like Skvoznyak, just a grungy basement bar. Surprisingly good food and cheap beer prices. Nightly concerts in a small environment. Good for making friends and pregaming. People tend to be nice to Americans/Europeans and interested in practicing English (no thugs like in other clubs).

Night Club "Lust" - Upscale club, lots of stunners here when I was last there in 2010. Features things like nude gogo dancers in body paint, ice shots, etc.

There is also "MTL-Arena" which is a club that holds big concerts from time to time. I didn't go there.

If I were you and you are there during June or later, then start out in the evening on the embankment and see what's going on. Check out the entertainment centers right off the embankment too (you'll see them). From there you could walk to Skvoznyak or Long Bar or Zvezda since they're all together in the same complex. They're a 10-minute walk after the very northernmost part of the embankment.

If the embankment is not yet really open or with people (it should be by mid-May or so) then try Podval for an early-evening concert.

If those all suck then take a taxi to Lust or Metelica-C. Like I said Metelica-C was my favorite club, I had many fun nights there, but it's not close to any other thing, so it means taxi there and taxi back for sure (unless you stay until public transportation picks up).

Remember parties start going at midnight at the clubs usually. Get there at 11pm or so and you can have an hour to talk up people arriving early before dancing starts. Entrance will probably be 300-500 rubles for a guy, $10-$15 USD.

Post: #8

Sorry to spam the posts. There is also the club "SEX ON" which I forgot, which is just past the same complex with Zvezda and Skvoznyak.

I almost forgot! Also check out the restaurant Pizza Kit, which is on the main pedestrian street (Leningradskaya). It's a restaurant during the day in a good location (great for dates), and at night they pull away the tables and there is dancing and some good girls.

Finally the entertainment complex on the embankment is called KIN.UP.

One thing not to miss is the Samara brewery, which produced the most famous beer in the Soviet Union (Zhigulyovskoe). The brewery is a beautiful 19th century stone building on the embankment. You can buy beer out of a hose by the liter (old women sell empty plastic bottles up to 5 liters right by the hose). Easy to get drunk on the embankment on $3 or $4.

The cosmonautics museum is right below the "rocket" which is a Soyuz rocket near the Zvezda complex. Worth a look during the day. It's a small museum but with some impressive things.

Stalin's bunker by the opera house is a good museum if you can get in.

Post: #9

BigDave thanks, good info is never spam, bring it on.
1st conclusion is not to come for 3-4 days only, at least 1-2 weeks and play like I'm starting business there/ frequent traveler for business, I could do that only in May, so guess this is not yet beach time.
2nd conclusion is to take apartment more north along the embankment which will provide better location overall, only thing is that in this case I will have to finance it myself, any advise on that? Good quality studio/1 bedroom apartment, I'm sure local options are better than AirBnB or such sites.
How are the taxi rates?
How is the level of English? Does my target crowd- Girls 20-30 can speak English?
What I've noticed in my last visits all over EE and FSU is that the younger their are, the English is better. Like 18-24 would have better English than 25-30 on average.

Another thing, regarding LTR, would it appeal to girls there an LTR and possible marriage with foreigner, later moving away from Samara to western country? In Ukraine it is like that but in Russia with its much better economics today I'm not sure.

Post: #10

I think you're right, most girls there are not looking for a long-term relationship with a foreigner. That was in the 1990's, not so much anymore. Of course as a foreigner you will instantly spark their interest as many won't have met a Westerner before, but transitioning that initial spark of conversation into a bang isn't easy.

Like I said there is no real center, but yes, north along the embankment is a good spot. The nicest apartments in the city are right there, in the "Lada" apartment complex (a trio of three big towers).

May is too early for beach game, but there will be lots of people walking around on the embankment.

I have no advice on apartments, I was in a long-term rental there.

Good luck! And be sure to report results!

Post: #11

Cool thanks, will sure report when back.

Post: #12

(04-10-2013 06:25 PM)BigDave Wrote:  In short, a great place to live if you have some money and time, but not on my recommended places to visit for tourists.

Good posts, but I dont agree with that. I would not waste my time and spend only a few days there, but a few weeks will be plenty. If you can speak Russian and have a good back story then you are good to go.

If not, then you will need to pipeline properly.

Post: #13

(04-14-2013 12:15 AM)Hooligan Harry Wrote:  

(04-10-2013 06:25 PM)BigDave Wrote:  In short, a great place to live if you have some money and time, but not on my recommended places to visit for tourists.

Good posts, but I dont agree with that. I would not waste my time and spend only a few days there, but a few weeks will be plenty. If you can speak Russian and have a good back story then you are good to go.

If not, then you will need to pipeline properly.

Yeah you're right I suppose, if you plan it right a few weeks is enough time to meet some girls, get numbers, then close a week later. I'd say 3-4 weeks would be perfect for that.

But definitely less than one week is a waste of time, you'd be much better off hitting up Moscow or St. Pete.