Belarus: The Last Battalion of the USSR
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Mention the country and many people in the United Kingdom will tell you the same things, which I will not repeat. After entering Belarus five times, I have strong experience of what it is like between 2019 and 2024. Travelling to places like this really changes your views of the country and where you came from. You can research online why I entered and exited five times, though the first trip, at the end of 2019 and the start of 2020, was for tourism.
Belarus is really one of the few places that still feels quite Soviet, along with Transnistria, and is a bit socialist, which actually has a lot of pros over the West, even though I would view the United Kingdom as a bit socialist in parts. The country strongly appeals to me due to its Soviet communist relics and has a lot more to offer than communist sights. When I visited, it was pretty cold, from December to January, travelling solo in a normal VW non-4x4 rental.
The plan was standard: do a lot of research, write down a plan focused on a loop, fly into Minsk, hire a car (VW Polo or Golf manual), pre-book the initial hotels, book other hotels as I went along, and fly out from Minsk Airport once the rental had been returned. Back then there were direct flights from London to Minsk, and now you need to travel via the UAE, Turkey, or cross by land from the EU.
Let’s cover the normal question. Is it safe? Do not believe everything you read. Yes, it is on the FCDO no-travel list; however, crime, scams, and terrorism are way less common than in the United Kingdom or Western Europe in general. You will not be arrested for minding your own business. Just respect the country's customs and laws.
In five visits, I had plenty of interactions with government officials and never had any issues. A shocking thing to say is that the government is actually more compassionate (and way less greedy) than the British government. Once, I even broke the law by accident by entering a closed border zone, and I was neither fined nor arrested. The border guard was nice and polite and showed me the way to the correct checkpoint.
What is there to see? Castles, palaces, forts, bunkers, both natural and man-made lakes, impressive churches, communist relics, museums, parks, sanatoriums, nature, Chernobyl-related sites, and operas. Twelve days was enough to see a high percentage of the country's sights if you do not mind long days and a lot of driving. The country has a lot of nature, mainly forests, and you will see a lot more wild animals than in the EU. Birds of prey, beavers, moose, deer, wolves, and more.
How were the people? Firstly, English is not widely spoken, and Google Translate or something similar is your friend. People can seem a bit cold at first in Belarus, and this applies to other former Soviet countries, such as Ukraine, as well. Very seldom will people try to scam you, and the prices of everything are extremely low. The roads are decent and the drivers are not rough. The police do not try to harass you either, nor do they seem too corrupt compared with some other countries. The locals can be very hospitable at times. Once, I was randomly invited to the birthday party of a man in a small village pub, complete with food, tons of Scotch, and of course vodka!