Tourism looks at the prospects in an Iranian way – Newspaper Kommersant No. 241 (7442) of 12/27/2022

Difficulties with obtaining visas, difficulties with flights and the negative information background around Russia, as expected, discouraged foreign tourists from coming to the country. This year the tour operators accepted only small groups and rare individual guests. Demand remains subdued for the upcoming 2023 season. Although good dynamics in it can be provided by the launch of a visa-free travel program from Iran and the return of Chinese travelers to the market.

According to the results of 2022, the inbound organized tourist flow to Russia decreased by more than 90%, Sergey Romashkin, general director of the Dolphin tour operator, told Kommersant. According to him, this year it was about several hundred foreign tourists. An interlocutor of Kommersant from among tour operators says that even before the pandemic, 300-400 thousand foreign tourists visited Russia a year. Dmitry Gorin, vice-president of the Russian Union of Travel Industry, says that there were no large-scale group races this year. “The flow is formed by individual tourist, business and private trips,” he notes. Marina Levchenko, general director of Tari-Tour, believes that prominent players in the inbound market managed to receive five or six small groups in a year.

Sergei Romashkin points out that his company was organizing holidays for two groups of tourists – from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Marina Levchenko talks about arrivals from Vietnam and Iran. Intourist representative Daria Domostroeva says that the company dealt with tourists from Japan, India and the Middle East, some tourists came from Austria, Italy and Germany.

Meanwhile, according to the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, announced on December 26 at a meeting with the head of the Ministry of Economy Maxim Reshetnikov, this year a total of 180-190 thousand classic tourists arrived in Russia, excluding post-Soviet countries. According to the FSB Border Service, in 2021, 288 thousand tourists visited the country, that is, this year, according to official data, the decrease was 34-37.5%. For comparison: in 2019, 5.1 million people came to the country for tourism purposes. Dmitry Gorin recalls that travelers from Iran, India and the Middle East came to the country.

This year, according to Sergey Romashkin, the negative information background around the country, the complicated procedure for issuing visas, the difficulties in using foreign bank cards in the Russian Federation and the difficulties with flights have become an obstacle for foreign tourists.

The authorities previously talked about plans to create a “Tourist Card” based on the “Mir” system for cashless payments in the country. But Marina Levchenko doubts that this will significantly increase the inbound tourist flow. The expert considers the easing of the visa regime as a priority measure.

According to Daria Domostroeva, now some foreigners living in Russia are joining groups of Russian tourists traveling around the country during the New Year holidays. Dmitry Gorin adds that against the backdrop of a lack of demand, many tour operators, initially specializing in inbound tourism, have relied on the domestic market, primarily developing programs in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Tour operators are signing contracts for the 2023 season in the inbound market now. Daria Domostroeva indicates that tickets are booked mainly three to six months in advance.

Sergei Romashkin does not see factors that would increase demand: “A slight increase may begin on visa-free routes, a noticeable flow from Europe should not be expected.”

Daria Domostroyeva calls the start of the program of visa-free group tours between Iran and Russia a positive trend. Availability of affordable transportation, according to her, will ensure a relatively low cost of travel.

Marina Levchenko considers the markets of Turkey, India and Asian countries promising for the inbound tourism business next year. According to representatives of the tourism industry, the opening of China, which was the leader before the pandemic in terms of the number of guests coming to Russia, could also lead to an active growth in the inbound tourist flow. Monday edition South China Morning Post announced plans to open borders and lift quarantine restrictions in the country from January 8. But official statements regarding tourist trips in China have not yet been made.

Alexandra Mertsalova