Vacation in August. The best places to stay this summer

August is one of the most loved and sought after months for holidays. Many media advise this particular period, because it has the most working days, which means you can get more vacation pay. In addition, a dose of positive impressions and solar energy before the new working season will not hurt anyone. This year the tourist route has undergone changes due to the current geopolitical situation. We talked with the directors of travel agencies about the holidays of Russians.

Deputy Prime Minister Chernyshenko said in May this year that internal tourist flow will increase significantly (almost 10%). How has the demand for domestic vacation spots changed this summer?

Galina Persina, director of “Makosh”

— Several factors contributed to the change in demand for Russian tourism products. The first is the current geopolitical situation. The second is the complexity of logistics. At the moment, it is quite difficult to fly to some countries. The third is the high cost of air travel. The fourth is the attitude towards the Russians. All this influenced the decision of many citizens to stay in Russia.

People want holidays anyway. As the demand this year shows, many of our compatriots are discovering Russia. As they say, there is no evil without good. Everyone is amazed at how beautiful our country is, how multifaceted it is. So there is also a share of patriotism. We really have something to see and something to be proud of.

Mentally, we Russians are more comfortable resting within our own community. As for the notorious “Russian service”, which has become a household name, in restaurants, hotels, I want to say that we are still lagging behind our foreign colleagues. The market of hotels and tourist products, which meets world standards, today has a high cost. Therefore, if Russians travel around our country, they usually choose the middle segment. They stay either in eco-hotels, or in some private boarding houses, villas, guest houses. Autotourism has become very popular, when people make their own way in their cars.

Oksana Kolbeeva, General Director of Baltic Exotic

— My company specializes more in Kaliningrad. And Kaliningrad is a specific region. I can say one thing, the group flow in our direction has decreased. Individual – on the contrary, increased. In the pre-pandemic period, the region as a tourist site has grown. The sea, the Curonian Spit – everything attracted Russians.

What countries and cities in Russia are most often chosen for vacations?

Galina Persina:

– First of all, they choose our south: the Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories. Crimea this year is not very popular due to the geopolitical situation in the region. There are also many who travel to Kaliningrad, Kamchatka, Gorny Altai. The Krasnodar Territory should probably be ranked first in popularity, then Altai, and then Kaliningrad. In the rating of cities for travel, Moscow and St. Petersburg are in the forefront.

Speaking about foreign countries, it should be noted Turkey, which, despite the high cost of air travel, still managed to become a leader. And its main competitor, Greece, retreated this year due to the lack of direct flights. Due to the difficulty of traveling to Europe, a large tourist flow has shifted to the countries of the post-Soviet space: Armenia, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia. Do not forget about Abkhazia. The demand for it was so high that already in mid-April there were no free places either in hotels or in private sectors. This is due to the fact that to enter there you do not need any visas, or a passport, or a long border control. Prices in Abkhazia are 30-40% cheaper compared to the neighboring region of Sochi. A big plus is transport accessibility. From all major cities there are direct planes to Abkhazia. And from Sochi to the border to go 20 minutes by car.

Oksana Kolbeeva:

– Our well-established direction: Poland, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Hungary – is not yet relevant for most customers. Poland no longer issues tourist visas. And Lithuania allows only transit, so that the Russians can go home. Germany still issues tourist visas, but now it is known that all invitations have already been closed before the new year. In connection with the season, the difference in filing documents has increased. At the moment there are direct flights to Turkey. In this direction, the occupancy rate is good, even despite the fact that the price has increased several times.

In our country, renovations and restoration work are actively underway, new excursions are appearing, places for recreation are being arranged. In Kaliningrad, many wineries, cheese dairies, and boat depots opened during the pandemic. Dagestan and Karelia are now in demand. There are cruise routes from Moscow and St. Petersburg. People miss travel. So we are ready to explore our native spaces.

Is there a difference in the choice of places for vacation between citizens from different cities of Russia?

Galina Persina:

Yes, of course, there is a big difference. This is due to the size of our country. As the Japanese say, somewhere the sun is already rising, and somewhere it is still in the sunset stage. If we take the European part of our Russia, then most of the Muscovites and St. Petersburg residents will go to Turkey, Kaliningrad and to nearby regional cities. And Western Siberia, the Urals give more preference to warm countries: Turkey, Egypt. If you look at Western and Eastern Siberia, then 80% of the inhabitants will have a rest inside their region, Gorny Altai, Khakassia, Tuva or Baikal.

Oksana Kolbeeva:

– You can feel the difference. And including it is noticeable in the specifics of the rest. For example, Muscovites and St. Petersburg residents are more adapted and adaptable. Somewhere they do not need our help as tour operators or agents. Often they come individually, rent accommodation and travel around the region as they wish. But many people come to see Kaliningrad from the Far East, the Urals. Recently we had clients from Kemerovo and Kazan. Regions to the east of the central are most often chosen by group tour programs. And the inhabitants of Kaliningrad and its region mastered mainly the European direction.

Due to the specific political situation, a lot has changed. How has your company adapted to the new realities in the travel industry?

Galina Persina:

— During the pandemic, the tourism industry has undergone great changes. Plus, the economic sphere has sunk a lot. After February 24, the map of the tourism industry has changed significantly. Under the new realities, we, of course, are gradually adapting. But now there is no such mass tourist product when we could offer our customers a huge range of hotels, flights, routes. Until now, many states are still closed due to the pandemic. And some do not let Russian tourists in for political reasons. Many, and, in particular, my company, retrained for author’s programs and weekend tours. As practice has shown, this is very much in demand. Tours from Thursday or Friday to Sunday, with some twist, attract customers. Moreover, it is possible to consider not only the domestic market, but also the foreign one. By the way, they often take a four-day tour to Samarkand and Bukhara or Tashkent and Samarkand. At the moment, we have moved from the mass segment to the production of a more individual, specific product.

Oksana Kolbeeva:

“The pandemic has been hard on us. And it’s not worth talking about the political situation at all. I know that many people dissuade me from going to Kaliningrad. But there is nothing to be afraid of. Transport is still running smoothly. Only the flight time has increased. The neutral corridor – Moscow – Kaliningrad, St. Petersburg – Kaliningrad – operates. Trains also run. But tourists still prefer air travel.

At the same time, there are still many cars with foreign numbers in the region. But these are all individuals. There is currently no foreign tourist flow as such.

It is obvious that each client chooses for himself a trip according to his own means and strength. But can it be argued that this year people, in some general trend, are choosing a more modest vacation?

Galina Persina:

— Yes, tourists began to choose a more or less modest product. The majority of Russians, if we take the average coefficient, began to choose both hotels and budget destinations. Air travel, railway tickets increased by 30-40%. And the high demand for the domestic product provoked a directly proportional increase in the cost of living in many hotels.

Mostly tourists are guided by the prices of previous years. But, unfortunately, the pricing policy that was in 2019, 2020, even despite the pandemic, no longer exists. To my surprise, many correlate the exchange rate of the dollar with their vacation budget. But this year, no one is particularly tied to the currency. And the cost of a tourist product is determined by completely different factors. Namely: demand, logistics, transport accessibility and changes in food prices.

This year, those who have more financial capacity are moving from superium to luxury. But in general, the category of the hotel is not lowered. Therefore, many tourists have to either take a short vacation or reduce the price category.

Oksana Kolbeeva:

– A more modest holiday has really entered the lives of many tourists. People reduce the number of excursions, selectively approach the “stuffing” of the trip. Those who are in the region for the first time prefer to take a sightseeing tour. Some people don’t even take this option. People who are used to traveling for 14 nights are now staying for 7-9 nights. And these are mainly those who are used to good hotels and do not want to lower the bar. We see that 9 nights is the most popular vacation time for clients.

Ekaterina Tsoi

Photo by Dmitry Nikitin