“We used to underestimate these countries in many ways”

St. Petersburg is one of the most popular cities among foreign tourists coming to the Russian Federation. The chairman of the Committee for Tourism Development of St. Petersburg told Kommersant about the change in the incoming tourist flow Sergey Korneev.

— Is the flow of foreign tourists to the city restored?

— In the record year 2019, 5.5 million domestic tourists and 4.8 million foreigners visited St. Petersburg. The latter formed about 60% of the turnover of the hospitality industry. In 2023, we received 574.2 thousand foreign guests, who formed 11% of turnover. But we can talk about the first steps towards recovery. The growth in inbound tourism last year was 68.1% by 2022.

— Is it impossible to replace foreign tourists with domestic ones?

— In tourism, import substitution is also underway, and in terms of the total number of guests in 2023, we are close to the pre-pandemic figure, receiving 9.4 million people. Many domestic tourists are people who come to St. Petersburg for the weekend; the increase in their number is certainly a positive factor. But foreign tourists are those who come from far away, often with their families. Their spending is, by definition, greater. For five-star hotels, foreigners are important.

— From which countries is the main increase in tourist flow observed?

— First of all, these are Asian markets, which even before the pandemic provided 60% of international arrivals to St. Petersburg. You need to understand that we are talking about a region where a total of 3.5 billion people live.

The outbound flow from countries such as China, India, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Greater Middle East is growing annually by 10–15%, and St. Petersburg before the pandemic accounted for at best 1% of their travel. Previously, we largely underestimated these countries, and the same can be said about neighboring destinations. And now we have received an increase in the number of wealthy tourists from the capitals and large cities of Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Belarus.

— What can the city do for its part to attract foreign tourists?

— In many ways, this is information work. It is often said that Moscow and St. Petersburg are already quite famous, but, participating in exhibitions and other events abroad, we see that even the professional community still does not have enough information about the capabilities of our city.

— Is there a joint tourism promotion program with Pulkovo Airport?

— We are working together. We can talk about creating a unified brand concept for the Russian Federation with a special positioning for each region, introducing hospitality standards into the work of government agencies responsible for controlling border crossings – mandatory knowledge of English, positive communication, etc.

There may also be advertising campaigns, issuing permits to accommodation facilities to accept currency as collateral. Among the airport’s proposals is the introduction of a visa-free regime for non-residents of the UAE and Qatar with a residence permit, similar to the one that is currently in effect for residents.

— Are additional standards being introduced in hotels?

— Last year, we launched an International Competence Center in the field of tourism. On its basis, we also train industry specialists to receive guests from different countries, and we also introduce new standards of hotel service. Thus, for travelers from the Middle East, it is important to have a separate room for prayers and halal dishes. In the case of tourists from China, we are usually talking about household items, like adapters for sockets or noodles for breakfast.

— Do such measures affect the flow of tourists?

— From the outside it may seem that this is not so important. But it’s the little things that give tourists positive impressions of the trip, the feeling that they are welcome here. This means that upon returning home, they will advise their friends to travel to St. Petersburg and they themselves will come to us more than once.

Interviewed by Alexandra Mertsalova