Post-Pandemic Changes in Russian Tourists’ Preferences
Changes in Russian Tourists’ Destinations in H1 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruptions in international travel, with countries opening and closing their borders sporadically. However, by early September, more than 40 countries had already opened their doors to Russian tourists.
Most European, East, and Southeast Asian countries remain closed to tourists, allowing only residents, permit holders, students, and individuals traveling for work or to visit close relatives.
Destination Preferences in H1 2021
According to statistics from the Border Guard Service of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, a total of 6.8 million trips were made from Russia to foreign countries in the first half of 2021 (January – June). This represents a 15.4% decrease compared to H1 2020 and a significant 68% decrease compared to the same period in pre-pandemic 2019.
Out of these trips, only 1.4 million Russians traveled for tourism in the first half of the year. The number of tourists has significantly declined both compared to H1 2019 (down by 82%) and compared to the same period in 2020 (down by 40%).
Top 10 Destinations for Russian Travelers
Based on the travel data for the first half of the year, the top 10 destinations for Russian travelers were as follows:
- Abkhazia (2,023,712 visits, mostly non-tourist purposes)
- Turkey (806,212 visits, mostly for tourism)
- Ukraine (792,216 visits, all non-tourist purposes)
- Kazakhstan (318,175 visits, mostly non-tourist purposes)
- UAE (294,494 visits, mostly for tourism)
- Finland (189,187 visits, mostly non-tourist purposes)
- Cyprus (172,671 visits, mostly for tourism)
- South Ossetia (166,002 visits, all non-tourist purposes)
- Armenia (162,163 visits, mostly non-tourist purposes)
- Kyrgyzstan (132,234 visits, mostly non-tourist purposes)
These destinations varied in terms of their appeal to Russian tourists, with some attracting more leisure travelers while others were predominantly visited for non-tourist reasons.
H1 2021 Russian Tourist Flow Trends
Turkey continues to hold its position as the top destination for Russian tourists. More than 40% of Russian tourists chose Turkey as their travel destination in the first half of the year. Although tourist traffic to Turkey has nearly tripled compared to the same period last year, it remains significantly lower than pre-pandemic levels, with a 72% decline compared to 2019.
Many popular tourist markets remain closed to Russian travelers, and even the available mass destinations have not fully recovered due to limited air travel. Countries like Thailand (ranked 37th for Russian tourists in H1 2021), Italy (22), China (59), Germany (14), Spain (26), and Vietnam (67) have dropped out of the top ten leaders compared to pre-pandemic times.
However, there has been remarkable growth in niche destinations. Tanzania experienced the largest increase among the top ten countries, with 66 times more Russian tourists visiting the country in H1 2021 compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019. Egypt saw a 14-fold increase in tourist flow compared to H1 2019, while the Maldives experienced a three-fold increase. Cuba also saw a slight increase with a 21% rise in tourist flow.
Apart from these destinations, the UAE (which experienced a 44% decrease in tourist flow compared to H1 2019), Cyprus (-58%), Armenia (-60%), Greece (-92%), and Tunisia were among the top ten travel destinations, despite significant declines ranging from -60% to -92% compared to pre-pandemic levels.
H1 2021 Business Tourism Trends
In the first half of 2021, a total of 137.5 thousand Russians traveled for business purposes. The flow of business tourists from Russia increased by 3% compared to H1 2020. However, when compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019, there was a significant decline of 55%.
Turkey emerged as the top destination for Russian business tourists in terms of the number of travelers. The flow of business trips to Turkey increased by 15% compared to H1 2019. Several countries experienced exponential growth in business travel from Russia compared to the pre-pandemic period, including Ukraine (+366% compared to H1 2019), Estonia (+330%), Poland (+52%), and Kyrgyzstan (+26%).
On the other hand, Germany (-86%), Kazakhstan (-53%), Uzbekistan (-31%), the UAE (-29%), and Armenia (-26%) recorded the largest decreases in the number of business tourists from Russia among the top ten countries in H1 2021.
Tourist Preferences of Moscow Residents
Based on a survey conducted by aviasales.ru, it was found that in the fall of 2021, Moscow residents expressed a strong desire to travel to Italy. However, due to travel restrictions, they have been opting for trips to Turkey instead.
Experts in the travel service industry have observed that Moscow residents are eagerly awaiting the reopening of borders and are actively searching for flight tickets to both closed destinations in Europe and Asia, in addition to Turkey.
Popular European and Asian destinations such as Italy, Spain, France, Germany, Indonesia, Czech Republic, China, Japan, Israel, and Vietnam have ranked among the Top 30 in terms of flight searches.
When it comes to booking tickets, Turkey has emerged as the leading choice, accounting for a quarter of all international bookings. Following Turkey, popular destinations include Greece, Cyprus, Maldives, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Croatia, United Arab Emirates, Georgia, and Egypt.