Experts named three conditions for attracting Russians to Saudi Arabia

At the moment, the launch of direct flights from Moscow to Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, has not given a noticeable boost to sales in the tourism sector at the moment, although direct flights are certainly a huge help for business contacts, Space Travel notes. Nevertheless, the company does not rule out that the low demand at the moment is due, among other things, to seasonality. And closer to December, the effect of direct flights may be more noticeable.

The main points of attraction for discerning tourists from Russia are not Riyadh, but Al-Ula, the Red Sea resort and Jeddah. These regions are of interest to tour operators. There are direct flights from Riyadh to these resorts, but this is a connecting flight. 

Most large tour operators call Saudi Arabia a 99% independent destination. At the same time, there are requests for combinations with neighboring Middle Eastern countries, for example, with the UAE, as well as sea cruises.

Experts name three conditions for attracting Russians to vacation in Saudi Arabia and popularizing this destination:
Abolition of visas (or at least simplification of entry), or reduction of the cost of a visa (currently it is 105 US dollars). A visa allows staying in Saudi Arabia for up to 90 days;
The second important topic for Russians is the complete ban on alcohol in the country. In order to compete with other Arab countries in terms of tourist flow, Saudi Arabia needs to lift the ban on alcohol in resort hotels for foreigners; 

Increasing the recognition of Saudi Arabia among Russian travel agents is another effective way to increase sales. Information tours are needed. And this should be a mass story, not small groups with a huge price that travel agents are not ready to pay.