Russians began to visit foreign countries for summer holidays more actively, but the geography of their interest has changed. Compared to last summer, tourists more often chose the countries of the Middle East than European routes.
Africa also added the number of Russian tourists: Egypt returned to the top 5 countries for summer holidays, and the number of travelers to Tunisia increased 3,5 times.
From June 1 to August 30, the flow of Russian tourists traveling abroad increased by 17% compared to the same period in 2022.
Turkey is still the most popular destination for Russians. This year the country received 27% more travelers than last summer. The United Arab Emirates was visited by 37% more Russians, Iran by115%, and Saudi Arabia by 123%. In terms of the total number of tourists, the Near and Middle East bypassed the countries of Europe.
At the same time, the flow of tourists to Europe has also increased, but only by 15%. Growing summer destinations in this part of the world are Italy (+43% of tourists compared to summer 2022), Spain (+36%), France (+33%), Germany (+33%) and Greece (+ 25%). Despite the general dynamics of travel to Europe, these countries are still in the top 10 locations for Russians.
The interest of Russians in Africa has noticeably grown. Egypt significantly added popularity, 176% more tourists from Russia went there this summer. Last summer, the country was only in the 7 place in popularity among Russians. 2023 season returned it to the top 5 most frequent foreign holiday destinations. Tunisia, which received 3,5 times more tourists from Russia, was another growing African route for summer tourism.
The flow to the Asian countries increased by 39,4%. These are mainly Thailand, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, South Korea and Indonesia. In total, four times more tourists from Russia went to these countries than last summer.
The flow of tourists to Cuba increased 16 times compared to last year, and to Venezuela – more than four times.
