Ruble weakens, but Russians travel to Europe

Diplomatic scandals and the fall of the national currency did not turn Russians away from travel to Europe. Moreover, the dynamics of early sales of air tickets for the regular flights (from January to April) for the summer season testifies the growing popularity of European countries in comparison with the figures for the same period of the last year. According to Biletix, the air tickets were sold more by 10.3%. It is interesting that the increase of sales of air tickets to Europe occurred despite the rise of their price. So, the average price for the year for round trip from Moscow increased by 17% - from 16,099 Rubles (220 Euro) to 18,849 Rubles (258 Euro). The most popular destinations for the upcoming summer for Russians were Burgas (Bulgaria), Barcelona (Spain) and Tivat (Montenegro) - they increased by 21%, 20% and 5% respectively. In addition, the TOP 10 included Rome (+59%), Thessaloniki (+24%), Paris (+35%) and Istanbul (4 times increase). At the same time we may note the negative trend - Larnaca (3-fold drop of sales), Chisinau (2 times decrease). Observers added that Istanbul was expected to become the leader of growth - it was largely due to transit tourists using it as a transfer hub for flights to third countries. The greatest drop in demand for flights to Larnaca, according to them, is also quite predictable. The proportion of charter flights to the Cypriot resort has increased and regular flights have decreased.