Italy this summer, according to tour operators and insurers, has become the most popular travel destination for Russian tourists among the EU countries, the press service of the Russian Union of Travel Industry (RCT) reports.
Bsi Group reported that Italy this year is the most popular among European countries. Basically, tourists buy sightseeing tours in combination with neighboring countries, most often France, but arrival and departure is carried out in Rome or Milan. This segment accounts for about 80% of requests, the remaining 20% are individual tours with holidays on the country's sea coast.
The tour operator Russian Express also name Italy in the top of requests for the summer months. “As it was emphasized in the company, when tourists choose holidays in Europe they prefer Italy first of all. Russian tourists usually fly to Italy via Istanbul, Antalya, Dubai and Yerevan,” the RCT notes.
According to the Union, insurance companies confirm the leadership of Italy, since Russian tourists most often buy insurance policies for traveling to this country.
“As per online sales of insurance policies, the most popular country in the Schengen area is Italy. The TOP-10 also includes Georgia, China, Cyprus, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bulgaria and Armenia,” says Anton Kolegov, head of the company’s insurance methodology department.
Travel companies report that more than 50% of tourists, who apply for a tour to Italy, already have a Schengen visa in their hands.
Russian Border Service has informed, that before the pandemic, 1,36 million Russian citizens left for Italy in 2019.
