Russian tourists rush to Mauritius despite no direct flights

Mauritius can hardly be called a mass-market destination: there are no direct flights from Russia, the journey takes a long time, and package tours cost more than those to traditional beach countries. Yet in 2026 this very island has turned out to be one of the most popular exotic destinations among ATOR tour operators (tour operators included in Association of Tour Operators of Russia), according to ATOR review. 

Tour operators are seeing a marked increase in sales of tours to Mauritius compared to 2025. At Russian Express, bookings have risen by 51%; at Space Travel they are up by 25% since the start of the year; and at Spektrum demand has grown roughly fivefold. Active sales are also reported by Intourist, Corona Travel, ICS Travel Group and Ambotis Holidays.

A big plus of the destination is the fact that Russian tourists do not need a visa – it is enough to fill in an electronic form in advance. The destination’s popularity was also helped by a short-lived Aeroflot flight programme: after it ended, bookings did not fall, says ICS Travel Group.

There are currently no direct flights from Russia to Mauritius, so tourists fly with connections — most often via Dubai or Istanbul. On Emirates flights via Dubai, layovers can take as little as 2–3 hours. Emirates round-trip tickets can be found from roughly 80,000–82,000 rubles per person (approx. 1,000–1,025 US dollars). A Turkish Airlines flight is usually more expensive: a benchmark is from 100,000 rubles (approx. 1,250 US dollars), and in June via Istanbul — about 130,000 rubles and up (approx. 1,625 US dollars). Routes via Doha and Jeddah are also possible.

For the autumn season Space Travel and FUN&SUN have already extended their seat blocks on Emirates, while Ambotis Holidays says they regularly extend their block flight programme because of the annual growth in demand.