Russian travelers made 14 million trips in 2023 ( with the exception of post-Soviet countries).

Compared to December, February shows a sharp increase in the share of tour sales to the UAE. The share of Egypt is growing, the share of sales of Russia and Thailand is stable.

A more than two-fold increase in the number of visits by Russians to the island last year and a historical record in tourist flows were ensured by a variety of direct air transportation, convenient connecting options, as well as the activity of Russian tour operators.

Turkey will account for a third of all Fun&Sun sales in 2024. In the second and third places in the list of the company’s key destinations are Egypt and the UAE.

The shares of destinations in December were distributed as follows: Egypt - 26%, UAE - 19%, Thailand - 18%, Turkey - 8% and Russia - 6%. Next in the list of interests among aggregator users are Sri Lanka and Cuba (5% each), the Maldives with 3%, India and Vietnam with 2%.

Winter Sri Lanka is in greater demand this year than last one. According to tour operators, the country will be one of the top five destinations in demand among Russians for winter beach holidays.

The tour operator Anex Tour has announced new tours to Sri Lanka. According to Anex experts, the sale of combined tours to Sri Lanka is being resumed for the 2023-24 winter season. The price from Moscow for the program starts from $ 2 785.

Sri Lanka began issuing free visas to Russians from today. Yesterday the corresponding resolution of the country’s Cabinet of Ministers came into force. It will be valid until March 31, 2024.

Over the three quarters of 2023, the outbound flow from Russia amounted to 21 020 012 people, which is 12,4% higher compared to the same period in 2022.

The most popular destinations where tourists and vacationers often book tours on the eve of the New Year are the UAE, Turkey, Thailand, Egypt and the Russian Federation. Sometimes Sri Lanka is included in the TOP of the most popular destinations.

Coral Travel this winter season will operate flights to Egypt, the UAE, Thailand, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Cuba and Turkey (Antalya) from a total of 16 Russian cities.

The abolition of visa fees for Sri Lanka for Russian tourists immediately increased demand for the destination. Visa fees will be waived for citizens of Russia until March 31.

The Sri Lankan government decided to maximize not only the flow of tourists from Thailand, China, Indonesia and India, but also from Russia. They intend to achieve their goal through “free” visas for visitors from the listed countries.

A leading Russian tour operator Fun&Sun is expanding Sri Lanka offers. From November 10, the company will offer tourists another flight from Moscow and increase the block of seats on existing flights. The reason, as company experts explained, is increased demand from tourists.

Jazeera Airways winter flight program from Moscow to Colombo with a connection in Kuwait starts on October 31. About 10 tour operators took blocks on these flights.

Sri Lanka is becoming an increasingly popular destination among Russian tourists: in January-August, almost 130 thousand Russian citizens visited the country.

On the eve of the autumn-winter season, Anex announced an increase of volume of blocks of seats on Flydubai flights to the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Tanzania (Zanzibar Island) from September 30, with departures from 7 cities in Russia.

The top budget destinations includes Sri Lanka and Thailand, where the price starts from $ 574 per person. Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia also are there - prices there start from $ 1 025.

The tour operator Anex has announced seven charter destinations for the upcoming winter season. This winter direct charters of Anex will fly to Egypt, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Cuba and Turkey.

In the autumn-winter season 2023/24, the tour operator Anex Tour announced tours to Sri Lanka with direct charter flights from 4 cities of Russia. Programs to be operated from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Krasnoyarsk and Novosibirsk. The flight program is scheduled to Colombo Airport between November and March.

Fun&Sun already offers to plan a winter holiday in Sri Lanka. Departures of the tour operator's own charter flights are scheduled from Moscow, Novosibirsk, Kazan and Yekaterinburg. Price for a tour is from $ 1 772 for two persons for 10 nights.

A multiple change in the demand of tourists for the summer was recorded by Russian tour operators. While prices are rising in Turkey, previously more expensive destinations, such as Thailand, Sri Lanka and even the Maldives, are beginning to “equal” with this destination. And Turkey continues to lose its positions due to inflated prices and problems with air transportation.

In all, from January to April 2023, 79 891 Russian tourists visited Sri Lanka. This is 2,11 times (or 112%) more than in the first three months of 2022, when 37 717 travelers arrived in Sri Lanka from Russia.

About 280 thousand tourists from the Russian Federation can visit this country by the end of 2023. From the beginning of January 2023 to the present time, 57,1 thousand Russian tourists have visited the country.

Sri Lanka in the winter season was in the TOP-3 most popular holiday destinations among Russians. Positive dynamics continues in the spring season. A number of tour operators have decided to extend part of the winter flight programs to the island.