The first groups of Chinese tourists will arrive in Russia in February-March 2023

Chinese travel agencies are ready to resume outbound group tours to 20 countries from Feb. 6, according to the website of the country's Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The 20 countries include Russia, as well as Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Laos, UAE, Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, Switzerland, Hungary, New Zealand, Fiji, Cuba and Argentina.

Russian tour operators also say they are ready to accept groups of Chinese tourists.

“There are already a lot of applications for the summer season. These are group tours. Such destinations as Moscow, St. Petersburg, Murmansk, Kazan, Baikal, Vladivostok and Kamchatka are being requested,” Intourist company reports.

“The first groups may already be in February-March. We see interest in the resumption of the tourist flow from both the Russian and Chinese sides,” says Alexander Kurnosov, Deputy Director of Academservice company.

At the moment, the inbound tourist flow to Russia is practically at the zero level. Tourists from European countries and the United States, which were key source markets, do not travel to Russia. There are also significantly fewer tourists from Arab countries.