Tour Operators: Which countries to substitute Turkey, Egypt for Russian tourists
- UAE, Thailand, India to substitute Turkey, Egypt for Russian tourists
Tour operators have seen an increase in the demand for Middle East and Asia tours following ‘the loss’ of Egypt and Turkey destinations, the newspaper Kommersant wrote on Friday.
The demand grew 20% for the United Arab Emirates, 10-15% for Thailand, 5% for India and Vietnam and 3% for Israel, according to Executive Director of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) Maya Lomidze.
In her words, a general decline in winter tourism will stand at approximately 40%.
Market actors have also observed an interest of clients in new travel destinations, the newspaper wrote.
The increased demand for UAE and Thailand tours is a new trend of the tourism market: according to the Federal Tourism Agency, those travel destinations lost 46.3% and 53.1% of Russian tourist arrivals, respectively, in the first half of this year.
Some 2.08 million people, 38% of the total number of Russian tourists traveling abroad, visited Egypt and Turkey in the first half of 2015, and the shutdown of the two most popular travel destinations was a serious blow on tour operators, the newspaper said, quoting the Federal Tourism Agency.
Some travelers have chosen independent booking: the number of requests for flights to Antalya is up 20%, Kommersant said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin temporarily banned flights to Egypt on November 6. Tour operators and tour agents were recommended that sales of Egypt tours be stopped. The decision followed the bombing of Kogalymavia’s A321 plane on the Sinai Peninsula on October 31.
The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a travel alert on November 24 advising Russian tourists not to visit Turkey due to the high risk of terror attacks after a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 bomber was downed in Syria. Tour operators suspended the sale of Turkey tours and cancelled the earlier bookings.
Source: Interfax Ukraine – UAE, Thailand, India to substitute Turkey, Egypt for Russian tourists
