Russian Domestic Tourism Up 18 Percent in 2015

By The Moscow Times

Jan. 15, 2016

More than 50 million Russians holidayed in Russia last year, 18 percent more than in 2014, the TASS news agency reported Friday, citing Rostourism head Oleg Safonov.

Domestic tourism is growing, Safonov told the news agency, adding that the most popular locations are those with a developed tourism infrastructure.

Safonov cited Moscow and Sochi as examples of cities with good infrastructure. He added that during the summer the occupancy rate in Sochi's ski resorts is 80 percent.

While domestic tourism is showing growth in Russia, international travel has been hit by the weakening ruble as well as a ban on flights to Egypt and the suspension of package tours to Turkey.

As a result, the demand for international trips among Russians in 2015 fell by 31.4 percent, TASS reported last month, citing head of the Russian Association of Tour Operators Maya Lomidze.

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