Skift Take

Russia’s recent gains are fueled by strategic marketing efforts and visa waivers.

Saniya Zanpure

As the summer travel heats up, a surprising trend is emerging: Russia is experiencing a tourism uptick, according to the latest Skift Travel Health Index for June 2024. Despite the ongoing war, tourism performance in the country in June 2024 witnessed a 12 percentage point surge over May 2024. The index is at 103, which indicates a 3% rise above June 2023.

The Russian government has been actively promoting tourism through campaigns like “Discover Russia” at major international exhibitions. Early results appear to be positive with foreign tourist arrivals growing 1.5 times year-on-year since the start of 2024. Russia is also on the verge of implementing visa-free travel for Indians, similar to the agreements with China and Iran. The visa-waiver initiative is expected to boost Indian tourist arrivals in Moscow by as much as 30%.

Data from OAG indicates rising airline seat capacity, sitting at 12% below pre-pandemic levels in June 2024.

Read our latest June 2024 Highlights for further insights on this market.

As Russia continues to make strategic efforts, the country intends to attract 9.5 million foreign tourists this year. This however, does not mean that Russia’s tourism has recovered to pre-pandemic levels. The industry is approximately 79% of that in 2019.

Read our latest report and the Travel Health Index dashboard for further travel insights.