According to the Russian State Statistics Service, hotel revenue in Russia surpassed the pre-pandemic level in Q2 2021. The hotel sector’s income in the reporting period was 70.7 billion rubles ($970.7 million), up 13.6 percent over the previous year, according to the statistics agency. According to experts, the hotel complex’s earnings were also impacted by the temporary suspension of flights to Turkey, Vedomosti writes.
At the same time, income from tour operators and travel agencies in Russia is approximately 30% lower than in 2019. The amount of services supplied by tour operators in the second quarter was 31.4 percent lower than in the same period in 2019, totaling 30 billion rubles ($411.9 million). The tourist flow has also not yet returned; in Q2, 15.2 million people stayed in hotels and other tourist accommodation facilities (-12.1 percent compared to Q2 2019).
Canceled flights to Turkey had an impact on hotel revenues in Q2, according to Daria Domostroeva, a spokeswoman of Intourist tour operator. “Most of Europe is restricted to visitors, and plane tickets to open nations are prohibitively costly,” she said. Against this backdrop, Russia seems more trustworthy, according to her.
Domostroeva noted that the tourist cashback scheme might be another significant influence. “The scheme took place during a time when flights to Turkey were suspended, and individuals had no option but to swap certificates to Turkey for holidays in Russia,” she told the publication.
