Turkey’s hopes for a serious Russian tourist flow – due to the lack of alternatives – are not a fact to come true. At least for the time being, trips to Turkey, as well as to Egypt, show a rather tendency to “collapse”. Kateryna Volkova, director of the International Tourism Bureau, said that there would be no flights to Turkey and Egypt by the end of March, and that tours to these countries would not be sold.
“Until March 28, inclusive, flights to Egypt and Turkey are not carried out,” she said, citing further reasons. Tour operators who have faced a forced export company say it is an expensive pleasure. “Turkey, Egypt are not for sale, the Emirates is for sale, the Maldives is the only destination that is sold for any cataclysm,” the expert added.
It will be recalled that attempts to “close” Russia for those airlines that still continue to fly to Russia continue. Thus, the Turkish airline Pegasus Airlines suspended all flights from Russia from March 13 to March 27, 2022. The cessation of flights is due to the Turkish side’s fears of imposing sanctions on itself. “In accordance with the European Union Regulation 2022/328, sanctions and bans on insurance / reinsurance, leasing, operation and maintenance are imposed on aircraft arriving and departing from the Russian Federation. Due to the current risks arising from the current situation, all our flights arriving and departing from Russia have been temporarily suspended from March 13, 2022 (inclusive) to March 27, 2022,” said the carrier. Read the details at this link.
Note that tourism experts have already assessed that threatens prices, even if air travel in Russia will be resumed. “Complete collapse” for two or three weeks, during which the main demand will be generated not by tourists but by those wishing to flee Russia, the decline in purchasing power by 80% along with rising prices for tours to 200 thousand rubles (2000$) – and the slow-slow recovery of tourism for about six months. This forecast of the upcoming trends was announced at the ATOR site by the head of the Space Travel tour operator Artur Muradyan. He noted that in the near future there will be a big drop in purchasing power – about 80% due to the depreciation of the ruble, as well as blocking Visa and Mastercard, and new currency rules.
“Given the declining markets of Russia and Ukraine, Egyptian hoteliers will have to reduce accommodation prices for the CIS market to keep flows. However, taking into account the increase in the price of aviation fuel and the depreciation of the ruble, package tours (flight + hotel) to Egypt will not be cheaper than 150-200 thousand rubles (1700-2000$),” Artur Muradyan said.
In Turkey, the expert also predicts that demand will remain – although the country is rising due to the fall of the ruble and reduced traffic, the offer is “all inclusive”, which avoids buying currency and unnecessary spending on vacation will be a significant plus. Read the detailed forecast at the link.
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