During a recent press conference, a tourism delegation from Russia said that they want to cash in on the interest shown by Indians on Russian regions and tours to Western Europe stopping off in Russia and Central Asia. George Mokhov, Vice President, Committee on Tourism & Hotel Industry, Moscow City Government, said, “Since Southeast Asia and the Middle East have already been explored by Indian tourists and Western Europe is expensive, Indian tourists are looking at Russia as the next holiday destination as it is a mixture of European and Asian cultures and more cost effective.”
As per the current figures, India is ranked 16th in terms of inbound arrivals to Russia. “From 2007 to 2011, about 35,000 Indians visited Moscow every year. However, in 2012, it grew to 47, 500,” said Olesya Aliferenko, International Department of the Russian Federal Agency for Tourism. She further added that the number of Indian tourists coming to Russia will continue to grow despite some constraints like visa issues, lack of information about Russia and stereotypical ideas that Russia is not a safe place. “We want to now enter the Indian market and make our presence known,” she added.
Agreeing with Aliferenko, Aleksey Mzareulov, Deputy Consul General of the Russian Consulate in Mumbai, revealed, “We are looking into the matter and are trying to ease out the visa rules for tourists.”
According to Mokhov, most Indians stop off in Russia on their way to Europe. “Indian travel agents/ tour operators sell basic tours of Moscow (3-4 days) and St Petersburg (5-7 days) at US$1,400-1,500 per person. The demand is growing stronger,” said Mokhov. Commenting on their plans to position Russia in the Indian market, he said, “We are aggressively going to tap the major cities in India and train tour operators and travel agents. Also this year, the Moscow City Committee on Tourism and the Hotel Industry will organise familiarisation tours for Indian tour operators and journalists.”
The Russians also want to tap into the growing MICE market. In 2012, Hero MotoCorp organised its Conference in St. Petersburg inviting over 125 top component suppliers from India, China, Thailand, Japan and Europe. The company rented the famous Konstantinovsky palace in St.Petersburg. Prashant Chaudhary, Managing Director, Salvia Travels, further informed that Russia with its sophisticated technology and facilities, warm hospitality, personalised services, natural beauty and rich cultural heritage has become a good alternative for MICE tourism. “Hero MotoCorp spent over US$3 million in Russia just in three days. Russia has also hosted a conference by Asian Paints for which there were 16 Indian chefs for a group of 1,200.”
Going forward, Russian Federal Agency for Tourism is planning to showcase new destinations and products such as Russian Golden Ring, Altai in Siberia, the Trans-Siberian regions, Vladivostok and the Russian Far East, as well as the Trans-Mongolian Railway.
