Association of Tour Operators of Russia: Vacations in the Crimea are expensive and uncompetitive
The demand for Crimean vacations among Russians is declining due to competition with Turkey and the Krasnodar Krai, as well as the costs which are exceeding the expectations of tourists. This conclusion was reached by experts at the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, Krym.Realii reported, citing Interfax.
According to Russian travel companies, on average, prices for hotels in the Crimea increased by 10-15%.
"When making calculations, we focused on the average amount spent on purchased tours. Yes, the inflation rate is a bit lower than this number, but in general, tourists are used to such an annual price increase," the publication quoted the General Director of the Dolphin company, Sergei Romashkin as saying.
According to tour operators, hoteliers in the Crimea are reviewing their price policies. The General Director of Multitur, Dmitry Sharov, indicated that Crimean hotels are increasingly making special offers with average discounts of 10-20%. Some of them are also ready to partially subsidize the cost of air travel to the Crimea.
"Over the last two years prices in the Crimea have risen by 50%, and this is difficult for many tourists to accept. Before it was cheap in the Crimea, they say, and now prices are on par with the Krasnodar Krai," Romashkin said.
Russian media reported that the Kremlin plans to allow the annexed Crimea, as well as several regions of neighboring Russia - the Altai, Krasnodar and Stavropol Krai, to charge visitors a resort fee of up to 100 rubles per day. A corresponding bill was submitted by the Russian Ministry of North Caucasus Affairs.
In February, the so-called Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian-annexed Crimea, Aksyonov, acknowledged the failure of the Crimea to compete with other resort areas.