ArmInfo.The most sought-after foreign destination for Russians on New Year's holidays is Armenia. About this reports RIA "News" with reference to OZON.travel.
"Among foreign destinations, Yerevan became the leader of Russian demand. On holidays, interest in traveling to Armenia increased by 68%, while ticket prices fell by 5%," the source said, adding that Georgia significantly strengthened its position - share Russian travelers to the cities of this country grew by 42%.Most Russians who traveled during the New Year holidays preferred to spend them in Moscow. According to the online service, the demand for travel to Moscow has significantly increased. Compared to last year, the share of travelers to the capital of the Russian Federation increased by 12%, despite the increase in ticket prices by 15%.
The number of tourists in St. Petersburg exceeded last year's figures by 23%, and in Sochi - by 8%. Still, tourists are attracted by cities with a mild climate: Simferopol, Krasnodar and Mineralnye Vody, the demand for which is steadily growing from year to year.December 16 last year and. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan wrote on his Facebook page that the arrival of a greater number of Russian tourists to Armenia for the New Year holidays will be a good chance for local entrepreneurs to contribute to the economic revolution. "This is, of course, a chance for many Armenian businessmen to realize their part of the economic revolution and create solid foundations for a more powerful tourist boom in the summer," said Pashinyan.Earlier, the head of the State Committee on Tourism, Hripsime Grigoryan, reported that in the first 9 months of 2018, 1,275,209 tourists visited Armenia, which is 8.8% more than a year ago. According to her, in the TOP-5 countries, where the highest rates on tourist visits included mostly neighboring countries. In particular, Russia traditionally holds the leading position - 525,423 tourists, followed by Georgia - 233,125 tourists, Iran - 132,829, with a margin followed by the USA - 46,138 and closes the top five Ukraine - 24,308 tourists.At the same time, the head of the State Committee named the countries that showed the highest growth in percentage terms. This is India, the growth of tourist visits for citizens of which amounted to 131%, China - an increase of 107%, and Kazakhstan - an increase of 83%. In this vein, the head of the state committee noted that she connects high expectations with 2019. "In 2019, we will have higher percentages thanks to the work done today," she assured.
Answering the question of ArmInfo, R. Grigoryan noted that the target markets will remain the same, denoting in this vein Russia, Iran, the countries of the Persian Gulf, China, and India. She named the USA as a new direction, and from the point of view of distant prospects - Japan. "Our vision is this: we prefer to have a limited number of target markets, where a huge amount of work has been done over the years," she explained.