Tour operators will receive benefits for working in three friendly neighboring countries

Abkhazia, Belarus and South Ossetia should be included in the list of neighboring friendly countries with favorable conditions for the stay of Russian tourists, Izvestia found out.

Controversial train: tour operators will be relieved of responsibility for the mistakes of travel agents

Now it is more often assigned to travel organizers, rather than intermediaries.

Tour operators working exclusively with countries from this list will be able to claim a benefit — a reduced amount of financial support for liability. It will amount to only 500 thousand rubles, whereas for companies operating in the field of outbound tourism, the amount of such a guarantee amount can be in the tens of millions.

According to the Ministry of Economic Development in July 2025, when the law on support was finally approved and signed, simplification of financial requirements will allow tour operators to actively develop new routes and offer more vacation options at affordable prices.

The interviewed industry representatives expressed hope for expanding the list, noting that now the benefit will be available only to small, mainly regional market players who can engage in mono-products. In addition, in their opinion, tour operators engaged in domestic tourism can expand destinations precisely at the expense of the countries listed in the list.

Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:

You won't get far: major tour operators have not received benefits from the state