Analysts named the most popular tourist destinations among Russians for the May holidays

The shortened configuration of the May holidays this year has shifted the focus of tourist demand towards short trips.: Russians plan short trips for certain holiday periods — from 1 to 3 May or from 9 to 11 May. On April 16, experts from the online hotel and apartment booking service Ostrovok shared such observations with Izvestia.

The average duration of bookings in the whole country is three nights, but there is a noticeable decrease in a number of destinations. In Anapa, the number decreased from five to four nights, in Moscow — from four to three, in Kazan, Yekaterinburg and Samara — from three to two.

At the same time, there is an increase in demand for destinations suitable for short sightseeing trips over the coming weekend. The number of bookings in Kazan during the holidays increased by a third compared to last year, in Rybinsk — by a quarter (+24%), in Kostroma — by 22%, in Krasnodar — by 19%, in Yaroslavl — by 16%, in Smolensk — by 15%, in Ryazan — by 12%

In general, tourists prefer domestic destinations for the May holidays this year — they account for up to 76% of all bookings. The top 10 most popular cities in the country include St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaliningrad, Yaroslavl, Sochi, Volgograd, Pskov and Smolensk.

The average cost of a booked night in Russian hotels and apartments on public holidays is 6.5 thousand rubles, which is 5% higher than a year earlier (6.2 thousand rubles).

"Although the number of days off during the May holidays does not allow for long vacations, Russians do not refuse to travel — this year they simply changed the format. We see a shift in demand towards short trips within our own and neighboring regions with an emphasis on sightseeing tourism. Such trips are easier to plan, they do not require complicated logistics and allow you to relax in a couple of days," explained Irina Kozlova, Managing Director of the Ostrov service.

Foreign trips account for every fourth booking for the May holidays (24%), which is four percentage points more than a year earlier (20%). At the same time, the number of hotel bookings abroad from Russian tourists increased by 14% year on year.

The demand for accommodation is growing most dynamically in China and Abkhazia — by 71% year-on—year, in Armenia - by 51%, in Turkey — by 43%, in Georgia — by 29%, in Japan — by 12%. Italy stands out among other destinations: the country has risen from 12th to sixth place in the ranking of the most popular foreign countries, and the demand for accommodation has increased by 69%.

In general, the top 10 most popular holiday destinations for the May holidays include Belarus, Uzbekistan, Turkey, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, China, Thailand, Abkhazia and Italy. The average cost of a booked night in foreign hotels and apartments for the holidays is 9.8 thousand rubles, which is 3% lower than last year (10.1 thousand rubles).

Excellent reaction: tourists canceled 25% of their trips to Dagestan for the May holidays

Sales will recover by the summer, but the year as a whole may turn out to be a failure, experts say.

Alexander Yuzhalin, head of the legal practice at SuperJob, noted on April 14 that the May holidays in 2026 will be the shortest in the last eight years. The decrease in the number of days off is due to the fact that no weekends from the New Year holidays were postponed to May.

Also on April 8, Aleksan Mkrtchyan, Vice President of the Alliance of Travel Agencies (ATA), said that Russian tourists had canceled about 25% of bookings for the May holidays in Dagestan. At the same time, the company's analysts believe that demand in the direction will recover in the coming weeks.

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