The expert spoke about new trends in premium tourism

In 2026, Russian tourists are increasingly choosing non-standard vacation formats, relying on emotions and unique experiences instead of classic beach destinations. Travel expert of the Adventura platform Yana Klimakova told Izvestia about this on June 25.

According to her, the demand for trips that go beyond classical tourism is increasing. These can be author's routes, expedition formats, themed tours, or fully personalized programs tailored to a specific traveler. This approach is especially popular among people over the age of 35. Most often, these are married couples or groups of friends who have already "seen standard destinations" and are looking for new experiences.

"The financial side of such trips strongly depends on the level of service and the complexity of the route. In the premium segment, the cost often starts from about several hundred thousand rubles per person and can increase significantly when choosing exclusive services, individual escorts or rare destinations. In more complex and unique travel formats, the final price easily reaches millions of rubles," the expert said.

Among the most sought-after destinations are large-scale combined tours, such as trips to China with a rich program that includes large metropolitan areas, historical centers and cultural locations. Such routes are usually designed for several cities and allow you to see completely different sides of the country in one trip — from modern urbanism to ancient history.

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Russian citizens often prefer the countries of South-East Asia.

Extremely exclusive offers occupy a separate niche. For example, wedding ceremonies in the Arctic, held aboard a nuclear icebreaker. This is not just a trip, but a full-fledged event with symbolic and emotional significance, which requires serious organization and high costs. Such tours are among the most expensive and rare forms of recreation.

Another popular format is New Year's yacht trips in the Seychelles region, Klimakova added. Tourists choose different levels of comfort here: from more affordable yacht routes to luxury private vessels with crew and individual service. The cost of such trips can vary significantly depending on the class of yacht, the duration of the rental and the saturation of the program.

Interestingly, many travelers end up departing from the original plan. For example, they can start by renting a villa on the islands, then try a day trip on a yacht, and eventually spend the whole vacation on it. This highlights the general trend: people are increasingly choosing flexible vacation formats, where the route and format can be changed right along the journey.

In general, the premium and individual tourism market is gradually transforming. The main product is not a specific destination, but a trip scenario — a set of impressions, emotions and unique events that cannot be obtained on standard tours.

On June 23, Kupibilet service analysts, having studied the data on the tickets sold, told Izvestia that Kaliningrad topped the ranking of the most popular domestic travel destinations in July. It accounted for more than twice as many bookings as Sochi, which took second place. The average cost of a flight to Kaliningrad was 12.96 thousand rubles one way. Istanbul has become the leader among foreign routes.