For tomorrow's tourists: where to go economically during the New Year holidays
The average cost of a trip to popular tourist destinations abroad for the New Year holidays has approached RUB 400 thousand for two people, experts say. Therefore, many Russians have reoriented themselves towards cheaper destinations, such as Abkhazia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. It is there you can spend a long weekend most economically - about 60 thousand rubles for two people, reported "Izvestia" in booking services. In Russia, you can travel inexpensively to Volgograd, Makhachkala and Kazan. To save money on holiday travel, you should buy tickets and book hotels in advance, choose not too popular routes and do not neglect promotions and discounts, said representatives of the tour industry.
Where to vacation cheaply abroad
Budget travel in the New Year holidays to Russians can cost within 60-80 thousand rubles for two people, reported "Izvestia" in tour aggregators. According to the online booking service of hotels and apartments "Ostrovok", the minimum average cost of a night during this period is from 5.8 thousand to 7 thousand rubles. Such prices are now available, for example, in Abkhazia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Georgia.
On average, during the New Year holidays, tourists stay in foreign hotels for a period of three to seven days, said in "Yandex Travel". The top economical destinations abroad on the site were headed by Belarus and Abkhazia.
According to the hotel booking service MTS Travel and the platform Bronevik.com, a popular foreign destination for New Year's vacation among Russians - Belarus, 18% of all bookings abroad are made in this country.
In second place in popularity is Thailand with a share of 13% of the total number of orders abroad. The UAE closes the top three foreign leaders for New Year travel - 12% of all orders for the New Year and the following weekend. Abkhazia is in the fourth place in terms of demand among Russians - every tenth booking was made here. Turkey completes the top five popular countries for New Year holidays - it accounts for 8% of orders.
There are practically no inexpensive New Year tours left, confirmed the head of international projects "Sletat.ru" and managing director of tour operator Let's Fly Lyubov Voronina.
- It is quite difficult to book a tour for New Year holidays for two adults for less than 400 thousand rubles, - she said.
Where to go in Russia
The vast majority of tourists have already booked hotels and apartments inside Russia, said the services. Therefore, there are few places left, but they are still available. The average cost of accommodation for the holidays is 7.2 thousand rubles - it is 10% higher than last year, reported in "Ostrovka". The most budget tourists book accommodation in Volgograd, Sevastopol, Makhachkala, Kirov, Mineralnye Vody, Krasnodar, Derbent, Novosibirsk, Anapa and Rostov-on-Don.
According to Yandex Travel, the demand for New Year trips to the South of Russia has increased among tourists in 2024 - on average by 82%. Interest in the Southern Federal District grew by 79%, and in the North Caucasus - by 95%. Over the year, demand for Kirov, Novgorod and Vologda regions grew the fastest.
Samara also turned out to be the most budget-friendly option to celebrate New Year among the most popular domestic Russian New Year destinations, according to the data of the Avito Travel accommodation booking service and the Kupibilet air and rail ticket purchase service. Russians paid an average of Br8.9 thousand for a one-way trip, and Br3.9 thousand per day for renting an apartment. Thus, a trip to Samara for the New Year will cost Br43.3 thousand for two people.
The highest average cost per night in hotels in Krasnodar region - Br10.1 thousand, reported in the service "Othello". And the most budget hotel can be rented in Nizhny Novgorod region - about Br7 thousand. The average duration of booking in these regions is three days.
In Russia, according to the service, Moscow, Novosibirsk, Kaliningrad and Sverdlovsk regions, as well as Primorsky Krai are actively booked for the holidays.
- In these regions, the average duration of vacation will be two days, - reported there. - Russians plan to spend the most time in Sochi and Mineralnye Vody - here the average duration of accommodation booking is five days, as well as in St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Kazan and Samara - four days each.
How to save money on holiday vacations
During the New Year holidays, the cost of recreation increases significantly, and in a number of destinations the growth can be from 50% and more, told "Izvestia" vice-president of the Russian Union of Travel Industry Dmitry Gorin.
- This is due to high demand," he noted. - People really want to vacation, and accommodation facilities, which are commercial structures with dynamic pricing based on competitive prices, raise prices during the peak of demand.
This trend is also noticeable during major events in cities. For example, during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum there is always a jump in the cost of hotels.
For traveling on New Year holidays you can consider destinations within the framework of excursion tours in Russia, said the head of travel booking service "Thurslet", which is part of "Sletat.ru", Ksenia Andriankova.
- Excursion tours are more profitable to choose, as their price already includes transportation and sightseeing service, entrance tickets to tourist sites and often meals,- she explained. - In addition, tour operators often book a large number of rooms for themselves, which contributes to solving problems with the limitation of places in hotels.
If tourists intend to go on a trip on New Year holidays, it is better to plan it and "catch" promotions and early booking discounts, advised Dmitry Gorin.
- Whoever booked first will have a vacation," he said. - As a rule, early booking promotions give a discount of 10-40%. But it should be understood that this discount still comes from a higher cost. If we compare, for example, travel in mid-December or immediately after January 9, the price will be 30-50% lower than the price set during the period of high demand.
At the same time, the rise in prices did not reduce demand for travel, but redirected it to less obvious, but no less attractive destinations, said the product director of "Kupibilet" Andrei Maslak.
- In addition to traditionally popular cities such as Kazan and St. Petersburg, travelers are actively choosing cities with good infrastructure and attractions, but not very full of tourists, discovering new places, - he said.
Abroad, according to him, the picture is similar: the popularity of nearby destinations in the CIS confirms the desire for affordable but bright vacations.
