The possible introduction of foreign passport requirements for traveling between Russian and Ukraine will lead to a drop in the tourist flow to Crimea, Russian tourist companies told Interfax-tourism portal.
“I think that the introduction of the foreign passport, of course,
will cause a reduction of the tourist flow, but now it’s difficult to
say how much it’ll drop. Some clients who now are going to Crimea take a
decision about the trip shortly before the expected data of the trip,
when there is no time to register documents for going abroad,” top
manger in Crimea of Delfin tour operator Liubov Chumikova told
Interfax-tourism.
According to her, Russian tourists would prefer to travel to Krasnodar Krai and Abkhazia instead of Crimea.
Manager of Ukrainian subdivision of Alean tour operator Ilya Ilyin
also said that the introduction of foreign passports between the
countries will reduce the Russian tourist flow to Crimea.
“It’s difficult to predict the drop. Those, who have a foreign
passport prefer to travel with foreign passport, for those who don’t
have them, it will be an obstacle. In my opinion, it will cause a
[tourist] flow reduction,” he said.
Ilyin added that Krasnodar Krai would be an alternative to the Crimean resorts.
As reported, Federal Migration Service head Konstantin Romodanovsky
reported that Russia won’t review its decision that from January 2015
that all foreign citizens will have to have foreign passports in order
to enter Russia.
