Special operation in Ukraine may drive Russian tour operators to bankruptcy

Special operation in Ukraine may drive Russian tour operators to bankruptcy

Special operation in Ukraine may drive Russian tour operators to bankruptcy
Special operation, which became the basis for the introduction of numerous sanctions by the Western countries, brings the risks of ruining many tour operators from Russia.  This opinion is expressed by the experts from Turkey involved in the analysis of the tourism market.  They are confident that sanctions against Russian aviation can lead to the collapse of the civil transportation market, including not only business, but also the tourism sector.

Many travel agencies associated with the Turkish destination are planning to suspend all business operations in Russia or completely stop them.  According to the market participants, this will lead to a significant drop in traffic during the summer holiday season.  Airlines will be forced to hand the leased aircraft over to their owners, having no chance  to purchase equipment or spare parts for aircraft.
Over the past week, there has been a significant decline in demand for travel to Turkey.
The number of tour bookings by Russian citizens decreased by 80%.  Customers from Russia are canceling previously booked trips, although not on a massive scale.  Such data are provided by the head of the Association of Tour Operators of Alanya Burhan Sili and vice-president of the Federation of Hotel Owners Mehmet Isler.  First of all, we are talking about tours booked for the period May-June 2022.

Representatives of Turkish tourism business are also worried about the general increase in international tension.  This may affect not only tourists from Russia, but also representatives of other countries who express concern for their well-being.  Thus, the process of restoring tourism in Turkey may take more than a year.
Experts from Russia are still more optimistic about the current situation.
According to Dmitry Gordon, the vice-president of the travel industry association, the market is currently experiencing a state of increased turbulence.

It is necessary to wait for a week for the prospects to become clearer.  Gordon suggests waiting until March 15th to give potential travel agency clients the opportunity to understand the situation and make a decision on holiday. In the meantime, business records a 30% drop in demand not only in the outbound, but also in the domestic direction.

01.03.2022