More than half of Russians have a negative attitude toward the introduction of a resort tax, according to the Public Opinion Foundation (FOM).
FOM conducted a sociological study to determine whether Russian citizens are willing to pay resort fees at domestic resorts. The study involved 1,500 respondents in 53 regions of the Russian Federation. 511,000 of our fellow citizens have a negative attitude toward tourist taxes. Last year, this figure reached 681,000. Only 281,000 tourists approve of the tourist tax. The rest were undecided.
Among those who support the introduction of a tax at Russian resorts, 9% hope the funds raised will be used for infrastructure development and improvement. 4% are confident the tax will contribute to regional development. Others, 1%, believe the tax will only benefit the state.
Russians who are negative about the tourist tax believe it makes vacations more expensive (11%), is a form of rip-off (7%), and that the money collected will be stolen (5%). Others believe our tourists shouldn't have to pay for their stay in their own country (6%). Another equal number said people already have little money.
As a reminder, tourists in the Stavropol and Altai Krais will pay a resort tax starting May 1, 2018. In Pyatigorsk, Kislovodsk, Zheleznovodsk, and Yessentuki, the tax is 50 rubles per person per day. At the Altai resort of Belokurikha, it is 30 rubles. Resorts in the Krasnodar Krai will begin collecting the tax on July 16. Tourists will pay 10 rubles per day in Anapa, Gelendzhik, Sochi, Goryachiy Klyuch, Novomikhaylovskoye, Dzhubga, Nebuga, and Shepsi. In Crimea, the tax has been postponed until May 1, 2019.
Source: news.turizm.ru