"We won't disclose absolute figures, but at the moment, seven times more tours have been booked for the 2018 summer season than for the same date last year," reported the 1001 Tour travel agency chain. Moreover, the company believes that peak demand for the destination will occur in March 2018.
Natalia Kulintseva, director of the Coral Travel Market chain, said the percentage of returning customers on this route is high. "They understand that there will be fewer rooms in popular hotels than there are people willing to stay, as tourists are missing Turkey," she said.
In the combined network of TBG and "Last Tours," sales to Turkey increased almost tenfold compared to last year. According to the company, Turkey ranks first in total bookings for the year, accounting for 371,333 of the total number of tours sold.
However, Olga Ivanova, PR Director of the United Network of TBG and Hot Tours, believes the comparison with last year is not entirely accurate. "In the first half of 2016, the destination was considered closed, and the country was visited only by independent tourists who booked their own flights and hotels. Package tour sales began in July and were based on scheduled flights, which inevitably impacted prices. Charter flights only began flying in late August 2016, and by September, Turkey had already taken the top spot and held it until November," she said.
Reasons for growth
The combined network of TBG and Hot Tours reiterated that Turkey has always been a popular destination thanks to its climate, all-inclusive system, affordable prices, and high-quality service. "Most staff in hotels and tourist areas speak Russian, and our citizens don't experience language barriers. Plus, you can travel to Turkey at any time, as it requires no visa or short flights. Furthermore, flights to Turkey are available from many Russian cities," the company explained.
Aleksan Mkrtchyan, CEO of the Pink Elephant travel agency chain, is confident that the main reason for the sales increase is that, for the first time in the history of Russian tourism, tour operators in October offered summer prices, "something that had never happened before."
According to travel agency representatives, prices for vacations in Turkey have not increased this year, and some have even decreased. 1001 Tour clarified that the average price of a package for two adults and a child is approximately 90,000 rubles, which is approximately 201,000 rubles cheaper than the prices for tours to the same hotels last summer. The Pink Elephant travel agency chain noted that the price of a package in rubles has increased "symbolically" – by approximately 51,000 rubles.
Expert forecasts
TBG and Hot Tours reported that Turkey was the undisputed leader this summer, accounting for over 431,000,000 sales, exceeding even the 201,000,000 sales in the summer of 2015. "But back then, Egypt was second. Now, a redistribution has occurred. Some tourists vacationing in Egypt went to Turkey, while others chose alternative destinations: Greece, Tunisia, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Spain, Italy, and Russia," the company explained.
Representatives of 1001 Tour believe that the upcoming summer season could be more successful for the Turkish destination than the last one, but everything will depend on the pricing policies of Turkish hoteliers. "According to our data, many hotels offered extremely low prices for the Russian market last summer, often at a loss. It's possible that tour prices in the summer of 2018 will be higher than last year, and some tourists will be redirected to other destinations," the company predicted.
The Coral Travel Market chain noted that it is already clear that the shift in demand towards high-class hotels will continue – bookings for five-star hotels are 10% higher, and for four-star hotels – 14% higher.
The Pink Elephant chain, for its part, added that tour operators must understand that they can't deceive tourists and offer lower prices in the summer than they currently do. "Only then will people believe in early booking," said A. Mkrtchyan.
According to statistics from the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, 4.1 million Russians visited Turkey from January to September 2017, nearly 800,000 of whom arrived in September. This is significantly higher than in 2015, when 3.3 million Russians visited Turkey from January to September, compared to only 544,000 during the same period in 2016, as package tour sales to Turkey were banned until August 28, and charter flights were suspended.
Source: tourism.interfax.ru
