MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd July, 2020) The Russian government will compensate tourists from 5,000 to 15,000 rubles ($70-$212) for spending their holidays at destinations in a number of Russian regions, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said on Wednesday, adding that the authorities have allocated 15 billion rubles for the measure as part of a wider program to boost domestic tourism.
"Last week, the government decided to allocate an additional 15 billion rubles for the development of domestic tourism. This money will be used for partial compensation of expenses for people who decide to take a vacation in the Russian regions before the end of this year. The list [of regions] has already been compiled by [Russia's Federal Agency for Tourism]. The refund for tourists will be 5,000-15,000 rubles depending on the tour," Mishustin said, addressing the parliament's lower house.
The prime minister stated that the tourism industry was in a difficult situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and it was necessary not only to support the sector but also to provide conditions for its dynamic development.
According to Mishustin, tour operators have already received subsidies of about 3.5 billion rubles as part of the recovery plan.
The Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) said that tourists would receive compensation in the form of cashback on their Mir payment system cards for the purchase of tour packages to 44 regions of Russia. The program will cover trips of no less than five days from August 15 to December 20, 2020.
The list of regions includes, among others, the Arkhangelsk, Astrakhan, Bashkortostan, Volgograd, Irkutsk, Kaluga, Sakhalin and Voronezh Regions; the Kamchatka, Krasnoyarsk and Khabarovsk Territories; the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, the Republics of Karelia, Mordovia and Tatarstan. Moreover, there are the Nizhny Novgorod, Novgorod and Novosibirsk Regions; the Orenburg, Pskov and Rostov Regions, as well as the Perm and Primorsky Territories.
In addition, a cashback payment will be provided for the purchase of tours for dates beyond the high summer season � from October 1 to December 20 � to the Altai Territory and the Republic of Altai; the Kaliningrad Region, the Krasnodar Territory; Crimea; Sevastopol; the Leningrad region; the Moscow region; the Stavropol Territory, as well as Moscow and St. Petersburg.
However, Zarina Doguzova, the head of Russia's Federal Agency for Tourism, subsequently explained in a televised statement, that the program will cover all of Russia's regions.
"All the regions of our country, from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok, will take part in the program. Travels to some regions, for example, to Crimea and the Krasnodar Territory, that are in higher demand in August, will be available at a discount starting October 1," Doguzova said.
The official added that tourists would be able to receive cashback for both package tours and hotel stays if a tourist traveled to the vacation destination by themselves.
