Last year was a record year for tourism in Moscow. 23.5 million tourists visited the city for at least one night. 56 million visited the capital, while 65 million visited the sites of the Moscow Seasons festival. Of course, the World Cup statistics affected the overall amount but even “pre-football” data were positive: 21.6 million tourists in 2017. Compared to 2010 (12.8 million), growth is evident.
According to forecasts, by 2025 Moscow has every chance to enter the top ten most visited cities in Europe. For this, however, the capital of Russia needs to work on some things before it can achieve the goal.
Firstly, it is necessary to work on the inflow of foreign tourists. In 2018 it was 5.5 million people, of which 2.1 million are residents of the CIS countries. In addition to promotion in the world, this can be facilitated by a comprehensive strategy for the development of the tourism industry and market monitoring, the availability of flight connections.
A simplified entry regime (electronic visas, visa-free 72 hours) is also necessary, as well as the construction of affordable hotels, improvement of service quality and the development of tourism facilities.
Experts confirm the above mentioned, saying that the main obstacle for foreigners is the complicated visa regime and complex bureaucratic procedures associated with it. Moreover, they add that Moscow needs to tailor the offer more for young people, as the main inflow is now represented by people in retirement.
Moreover, it is important to show the tourists how interesting it is to communicate with local people, how interesting it is to move around the city. There must also be better communication with foreigners and simpler and clearer information in brochures and applications, like the one offering bike rents in the city.
Finally, it is necessary to reduce the cost of accommodation and above all diversify the product. Because as of now, the flagships of the capital is the Kremlin and the Red Square. This is why it is necessary to make a wider offer to the tourists in order to attract as many people as possible to the city.