The most popular destination for Russian travelers planning a November trip is Moscow, which accounts for nearly a quarter of all hotel bookings at 22.9 percent. This insight comes from a OneTwoTrip study, the results of which were summarized by socialbites.ca.
St. Petersburg ranks second with a 17.3 percent share. Sochi also makes the top three, drawing 11.1 percent of Russians who have booked accommodations for a holiday. Other cities on the list include Kazan at 3.8 percent, Kaliningrad at 3.0 percent, Yekaterinburg at 2.3 percent, Nizhny Novgorod at 2.0 percent, Krasnodar at 1.8 percent, Novosibirsk at 1.2 percent, and Vladivostok at 1.1 percent.
Compared to November 2022, interest in hotel bookings grew the most in Krasnodar with a 50.0 percent increase and Kaliningrad with 30.4 percent. Moscow also saw a notable rise, up 18.7 percent. In contrast, demand for St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and Sochi declined by 16.0 percent, 14.3 percent, and 14.0 percent respectively. The shares of the other provinces remained largely stable year over year.
On the international front, Istanbul leads as the most popular foreign city, accounting for 9.8 percent of total bookings abroad. Dubai follows with 4.3 percent, and Bangkok sits at 4.0 percent for late autumn travel. Rounding out the top ten are Minsk at 3.4 percent, Pattaya at 2.8 percent, Yerevan at 2.5 percent, Shanghai at 2.4 percent, Rome at 1.9 percent, Paris at 1.0 percent, and Baku at 1.8 percent.
Throughout the year, notable surges in demand were observed for Baku with a 63.6 percent increase in hotel bookings compared to last November, Rome with 58.3 percent, Bangkok with 42.9 percent, and Pattaya with 27.3 percent. Shanghai drew attention as well since 2022, when China largely restricted tourism, and it has climbed to the seventh position in the current ranking. In contrast, interest in Dubai fell by 31.7 percent, and Russians showed decreased interest in Yerevan by 21.9 percent and in Istanbul by 21.6 percent. The shares of the remaining top ten provinces remained almost unchanged over the period.
Industry observers note that the most economical holiday options in Asia continue to attract attention from Russian travelers.