According to the data provided by the Executive Director of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) Maya Lomidze, about 70 thousand Russians were staying in Egypt for holiday at the beginning of November. Until the end of January 2016 tour operators could sell approximately 60 thousand tours.
Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev instructed the Russian government to develop a program of support for tour operators affected by the suspension of air flights to Egypt.
It was announced by the Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich on Sunday, as RBC informs. The amount of support will depend on the results of settlement of the crisis.
“The Prime Minister has instructed to study and consider this issue. We now estimate those losses, the problems that the tour operators and the industry as a whole face,” Arkady Dvorkovich informs the media.
According to him, much will depend on the way the issues with tourists will be resolved – how many of them will prefer to use alternative routes and to postpone the trip, and how many tourists will require a refund. “Based on these estimates, we will develop the support program, it is too early to describe its details so far”, the Deputy Prime Minister claims.
Apart from that, Arkady Dvorkovich informs that a meeting with tour operators affected by the suspension of air flights to Egypt is scheduled on Tuesday, November 10. The measures of state support will be discussed at the meeting. “We will meet with tour operators in the coming days and discuss the possible ways of support of tourism industry in Russia”, Arkady Dvorkovich says.
“It is gratifying that at a high level there is an understanding of the fact that tour operators by the nature of their activities bear the greatest financial loss in this situation,” the Executive Director of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR), Maya Lomidze claims. “It will certainly help the tourism business. We, for our part, are preparing our proposals and will soon send them to the government”.
All the major tour operators specialize in Egypt: Coral Travel, Pegas Touristic, Biblio Globus, Tez Tour, Annex tour, Natalie tours. According to the data provided by the Executive Director of ATOR Maya Lomidze, about 70 thousand Russians were staying in Egypt for holiday at the beginning of November. Until the end of January 2016 tour operators could sell approximately 60 thousand tours.
After the prohibition of flights to Egypt tour operators started offering alternatives for tourists who had bought tours to Egypt.
Photo caption: Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
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