MOSCOW, July 8. /TASS/. The demand for trips to the Arctic and the country's northern regions in the first half of the current year increased by 43% year-on-year, say results of a study conducted by the Yandex Travel service and the Red Fox outdoor brand (TASS has obtained the document's text).
"Russians increasingly prefer traveling to cold regions to vacations in the south. Over the first six months of 2025, demand for northern and Arctic destinations increased by 43% year-on-year. The interest in beach holidays has grown by 30% only," the experts said.
The highest demand for accommodation among northern destinations was recorded in Norilsk - 93%, Magadan - 78% and Krasnoyarsk - 47%. The interest in trips to Sortavala increased by 89% (+89%), which indicates a growing interest in Karelia's natural attractions, including the Ruskeala Mountain Park. "Murmansk has gained 39%, thus building up its status of the Arctic tourism's center, and the demand for Petrozavodsk grew by 30%," the results say.
Terms of average trips to the north have remained unchanged: travelers most often go there for two nights, while tourists traveling to beach destinations spend about three nights at one hotel.
"The "northern tourism" trend persists not in summer only - bookings were growing also in winter. Quite clear is the growth of accommodation in authentic locations: the demand for recreation centers and guest houses in cold regions increased by 68%. In addition, the demand for the south undergoes intensive reformatting right now," the Yandex Travel service's leader Evgeny Abramzon said.
According to Red Fox, the demand for outdoor equipment has increased significantly in 2025 - sales of trekking tents in the first half of 2025 increased by 25-30% year-on-year. Sales in the trekking clothing segment have increased by 15-20%. "Sales of trips for active summer holidays take about 60-70% of total sales from May to September. In winter, this share drops to 20-30%, giving way to equipment for cold weather," the company's founder Vladislav Moroz said.