KHABAROVSK, September 23. /TASS/. Chinese tourists will flock to Russia en masse within three to five years since the launch of the visa-free regime, the measure itself won't immediately yield a significant influx, Alexander Lvov, Chairman of the World Without Borders Association for International Cooperation in Tourism, told TASS.

The visa-free regime for Russian citizens traveling to China came into effect on September 15. Russians with a standard international passport can now visit the country visa-free for up to 30 days. This measure is a trial period and will remain in effect until September 14, 2026.

Earlier this month in Vladivostok President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would also introduce a visa-free regime for Chinese citizens. Work on this is already underway.

"This is a three-to five-year horizon," Lvov said, answering a question about when a large influx of Chinese tourists to Russia is expected. "There are restrictions in central Russia. Primorsky region and the border regions are doing relatively well. The 10-20% increase will be simply due to the president's announcement [of a visa-free regime]. It's simply a brilliant move. Because the Chinese have learned that Russia exists, and it turns out they can travel. Those who haven't even considered it. And visas, the visa history, rarely stopped anyone. Things are quite simple here now - we have visa-free lists, e-visas, and regular visas. Yes, there is a slight increase in the cost of the product due to the visa price itself, but it's not critical," Lvov said.

Earlier, during the All-Russian Tourism Forum "Discover the Far East" in Khabarovsk, Lvov reported that the number of requests for Chinese travel to Russia had increased fivefold amid news of the visa-free regime.

According to him, Russian regions need to develop offers for Chinese tourists and create a comprehensive tourism product.

"In most regions, except Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russian travel industry was primarily focused on outbound tourism. <...> Domestic and inbound tourism developed only sporadically: if there was demand, they receive them [tourists] it; if there wasn't, they didn't," Lvov said.

He added that the Russian tourism industry is losing out to the Chinese in terms of competitiveness in Russia. This applies to speed, quality, loyalty to travelers, and financial security.

"To accommodate mass Chinese tourists here, you need to buy a hotel for the entire season—to accommodate large numbers, to take it seriously. Our businesses, outside of major federal ones, simply don't have the funds to do this. But the Chinese do. This is the financial layer that allows them to win the competition and, accordingly, push hotels to the desired prices," Lvov said.

Attracting Chinese tourists will be facilitated by working toward creating a comprehensive tourism product. The expert cited the Khabarovsk region as an example, where there are museums, hotels, restaurants, and roads connecting them, but no unified, packaged offering. He said it's necessary to develop offers that target both domestic and Chinese tourists.

The All-Russian Tourism Forum "Discover the Far East" and Tourism Festival took place in Khabarovsk Region at the end of last week and over the weekend. The festival, organized under the national project "Tourism and Hospitality," was attended by 45,000 people, according to the regional government.