MOSCOW, May 23. /TASS/. Travelling abroad will become available to Russian nationals after the borders are open, the international air service is restored and the embassies are operating again. According to the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, the embassies will open around June 15, the association Vice President Dmitry Gorin said.
"If we talk about travelling abroad, everything, of course, depends on restoration of the international air service, opening of borders, and, most importantly, restoration of embassies’ operation. We expect the embassies to open around Jun 15," he told Rossiya-1 TV channel.
He noted that it is better to plan trips for the third quarter this year.
The Vice President reminded that the internal tourism will reopen on June 1, adding that many tourists opt not to go far away from home in the current situation and prefer apartment hotels. He named the Gastronomic Map of Russia as one of the possible travel routes.
"We observe the spike in popularity of apartment hotels, separately located houses. This is due to the situation, in which the hotels are still closed; we can say with certainty that this Summer tourism routes would include the Gastronomic map of Russia, since it allows to combine pleasure with benefits," he explained.
According to Gorin, remote regions, such as Sakhalin, Chukotka and Altai expect tourists after the quarantine measures are withdrawn.
"Tour companies prepare charter flights not only to our country’s southern regions. For example, Kaliningrad is very popular now. It also has sea, maybe not always as warm, but the nature there is beautiful and people travel there with pleasure," Gorin added.
Since March 30, Russia shut down its borders to prevent importing of the coronavirus infection. This decision extends to railway, pedestrian, river and mixed border checkpoints. The restrictions do not cover cargo transport. A number of Russian consulates have suspended visits of the Russian nationals due to the pandemic.