Russia is currently in talks with India to introduce a ‘group-free visa regime’, which will allow a specified number of tourists travelling together in a group to enter Russia without requiring a visa, an official from the Moscow City Tourism Committee said on Thursday.”When a group of tourists is travelling together to Russia, the exact number should be mentioned in the document for the visit to qualify for visa exemption. For instance, in the case of Chinese tourists, the group should comprise 10-20 people. The Russian government is negotiating with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs to finalise the number of people per group eligible for this facility,” Moscow City Tourism Committee Chairman Evgeny Kozlov told PTI.Kozlov highlighted that India is a significant source of tourists for Russia, ranking second after China among distant foreign countries. “India is a priority market for us. Among far abroad countries, China is number one, followed by India. Indians are also known for being good spenders when they travel, with each person spending approximately $2,000 per trip,” he said during an event on Wednesday evening.
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In the first nine months of 2024, Moscow welcomed 19.7 million visitors, including 61,000 from India, Kozlov added.The number of foreign tourists visiting Moscow is projected to reach 6 million, primarily driven by travellers from CIS countries (Commonwealth of Independent States), the Asia-Pacific region, India, the Middle East, and other parts of the world.”We’ve prioritised enhancing Moscow’s tourism image over the past two years. There are three key reasons behind the increase in international visitors: improved tourism infrastructure, active promotion of Moscow in key countries like India, and the introduction of the e-visa system,” he explained.Also read: Air India’s ‘Namaste World’ global fare sale begins from Feb 2 to 6, airfares starting at ₹1,499Kozlov noted that the city is focusing on attracting tourists in business, wedding, family, and film tourism sectors. In line with these efforts, he mentioned that a delegation from the Moscow City Tourism Committee is engaging with production houses to encourage film shoots in the city.”We want to attract Indian visitors to Moscow through cinema, so our delegates are meeting with filmmakers and production houses to invite them to showcase Moscow City in their films. We are planning to offer them incentives, although the details are still being discussed,” Kozlov added.
