Russia
Introduction
Travellers from Russia made 31.1 million outbound visits in 2019, with a total international tourism expenditure of US$36.2 billion.
In 2019, the UK welcomed 199,000 visits from Russia. During the travellers’ visits, their total expenditure was £182 million, with an average spend of £916 per person.
Discover visitor behaviour, travel trade insights, detailed data visualisations for this market – and more. The statistics in this market report are collated from a range of sources such as the Office for National Statistics (ONS), as well as sponsored questions and our own research. For further details, see How we source this information.
Visitor characteristics
Business visitors from Russia are more than three times as likely to be male than female.
72% of holiday visitors are making a repeat visit to Britain (excluding British nationals).
Nearly all visits from Russia to Britain are made by Russian nationals.
98% of departing Russians say they are either ‘likely’ or ‘extremely likely’ to recommend Britain for a holiday or short-break.
Popular activities for this market
Dining in a restaurant.
Sightseeing of famous buildings and monuments.
Going shopping.
Explore the data
Use our visualisations to see data from this market in greater depth and clarity. Compare annual statistics, and filter by age group, gender, trip duration and more. It includes seasonality, trip purpose and regional spread of visitors to UK destinations. These data are based on the International Passenger Survey, conducted by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Perceptions of Britain in the Russian market
Russians have a positive perception of the UK’s contemporary culture, culture generally, historic buildings, and vibrant cities.
Their perceptions of Britain’s ‘welcome’ and ‘scenic natural beauty’ are less favourable.
50% associate Britain with museums, 42% with music (2022).
38% think that a trip to Britain would be ‘educational’.
Russians most often deem France and Italy to be the best places for delivering the things that are most wanted for an enjoyable holiday.
Activities that appeal to potential Russian visitors include ‘taking a canal boat tour through the waterways of England’, ‘staying the night in a fairy-tale castle’, ‘enjoying a traditional afternoon tea’, ‘visiting Madame Tussauds’, and ‘shopping for quirky gifts in a seaside town’.
Global context
Top-level statistics relating to the population, GDP, tourism expenditure and popular destinations for this market. For greater detail on inbound tourism flows from this market to the UK, see our data visualisations.
Measure | 2019 |
International tourism expenditure (US$bn) | 36.2 |
Global rank for international tourism expenditure | 6 |
Number of outbound visits (m) | 31.1 |
Most visited destination | Turkey |
Most visited destination in Western Europe | Spain |
Key demographic and economic data
Measure | 2022 |
Population (m) | 144.9 |
GDP per capita PPP (US$) | 31,763 |
Annual average GDP growth over past decade (%) | 0.6 |
Annual GDP growth (%) | -3.3 |
Caring for visitors
The majority of travellers to Britain speak English, and do not expect to be spoken to in Russian. However, they prefer to have materials and information in Russian, and Russian-speaking guides for sightseeing tours. Detailed itineraries and guides in Russian are highly appreciated.
Russians book very last-minute: 66% of visitors booked their trip within two months of their arrival in Britain.
The majority of Russian tourists (middle and lower-middle class in particular) prefer to travel in groups.
By contrast, more wealthy Russians prefer individual travel.
Russian tourists are adventurous: they are active, sociable and seeking new experiences.
British pubs are generally loved, and pub food is usually popular.
Russian travellers like the reassurance of branded hotels and all-inclusive trips.
The leisure and travel trade
Friends, family and colleagues are the most influential information source for Russian visitors, closely followed by search engines.
Working through tour operators, travel agents comprise more than 50% of all holiday bookings (travel and accommodation combined) in Russia.
Large tour operators research their programmes in February and March and August and September.
Access to Britain from Russia
The key routes and transport modes that connect this market with the UK.
Measure | 2019 |
Weekly aircraft departures | 70 |
Weekly seat capacity | 12,238 |
Airports with direct routes in Russia | 5 |
Airports with direct routes in Britain | 4 |
Visitors from Russia require a standard visitor visa to enter Britain. A multi-entry six-month visa currently costs £100.
In 2019 there were 70 weekly departures, with an average 12,238 seat capacity.
The Moscow to London corridor is the most travelled.
As a result of the war in Ukraine, there are currently no direct flights between Russia and the UK.
Passengers destined for Moscow pay £13 in Air Passenger Duty if travelling in economy class.
Further resources
Russia Market Snapshot
Inbound tourism overview
Russia Aviation Profile
Outbound travel to the UK
Russia COVID-19 Travel Sentiment - Published April 2022
Inbound COVID-19 Sentiment Tracker
Where visitors from Russia to the UK reside in their own country - Published 2019
Published 2019
How we source this information
We work with a number of data sources to provide a rich and insightful picture of our key inbound source markets. This includes, but is not limited to, data provided by Oxford Economics, the UNWTO, Apex, Anholt-Ipsos Nation Brands Index and from our own surveys and ad-hoc research. The largest share of these data comes from the International Passenger Survey (IPS) by the ONS.
Visit our About the International Passenger Survey page for more information on how this data is collected and analysed.
