Number of foreign tourists in Russia's Far East, Arctic nearly doubles in Jan-April - minister

MOSCOW. June 10 (Interfax) - The number of foreign tourists traveling to Russia's Far East and Arctic totaled 203,000 in 2025, while their numbers rose 91% thanks to visa-free travel with China and infrastructure development from January to April 2026, Russian Far East and Arctic Development Minister Alexei Chekunkov said on Wednesday.

"The Far East and the Arctic are strengthening their position among Russia's most popular tourist destinations. Over 7 million tourists visited the macro-region, and approximately 1.5 million visited the Arctic last year. The number of foreign tourists totaled 203,000, while their numbers grew 91% over the first four months of 2026 compared to the same period last year," Chekunkov said at a meeting of the State Council Tourism Commission, which took place as part of the 6th Let's Travel international tourist forum.

The surge in inbound tourism is encouraged by the introduction of visa-free travel rules with neighboring China and is backed up by large-scale upgrades to hospitality infrastructure, he said. Every tenth investment project in the Far East and the Arctic is linked to tourism.

"Over 400 agreements, totaling over 390 billion rubles in investment, are being implemented using state support mechanisms. New resorts, hotels, glamping sites, ski resorts, and tourist centers are being built. Tourism projects are being implemented on Far Eastern and Arctic hectares, with 7% of these sites being used for recreation. Seven international airports have been upgraded, and the world's first cross-border cable cars between Russia and China is being built. We focus on retrofitting the infrastructure of passenger checkpoints," Chekunkov added.

Eighteen new hiking trails, totaling 126.8 kilometers, are being developed in nine regions of the Far East, he said. The first of these are already open for walks. Year-round seaside resorts are being created in Russia's internal republic of Buryatia and the Primorsky Territory as part of the Five Seas and Lake Baikal federal project.