Russia saw 2,700 travel companies stop operating in the first 6 months of 2026, a rise of 52.3% from the same period a year earlier, according to data from Kontur.Fokus reported by Kommersant.
The number of newly registered travel firms rose by just 0.84% in the same period, the weakest growth in 3 years. The figures point to a tourism sector under pressure from softer demand, lower-cost holiday choices, airport disruption and rising operating costs.
Industry figures said the slowdown is being driven by Russian travellers choosing shorter and cheaper trips, while demand has also shifted away from some domestic options.
That picture has emerged from a mix of market data and comments from sector leaders, who say the industry is changing rather than collapsing. Prices for package tours to Egypt, Türkiye and Thailand stayed largely stable, according to Sletat.ru, while prices fell for domestic holidays and trips to Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates, China and Abkhazia.
Travelata.ru said bookings for package tours inside Russia fell 31% year on year, while the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, known as ATOR, reported a 3% drop in domestic tourism demand in the first half of the year. The data suggests Russian travellers are reining in spending at home and abroad.
Aleksandr Bragin, director of the Association of Tour Aggregators, said Russian tourists were increasingly choosing shorter and more economical holidays. He did not give a figure, but his comments matched the broader trend in the market data.
Dmitriy Arutyunov, co-chair of the outbound tourism committee at the Russian Union of the Travel Industry, said domestic tourism had weakened because of safety concerns, flight disruptions and environmental problems. He said the conflict in the Middle East had also hit destinations such as the United Arab Emirates.
At the same time, Arutyunov said demand was rising quickly for China, Vietnam, Zanzibar and the Maldives, and that the premium travel segment had been less affected by the crisis. His remarks suggest travellers with higher budgets are still spending, even as the wider market cools.
Artur Muradyan, deputy head of ATOR, said the sector was under pressure from rising costs, tensions in the Middle East and financing problems, but denied that official records showed a mass shrinkage in the market. He said many companies had changed their legal structure, meaning closure data did not fully reflect the sector’s overall condition.
The broader consumer picture appears to support the view that travellers are travelling less and spending less. A Romir survey found that 36% of Russians had reduced their travel frequency over the past year, while 24% had switched to lower-budget holiday options.
For global travel businesses, the data points to a market where volume is weakening but demand is not disappearing. Travellers are still booking, but they are doing so more selectively, with shorter trips, lower prices and more focus on value.
