ATOR expecting significant increase in tourism from Saudi Arabia due to visa waiver

MOSCOW. Dec 1 (Interfax) - The Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR) is expecting a significant increase in mutual tourism between Russia and Saudi Arabia after the visa waiver.

"Russia as a destination is known in Saudi Arabia and it has been popular for several years. Inbound tourism is only increasing, significantly exceeding in volume the pre-pandemic 2019. Saudi Arabia was among the top five countries supplying tourists to Russia in the first nine months of 2025," Alexander Musikhin, vice-president of the association and general director of the tour operator Intourist, said.

Tourists from Saudi Arabia travel across Russia in groups and individually, he said. Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sochi are the most popular destination.

"Inbound tourism could increase 2-3 times by summer 2026. Besides, tens of thousands of Russian pilgrims visit Saudi Arabia. The visa waiver is a huge gift to them, because a visa costs about $150 per person," ATOR Vice-President Artur Muradyan said.

The number of direct flights between Russia and Saudi Arabia is increasing and may reach 15 a week by the end of the year, the association said.

On December 1, Russia and Saudi Arabia signed a mutual visa waiver agreement envisaging that citizens of the two countries can arrive in each other's territories to stay there continuously or for several periods, whose total duration does not exceed 90 days within a calendar year.

According to the Russian Federal Security Service's Border Guard Service, almost 48,000 tourists came from Saudi Arabia to Russia in January-September 2025, up 22% from the same period of past year. A total of 36,000 trips were made from Russia to Saudi Arabia in this period, up 36% YoY.