Oh, let me show you: Russian ski resorts have become twice as popular
This fall, Russian ski resorts have become particularly in demand — according to estimates by tour operators, the increase in bookings for November-December has almost doubled compared to the same period last year. The vast majority of such ski tourists are couples, and Sochi is the most popular cluster. The Ministry of Economic Development calls the growth of interest in domestic alpine skiing natural: according to the results of the first half of 2025, residents of tourist and recreational special economic zones in the North Caucasus Federal District alone invested over 2.6 billion rubles in them. About where ski enthusiasts go in Russia and how much it will cost them is in the Izvestia article.
Where to ride in Russia this fall
The demand for ski resort bookings in November-December 2025 increased by 81% compared to the same period in 2024, according to data from the Tutu travel service.
—62% of bookings are for couples, 16% for family trips, 12% for solo travelers, 10% for business travelers,— Yuri Vyushin, director of the hotel market development company, told Izvestia.
The most popular Russian region chosen by ski enthusiasts is the Sochi mountain cluster. So, according to the online tour booking service Level.Travel this fall, 70% of its users are going there.
Avito Travel has similar data: in November, Sochi became the leader in the number of apartment bookings among the country's ski resorts (56% of the total bookings). Krasnoyarsk, Kirovsk (Murmansk Region), Sheregesh (Kemerovo Region), and Nizhny Tagil also entered the top 5.
And according to Tutu, Krasnaya Polyana alone, which is part of the urban district of the resort city of Sochi, accounted for 48% of bookings. Sheregesh is in second place, followed by Arkhyz (Karachay-Cherkessia), Dombay (Karachay-Cherkessia) and Belokurikha (Altai Territory).
At the same time, the Krasnaya Polyana resort's press service assessed demand "at the level of previous years."
"During this period, the resort has its own stable audience — travelers who prefer to plan their holidays from the end of September to the middle of November. At this time, the trend towards "slow tourism" in the mountains continues to persist. The guests are attracted by the comfortable weather and the opportunity to enjoy relaxing walks along the ecotropics without the fuss of the high season," they said.
And the Arkhyz resort has confirmed an increase in demand.
— During the holidays on November 1-4, more than 13.6 thousand tourists visited. This is 14% more than the same indicator in 2024," said Roman Kiranchuk, Director of the Arkhyz resort at Mantera Group. — And over the summer, we have seen a 20% increase in the tourist flow compared to last year. In absolute terms, from April 26 to November 9, inclusive, the resort was visited by more than 339 thousand tourists.
He recalled that Arkhyz became an all—season mountain resort more than two years ago and is now growing due to the trend towards active recreation, changes in travelers' preferences - ecotourism, hiking in the mountains, lakes, waterfalls, visiting new places.
The growing interest in the ski resorts of the North Caucasus is the result of the systematic work of regions and development institutions to develop tourist infrastructure, the press service of the Ministry of Economic Development told Izvestia.
"Tourist and recreational special economic zones make a significant contribution: in the first half of 2025, their residents invested over 2.6 billion rubles, which is 69% more than in the same period of 2024, and provided tax revenues of more than 170 million rubles," they said.
They recalled that the work on the development of resorts is carried out by Kavkaz.RF JSC (established in 2010 to manage tourist and recreational special economic zones as part of a tourist cluster in the North Caucasus Federal District) and the subjects of the Russian Federation.
"The ski areas are expanding, new cable cars are being introduced, and an artificial snowmaking system is being developed. The trails on Elbrus have been upgraded for the winter season, and the Mamison resort (North Ossetia. — Ed.), the development of Veduchi (Chechnya) continues. These projects form a sustainable tourism product and strengthen the position of the North Caucasus as one of the most dynamic winter destinations in the country," the Ministry of Economic Development said.
In the spring of 2025, the agency approved financing for 31 projects to create tourism infrastructure in 16 regions of the country, totaling 90 billion rubles. Among the approved projects, for example, Sheregesh. And this summer, the government launched a program to support the development of large ski resorts — for 76 billion rubles.
Where is the demand growing the most
The highest demand growth dynamics were recorded in Zlatoust (Chelyabinsk Region, +126%), Gubakha (Perm Region, +80%), Baikalsk (Irkutsk Region) (+79%), Belokurikha (+28%) and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (+22%), Avito Travel noted.
In the suburban housing segment, daily homes for November 2025 were most actively booked in Arkhyz (33% of the total volume of bookings, + 70% year—on-year), Sheregesh (29%, +46% year-on-year), Sochi (19%, +26% year-on-year), Krasnoyarsk (6%) and White-furred (5%, + 60% year-on-year).
"In November 2025, two main trends are noticeable in the country's resorts: most apartments and houses are still being booked in the ski resorts of Sochi and Sheregesh, which have all the necessary infrastructure," the service noted. "At the same time, tourists are increasingly choosing less popular places — for example, Zlatoust and Gubakha, where demand for apartments is growing rapidly, or Arkhyz and Belokurikha, where country houses are actively booked."
Baikalsk has become more popular due to its attractive price-quality ratio: it offers affordable skiing and at the same time actively develops all the infrastructure necessary for tourists, they said.
"Kirovsk is strengthening its status as the main winter destination in the Northwest, attracting guests with guaranteed snow cover and trails designed for any level of training," the service's press service noted. — Of particular interest is Belokurikha, a ski resort with thermal springs, where you can relax and improve your health after skiing. Sheregesh is no less popular, where the high demand for country houses only confirms its status as a center of attraction for companies and young people."
On average, in November 2025, renting an apartment in ski resorts will cost 3.5 thousand rubles per day, and a country house will cost about 10 thousand rubles per day. Basically, in November 2025, tourists rent apartments for three days, country houses for two days.
The cheapest place to stay in an apartment in Nizhny Tagil is about 2.6 thousand rubles, the most expensive in Sheregesh is 4.9 thousand rubles. Country houses are most expensive in Krasnoyarsk — 13.6 thousand per day, and the cheapest in Belokurikha — 6.5 thousand.
How to book "ski slopes" for the New Year holidays
There are now significantly fewer bookings for New Year's dates than for the non—holiday period - about 15% of them, said the Level.Travel . And the increase in the receipt for ski holidays for the new year 2026 is expected to be 30%, the company said.
Most of the country houses for the New Year holidays are currently booked in Sheregesh (43% of the total bookings), Arkhyz (28%), Sochi (17%), Baikalsk (6%) and Belokurikha (5%).
On average, in ski resorts for the New Year holidays in 2025, renting an apartment will cost 7 thousand rubles per day, a country house — 17.8 thousand rubles per day. At the same time, in Sheregesh, the price for an apartment will rise to 9.3 thousand rubles, and at home — up to 22 thousand.
On New Year's holidays, apartments are usually rented for four days, country houses for three.
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