ATOR predicted the growth of tourist flow from Saudi Arabia after the introduction of visa-free travel

The tourist flow from Saudi Arabia to Russia after the introduction of a visa-free regime may increase two to three times by the summer of next year. This was announced on December 1 by Artur Muradyan, Vice President of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR), to the Vestnik ATOR portal.

As the expert noted, many Russian tourists travel to Saudi Arabia to visit the holy land for Muslims. Visa cancellation has become a plus for them, as now they will not have to pay $150 per person for a stamp in their passport, which will save money.

Alexander Musikhin, ATOR's Vice President for International Tourism, added that the Russian destination in Saudi Arabia has also been well-known and popular for the past few years.

"The inbound tourist flow is only increasing, many times overtaking the pre-pandemic 2019 in terms of volume. According to the results of the first nine months of 2025, Saudi Arabia is among the top 5 countries supplying tourists to Russia," the expert said.

Persian step: Russia and Saudi Arabia are working on launching direct flights

Why is the kingdom becoming more and more attractive for tourists

Earlier on December 1, Russia and Saudi Arabia signed an intergovernmental agreement on the mutual abolition of visa requirements for holders of all types of passports. The parties also signed an agreement on cooperation on climate change and low-carbon development.

On November 27, the Russian government approved a draft agreement with Saudi Arabia on the mutual abolition of visa requirements for citizens of the two countries. The draft noted that citizens of the countries can continuously stay in the territory of another state without a visa for 90 days. It will also be possible to divide this period into several periods, but the total duration during one calendar year should not exceed the established period.

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