Mumbai: We are here to say Moscow is safe, says Dy chairman of Moscow City Tourism Committee

Alina Arutyunova makes her point at the conference on Tuesday. Pic/Shadab Khan

Moscow is a participant in the ongoing tourism exhibition - Outbound Travel Mart (OTM) - held at a Bandra-Kurla Complex convention centre. The Moscow delegation is headed by Alina Arutyunova, deputy chairman of Moscow City Tourism Committee, who held a press conference on the sidelines of the event. The press meet was to outline the push by the Russian capital to see a spurt in Indian tourist numbers.

The conference began with Arutyunova saying, "This is an opportune time for Russia and India to strengthen ties. Our aim is to make more individual tourists come to Moscow."

Arutyunova and her team stated, "We had 50,000 Indian tourists in Moscow in 2021, and in the first half of 2022, we have seen 13,300 Indian tourists. This is a small number, but we are working on increasing it. Moscow is now practically COVID-free and restrictions have been done away with."

To questions about the Russia-Ukraine war, for that is surely top of the mind for would-be-tourists, Arutyunova along with her team replied, "We are here to say that Moscow is safe for tourists. In fact, it is safe to travel to Russia. There are three flights a week from Delhi and the government may work on increasing the frequency. Those three flights are enough, but also not enough. In Moscow, things are normal and citizens are enjoying their lives." However, when pressed on sanctions as a fallout of the war, she said, "I cannot use cards here during my travel. I am using cash. I guess tourists may need to do the same. They may have to pay in cash and it is better if one goes through a travel agent during this time."

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Attracting tourists

When the questions on war were over, it was evident there was some relief and the team stressed on the Moscow experience. "The round-trip flight tickets cost around 700 USD, which is a good fare right now. Moscow is a very green city and it is also digitised," they stated. To a question about the language barrier, the boost tourism team said that, "In Moscow, street names are written in both Russian and English."

"Younger people in Moscow do know English and speak the language better than I do," Arutyunova said to laughs, adding, "But a 70-year-old may not know English." Another team member quickly interjected saying, "Moscow is digitised and the apps are in English, so this makes things very easy."

The team also rolled out numbers - Moscow has 40 luxury hotels and 69 dine-in Michelin starred restaurants. "We have vegan options for vegetarians and there are a significant number of Indian restaurants in Moscow too," said the team.

The tourism team stressed on simplified visas for Indian tourists and reduction in consular fees. There was also talk about spring and summer being the tourist season for Indians, but the tourism and hospitality development team added, "The journey to the Christmas festival begins in Moscow early in December with beautiful installations and art objects. Fluffy Christmas trees will appear in the capital and almost 20 free ice rinks will open." They also emphasised on the safety aspect in Moscow, with tourists being able to walk safely in the evening and its special tourist police which help foreigners.

With all the upbeat tenor and upsides, even though it was not repeatedly brought up, the war did throw a shadow over the press briefing. One could not help but feel for the team here to push for Moscow. There was some discomfiture, and despite brave statements from the Russian team such as: "Russia and India are big countries and do not depend on the geo-political situations today," one was left with the thought that directly or indirectly, it is always the citizens who pay the price for conflicts.

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Indian tourists in Moscow from Jan-Jun 2022