Representatives of the Belarusian tourism industry consider the summer season-2026 to be unique and quite successful

For the Belarusian tourism business, the summer season of 2026 was unique – this opinion was expressed by the director of one of the largest domestic tour operators Anna Nechai to the press service of the Republican Union of Tourist Organizations (RSTO). It's reported by sb.by.

According to Anna Nechai, the current season should not be compared on the principle of “better or worse than the past” – it turned out differently in structure:

- In the summer flight program became noticeably more distant destinations, primarily Asia: there were direct programs to Hainan and Nha Trang. The volume of transportation on the usual routes to Turkey and Egypt increased, and Georgia was added during the season. After the break, Tunisia returned, and flights to the UAE began to resume from the end of May. On some dates, there was more seats than demand, so part of the volume had to be sold during the season.

The expert noted that Turkey remains the leader among the destinations where they fly by plane, although Russia is ahead in terms of the number of trips. But the emergence of direct flights to Asia has significantly changed the behavior of some tourists.

- We saw customers who used to fly through Moscow for the sake of Asia, but now chose to fly from Minsk, said Anna Nechai.

As for Europe, Belarusian travelers have an interest in it, but the volume of trips limits the processing time and availability of registration for Schengen visas, as well as the logistics of flights from Vilnius, Warsaw or with a transfer in Istanbul and in the Caucasus countries. European destinations remain stable rather than growing, and there is no such growth as in visa-free destinations with direct flights.

- The season was most affected by the aggravation of the situation in the Middle East, Anna Nechai noted. We flew in blocks to Oman and Jordan, so due to these events, general programs were adjusted. Regular flights to the UAE were temporarily suspended. An additional problem was the limitations of available air corridors and bypass routes. In a number of directions, travel time increased, delays were more frequent, and individual flights required a technical landing for refueling.

As for prices, they in the final summer season increased compared to last year, said the specialist:

The flight has risen in price due to bypass routes and fuel charges, which appeared in the spring and significantly increased the cost of tickets and tours. At the same time, hotel contract prices have also increased in many areas. It's a separate factor. As a result, in many areas, the tourist saw an increase in the final cost of the tour for several reasons at once.

Alexander Nesterov.