Number of Tourists to Estonia Has Not Increased Even After Russia’s Abolishment of COVID Restrictions

However, it has been reported that during the weekend, more than 500 Russian tourists arrived at the border point in Narva.

In contrast to the interval before the pandemic, the current numbers of border crossings in Narva are quite modest, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

Still, the border crossing point in Narva has previously observed more than 2 million crossings within a period of only half 12 months, which means that the main half of this 12 months has been seen almost four times less.

In this regard, the director of the border point in Narva, Marek Liiva, said that before the restrictions were lifted, there were nearly 150 tourists among Russian citizens.

“This weekend now has brought a nearly twofold increase ?— each day over the weekend; I’d say 280 people declared themselves tourists. ComparedBut, compared-pandemic times, these

Since Estonia is no longer issuing new tourist visas to residents of the Russian Federation, Russian vacationers are currently using pre-issued visas that are still legal to travel to Estonia. At the same time, they are visiting Estonia to calm down and relax.

“We enjoy traveling, seeing different countries, and getting to know different cultures. Tomorrow we’re going to the Rammstein concert in Tallinn ?— now we can do that easily. We love Estonia; we’re tourists, and we’ll start walking, enjoying European views, and eating,” Viktoria and Ksenia, two tourists from St. Petersburg, told ERR.

In addition, many visitors also buy things to take with them that are difficult to find in Russia.

On the other hand, the border guard estimates they could see up to 10,000 additional border crossings in Narva per month.

Moreover, Estonia welcomed nearly 236,000 tourists in April, marking a 300 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2021.

Data provided by Statistics Estonia show that domestic tourism also increased during the same time, with 105,000 international arrivals and 130,000 domestic tourists arriving in the Baltic country.

The latest Estonian statistics also reveal that accommodation establishments in Estonia served around 249,000 tourists in May 2022, which marks an increase of 176 per cent compared to last year’s May figures.

Commenting on the data, Helga Laurmaa, an analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that around 117,000 international and 132,000 domestic tourists were already accommodated in Estonia.