VietNamNet Bridge – Local tour operators confirmed their Russian guests in Vietnam are unaffected by the bankruptcy of Russia’s travel firm Labirint which has left 27,000 Russian travelers stranded abroad.

Russian tourists are seen at Cam Ranh International Airport in Khanh Hoa Province.

According to the local travel companies serving Russian tourists, Labirint used to partner with some domestic firms to organize tours for Russians to Vietnam but stopped this partnership two years ago.

The leader of a domestic travel firm, who declined to be named, assumed Labirint had shifted its focus to Europe and arranged chartered flights for Russians to visit the continent.  

In 2012, hundreds of Russian tourists got stuck in Vietnam’s southern province of Binh Thuan for days after Russian tour operator Lanta-Tur Voyage became insolvent.

Russia is emerging as a major visitor-generating market for Vietnam and Russian arrivals have grown fast in recent years. Nearly 300,000 Russians visited Vietnam last year, up a staggering 71% year-on-year.

A majority of Russian travelers prefer seaside resorts in Binh Thuan Province and Nha Trang City owning to the cooperation between Russia-based Pegas Touristik Company and Vietnam’s Anh Duong Tourist Company in bringing Russian tourists to Vietnam via chartered flights.

Anh Duong chairwoman Hoang Thi Phong Thu said the company and its partner arrange two chartered flights a day for Russian tourists to come to Vietnam.

Pegas Touristik and Anh Duong are pinning high hopes that the number of daily chartered flights from Russian arranged by them will increase to four or five by the end of this year when more Russians leave their country to escape freezing winter.

The two companies are preparing for the chartered flights connecting Russia and HCMC at the year-end, and expecting to serve around 250,000 Russian travelers this year.

SGT/VNN