The trip, which took place in early July, included a tour of local attractions and familiarization with the hotel infrastructure of Northern Cyprus. The participants of the delegation from Russia are completely satisfied with the work done. They see great prospects for the arrival of Russian tourists to this island, especially given the difficulties with visiting the Greek part of the island. Over the past year and a half, tourists from Russia have become more familiar with Northern Cyprus, and the number of Russian diaspora on the island has increased significantly.
Group tours and charters to Northern Cyprus are not planned yet due to the lack of recognition of the country by Russia. However, there are already good prospects for organizing individual trips and business tourism. Most of the tour operators who participated in the famtrip consider Northern Cyprus in this context.
The features of this destination include beautiful beaches and a developed hotel infrastructure with numerous large hotels offering an all-inclusive system. There are also casinos operating here, which can be an additional attraction for tourists. The rich heritage of historical sites is the basis for the formation of high-quality excursion programs.
Difficulties may arise with medical insurance, but payment options for medical services are already being studied. Problems with documents may arise if a passport is lost, since there are no Russian consulates on the island.
There are concerns on the part of Russian tour operators about possible sanctions from official Cyprus, which may affect the work with more popular resorts for Russians. However, hopes are linked to next year, when Northern Cyprus intends to apply for recognition of sovereignty at the UN, although the prospects for this step are not yet clear.
"It's hard to call the direction cheap now," the participant of the famtrip continues. — For example, a high-quality 5* hotel will cost about 200 thousand rubles for a week, plus air tickets. At the same time, you can fly through Istanbul, from where 4-5 flights depart daily to the new Ercan airport, or through Antalya. Nevertheless, the hotel service in the country is at a very high level, plus excellent food in all-inclusive hotels, which will certainly appeal to tourists."
Northern Cyprus has good opportunities to combine with trips to Turkey. The hotel base and service remind of Antalya. The availability of planes allows you to arrive here in an hour, which makes this destination attractive to visit at least once. Organizing short excursions from Antalya may be the first step, although so far none of the tour operators have announced such plans.
