17% rise in tourism from Russia

THE number of Russians visiting the Costa del Sol increased in 2014.

Neither the sanctions imposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin nor the devaluation of the ruble, nor requests made by Russian Government officials asking its citizens not to holiday abroad but at home, seem to have affected the influx of Russian tourists to Malaga Province. 

Between January and August the number of Russians arriving at the Malaga-Costa del Sol airport registered a 17 per cent increase year-over-year, from 36,610 in 2013 to 42,861 this year, according to figures given to Europa Press by the Tourism Board Malaga-Costa del Sol. 

These data stands in stark contrast to the drop in tourist numbers witnessed elsewhere in the country since May. 

According to a report written up by the Spanish Tourism Office in Moscow and presented at the International Tourism Fair held in Madrid, the number of visas granted in Russia – especially in Moscow and Saint Petersburg – in 2013 to people wishing to travel to Spain took a sharp upturn.