"Vaccination" route: how Petersburgers get the European QR

"Vaccination" tours are a new tourist product that is gaining popularity in 2021, hospitality industry operators told RBC Petersburg. The presence of partially open (unlike the situation of the first wave of the pandemic) borders makes it possible for Russians, albeit with some difficulties, to obtain the so-called passport of opportunities (a document that allows them to freely move around the EU countries). The tourism industry notes a high demand for "vaccination" tours from St. Petersburg residents, but, by the way, "individual tours" for the vaccine are also widespread.

Vaccination Mecca

Today, 61 countries are open for Russians with a tourist visa. In November 2021, it became possible to leave for Fiji, Maldives, Bahamas, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Turkey and Egypt, Georgia, Ukraine, Norway, UAE, Croatia were previously opened. Strict restrictions for Russians continue to operate in about 70 countries of the world - this means that you can get there only if you have special reasons (residence permit, work visa, etc.). Latvia and Lithuania, Finland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands, Malta, the Czech Republic, as well as Vietnam and CHINA are closed for Russian tourists .

According to Ekaterina Shadskaya, DIRECTOR of the North-West Regional Branch of the Russian Union of Travel Industry, in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, vaccination tours to Europe have already become one of the permanent directions in the business of regional tour operators.

The most budgetary proposal will cost the Petersburgers about 40 thousand rubles. This is how much a tour to Croatia for 4 days costs, the price includes air travel with hotel accommodation. But travelers are encouraged to get to the vaccination point on their own, where they will have to go through a live queue. Vaccination in Serbia will cost a little more. Booking a tour to this country must be done at least 16 days in advance, as the exact date and time of vaccination is assigned. In addition, the traveler will be required to officially confirm the appointment for the procedure (it comes by e-mail).

The most expensive and longest waiting time for vaccination tours through agencies is Greece. It is necessary to book such a tour 23 days in advance; in addition to the Schengen visa and insurance, you will need to confirm the appointment for vaccination with the exact date and time of the procedure, fill out the Passenger Locator form (PLF - notification of the location of the passenger), receive a unique QR code. Traveling for a vaccination in Greece will cost more than 70 thousand rubles (but the price includes an excursion program). In Turkey, the most popular foreign country among Russian travelers today, foreign tourists are not vaccinated against CORONAVIRUS.