Tourism in St. Petersburg

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• St. Petersburg
• Tourism in Russia

List of historical buildings of St. Petersburg

Main article: List of historical buildings of St. Petersburg

Chronicle

2025

Tourist flow to St. Petersburg for the year increased by 7% to 12.4 million people

Nonresident and foreign tourists made 12.4 million trips to St. Petersburg in 2025, which is 7% more than in 2024. The contribution of tourists to the city's economy reached ₽843,1 billion, exceeding the 2024 figure by 15%. This was reported by the government of St. Petersburg in January 2026.

Compared to 2019, the tourist flow increased by 19%, when it amounted to 10.5 million trips. The level of satisfaction with a trip to the Northern capital among Russian tourists remains one of the highest in the country - 86%. Guests especially appreciate the opportunities for cultural leisure.

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Фото: Wikipedia

Governor Alexander Beglov noted the confident growth of domestic tourism. More and more guests from Russian regions come to St. Petersburg. New locations are being created for tourists, excursion routes and entertainment programs are being developed.

Alexander Beglov stressed that more and more guests come to participate in event events. For example, the Miracle of the World festival in the Peter and Paul Fortress attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. Tourists come specially to get on it.

Most travelers come from five Russian regions:

• Moscow;
• Moscow region;
• Republic of Tatarstan;
• Pskov region;
• Krasnodar Territory.

The top 5 non-CIS countries are represented by tourists from China, Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and India. The Asian direction dominates the structure of international travel. The Chinese actively visit the cultural attractions of the city.

The number of guests from Latin America and the Caribbean is growing. Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Chile are increasing their presence. The share of these countries in the foreign tourist flow does not yet exceed 2%. Growth for 2025 was about 34%.^[1]

New Svet hotel opened in St. Petersburg for ₽4,8 billion

In September 2025, a 3-star Svet hotel was opened in the Kalininsky district of St. Petersburg. The multifunctional hotel complex was built by SZ Hotel Vvedensky JSC as part of a strategic investment project announced in 2017. The volume of investments in it exceeded 4 billion rubles. Read more here

2024

Growth of St. Petersburg's tourism revenues by 50% to ₽730 billion

The tourism sector brought St. Petersburg over ₽730 billion in 2024. The figure is 50% more than a year earlier. The share of tourism in the gross regional product of the city is almost 2.5%. Tourism is one of the key drivers of the Northern Capital's economy. The industry creates a multiplier effect and supports the development of dozens of related industries. This was stated by Governor Alexander Beglov on October 7, 2025.

He noted the results of the 2025 tourist season. From May to September, about 6 million tourists visited the city. The figure is almost 7% more than in the same period in 2024. Russian citizens made up 93% of the total number of guests of the city. Domestic tourism remains the basis for the hospitality industry. The entry tourist flow increased by 10.7% during the reporting period. The level reached 400 thousand people during the summer season.

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Фото: Unsplash

In 2024, a resort fee was introduced in St. Petersburg to finance tourism infrastructure. Thanks to the new tax, the city budget received almost ₽780 million per year. For the first half of 2025, the resort fee has already brought ₽524 million to the treasury. The funds are directed to the development and maintenance of tourist infrastructure. Landscaping of embankments and parks is funded from the funds raised. Information centers for tourists are opened at the expense of the resort fee.

The growth of employment in the tourism sector of the city is 10-15% per year according to the administration. Hotels, restaurants and tour bureaus are creating new jobs. Seasonal employment in the summer increases additionally. Young people find work in the tourism sector without special education. The training of guides and guides is carried out on the basis of city training^[2]

Revenues of hotels in St. Petersburg for the year increased by 32.6% and reached ₽77,2 billion

Revenues hotel business St. Petersburg in 2024 increased by 32.6% compared to 2023 and amounted to ₽77,2 billion. Revenue growth of ₽19 billion provided the northern capital with the third place among Russian regions in terms of revenues from hotel activities. This is evidenced by the data of Rosstat, with which TAdviser I got acquainted in August 2025.

According to a study by the NF Group, the positive dynamics of the industry is due to a record tourist flow, which exceeded the pre-pandemic level of 2019 by 12% and reached 11.6 million people. The average cost of a room has grown to ₽7,5 thousand per day, which is 9% higher than in 2023.

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Фото: Freepik

Olga Shirokova, partner and regional director of the consulting and analytics department of NF Group, noted an increase in positive trends in the hotel real estate market. According to her, the record tourist flow positively influenced the operating performance of both classic hotels and the actively developing segment of apart-hotels.

The average annual load level of the number of rooms in St. Petersburg amounted to 65.7%, an increase of 3 percentage points by 2023. The average income per room reached ₽4,9 thousand per day, exceeding the previous year by 14.7%. The largest increase in value by 15% was demonstrated by hotels in the category of 3 stars.

The total supply on the accommodation market amounted to 24 thousand rooms, of which 37% are in apart-hotels. In 2024, 5 hotels were opened with a total number of 321 units and 13 apart-hotels with a number of 777 units.

The largest new object was the Domina Pulkovo Hotel in the category of 5 stars for 253 rooms under the control of the international operator Domina Hotels. The opening of the hotel was the first replenishment of the offer of classic hotels with objects managed by international operators from 2021.

The tourist flow to St. Petersburg in 2024 exceeded the 2023 figure by 23%. The main growth was provided by domestic tourists, while the external tourist flow also increased - 0.8 million foreign tourists visited the city, which is 46% more than the previous year.^[3]

Tourist flow of the year reached a record 11.6 million people

At the end of December 2024, it became known that St. Petersburg set a new tourist record - in 2024, 11.6 million tourists visited the city, which was 1.1 million more than the pre-pandemic (we are talking about the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic) 2019, when the tourist flow was 10.5 million people.

According to TASS, according to the Turbarometer of St. Petersburg, the number of return trips has reached 48% of the total tourist flow. The level of satisfaction with the visit was 86%, which is one of the highest indicators in Russia.

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Фото: Unsplash

Yulia Kislova, a member of the expert council of the Russian Union of Travel Industry, said that in 2024 residents of Novgorod and Moscow Novgorod showed the greatest interest in traveling to St. Petersburg. Murmansk regions The top ten regions account for 55% of the domestic tourist flow. The top 10 also included,,, Moscow region,, and Republic of Tatarstan Pskov. Vologda Vladimirskaya Voronezh Samara region

The number of foreign tourists has grown significantly. The share of inbound flow amounted to 7.2%, reaching 840 thousand trips, which is 46% more than in 2023. More than 54% of foreign guests came from non-CIS countries, mainly from China and India. The increase in tourists from neighboring countries amounted to 23%, from far - 73%.

Cultural and educational tourism has become the main goal of travel, reaching a record share of 51.4% of the total tourist flow. Other popular reasons for visiting the city include meetings with friends and relatives, business goals, event and medical tourism. The popularity of short trips for new experiences has also increased.

In 2024, the growth of family tourism continued. If in 2022 the share of family tourists was 51%, then in 2024 this figure exceeded 54%. According to the forecasts of the vice-governor of St. Petersburg Boris Piotrovsky, more than 1.2 million tourists will visit the city during the New Year holidays.^[4]

5-star hotel Villa Mr. Pinky opened in St. Petersburg for 7.5 million euros

In July 2024, a new five-star boutique hotel Villa Mr. Pinky opened in St. Petersburg, the construction cost of which was €7.5 million. The hotel is located in a historic building - the former apartment building of entrepreneur Adalbert Lischke on English Avenue. The project was implemented by the Moscow investment group Placebo/25. Read more here

2023

Tourists brought 483 billion rubles to the economy of St. Petersburg

At the end of 2023, tourists contributed 483 billion rubles to the economy of St. Petersburg. These data were announced on July 2, 2024 at a meeting of the city government, where Governor Alexander Beglov summed up the results of tourist activity in the first half of 2024.

According to TASS, 9.5 million people visited St. Petersburg in 2023, which is 16% more than in 2022. Thanks to this, the contribution of tourism to the city's economy grew by 32%, amounting to 2.1% of gross regional product. The main emphasis in Smolny's tourism strategy was on attracting domestic tourists, which bore fruit.

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Фото: Unsplash

Priority areas in the field of tourism were the organization of large-scale event events, the development of a sanatorium-resort complex and the promotion of gastronomic brands of the city. One of the key initiatives was the creation of new tourist products that can attract the attention of both Russian and foreign guests.

Particular attention was paid to projects aimed at popularizing new tourist routes. Thus, the project "New Tourist Geography" allowed guests to see St. Petersburg not only as an open-air museum, but also as a dynamic metropolis with new creative locations. The flagship of this project was the museum-historical park "Island of Forts" in Kronstadt, which was visited by 3.3 million people over the year.

In 2023, St. Petersburg became the first metropolis in Russia to receive two national tourist routes at once: "Petersburg. Peter. From the first stone to the skyscraper "and" St. Petersburg. A new geography. " These routes were highly appreciated by the expert council under the Ministry of Economic Development for the high level of organization and interesting locations.

Tourism also contributed to the creation of new jobs.According to the city administration, every 12th workplace in St. Petersburg is associated with the hospitality industry. The development of tourism contributes to the improvement of urban infrastructure, the creation of public spaces and the development of new territories.^[5]

70% increase in the flow of foreign tourists

The flow of foreign tourists to St. Petersburg in 2023 increased by 70% compared to 2022, which was largely facilitated by the launch of electronic visas in Russia and the opening of a visa-free tourist with China and Iran. The Minister of Economic Development of the RFMaksim Reshetnikov announced this on January 26, 2024, while naming the number of tourists who visited St. Petersburg in 2023.

The minister only noted that in general, the tourist flow to St. Petersburg in 2023 approached the dock-like level (we are talking about the coronavirus pandemic, COVID-19 which began in February 2022), and the Leningrad region exceeded it back in 2022. The growth of tourism in the agglomeration is ensured by Russian tourists. For example, in the northern capital, their share in two years increased from 63% to 90%, Reshetnikov said at a meeting on the socio-economic development of the St. Petersburg agglomeration, which was held by the president. Russia Vladimir Putin

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Фото: Unsplash

According to preliminary data from the St. Petersburg Turbarometer, which were released at the end of 2023, 574.2 thousand foreign guests visited St. Petersburg in 2023 - 68.1% more than in 2022. Of these, 309.6 thousand are tourists from neighboring countries, 262.6 thousand are non-CIS countries.

About 54% of foreign tourists are citizens of neighboring countries. Most often, tourists come from the following countries: Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, China, Iran, Turkey, India, UAE. 87.8% of tourists from non-CIS countries are young active people from 18 to 44 years old. In the near abroad, this figure is 89.7%. 64.2% are women and 35.8% are men. In the near abroad, 61.1% are women and 39.9% are men.

In total, 9.4 million tourists visited St. Petersburg in 2023, which is 16% more than a year earlier. Foreigners accounted for 6.1% of the tourist flow.^[6]

Notes