Despite repeated overtures by the regime to attract Russian visitors, Myanmar’s tourism operators say the efforts are unlikely to yield meaningful results amid the ongoing armed conflicts.
While “tourism sector development” has always been on the agenda of bilateral meetings, tourism insiders remain skeptical about the chances of successful cooperation.
The junta’s hotels and tourism minister, Kyaw Soe Win, is attending an international travel forum in Moscow, urging Russian travelers to visit and encouraging Russian investment, according to the junta media.
The minister met Russian economic development minister Maxim Reshetnikov on Tuesday to discuss familiarization trips, visa exemptions, investment in hotels and promotion of Myanmar as a travel destination, including for Russian government employees.
A domestic tour operator said: “The tourism ministry invites China and Russia, but as long as the country remains unstable, the invitations will result in nothing.”
Visa exemptions for ordinary Russian passport holders have been offered since 2022 and Russian language classes have been provided to tourism ministry staff.
In September 2023, Myanmar Airways International began direct flights from Yangon and Mandalay to Novosibirsk, Russia’s third-largest city and a major producer of nuclear energy and technology.
The junta said more than 1,700 Russians visited Myanmar in 2023 and more than 2,500 arrived between January-August 2024, although most were visiting on official business.
Another domestic tour operator told The Irrawaddy “Myanmar attracted few Russian travellers even before the 2021 coup.
“We only know the junta’s visitor statistics. Most Russians come to official events or for business.”
The Russia-Myanmar Friendship Association and business owners in Myanmar signed deals for the Ngapali beach resort in Rakhine State in February 2023. But the resort is now controlled by the Arakan Army (AA).
In October last year, the regime started flights from Yangon, Mandalay and Nyaung-U to the popular beach resorts of Chaungtha and Ngwesaung in Ayeyarwady Region to attract Russian tourists.
The deputy chairman of the State Duma in December visited Ngwesaung beach but the resort has been off-limits to foreigners since the AA advanced into Ayeyarwady Region.
Only the Myeik archipelago in Tanintharyi Region remains available to Russians.
In October last year, deputy tourism minister Phyo Zaw Soe met Russian tour agencies in Yangon, calling for the promotion of Myanmar’s tourist destinations in Russia.
But the tourism ministry website has been offline since the March 28 earthquake, further undermining promotional efforts.
Meanwhile, neighboring countries are making major gains. Thailand is expecting 39 million visitors and 3.5 trillion baht in tourism revenue this year, while Laos is targeting 4.3 million international arrivals.
Hotels are closing in Myanmar’s once-bustling destinations like Bagan, Kalaw and Inle lake and staff are seeking new livelihoods, while the junta claimed there were over 1 million foreign tourist arrivals in 2023.
Junta boss Min Aung Hlaing told a World Tourism event in September last year that more than half a million tourists arrived in the first five months of 2024. Many industry insiders doubt his claim.
Many western countries have warned citizens against visiting Myanmar since the 2021 coup.
