The head of the region announced this proposal at a meeting of the Government Commission for Tourism Development, chaired by Dmitry Chernyshenko, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation. It summed up the results of the summer tourist season in 2025, and also discussed the development of the industry.
"By the decision of the President, the national project "Tourism and the Hospitality Industry" has been launched since 2021. Since January of this year, the updated national Tourism and Hospitality project has been solving such tasks as the creation of the Five Seas and Lake Baikal federal resorts, supporting national producers, and continuing to implement activities that are in demand among regions and businesses. On behalf of the President of Russia, it is necessary to increase the share of tourism in GDP from the current 2.9% to 5% by 2030, the export of tourist services – 3 times, as well as the number of tourist trips – up to 140 million in 2030. This requires coordinated interdepartmental work, regions and businesses, and high—speed decision-making," Dmitry Chernyshenko said in his opening remarks.
He stressed that the number of tours in Russia for the first 8 months of 2025 amounted to 61.7 million– which is 5.4% more than in the same period in 2024.
Andrey Chibis presented a report on the results of the summer tourist season and paid special attention to overcoming seasonality for travel in the Murmansk region.
"The Murmansk Region has confirmed its status as one of the leaders in terms of tourist flow growth rates. In recent years, we have managed to double the number of tourists. This year, we expect more than 830,000 guests, which will be a new record for the region," he said. – Another important result is that tourism in the Kola Arctic has become year—round. In winter, guests come for the northern Lights and ski trails, in summer — for Arctic cruises, whales and ecological routes, and in autumn the "silent hunt" for mushrooms and berries is gaining popularity. Moreover, each season is filled with a rich event program."
In addition, Andrey Chibis presented specific proposals for the development of Arctic tourism. Among them is the extension of the deadlines for the implementation of tourism projects with state support in the territories of the Russian Arctic from April 1 to September 1, which is especially important during the short construction season. There was also a proposal to include the White and Barents Seas in the federal program "Five Seas and Lake Baikal".
The head of the region paid special attention to the issues of the tax burden.
"I propose to discuss at the federal level the possibility of revising the income threshold for VAT payments for businesses in the Far North and equivalent territories, including in the hospitality industry. Due to the northern rise in prices, the increase in VAT and the minimum wage will have a particularly hard impact on entrepreneurs in these regions. This may lead to higher prices for final goods and services, companies moving into a gray area or closing them down," the governor stressed.
Tourism has confidently taken its share in the economy of the Murmansk Region, reaching 3.1% of the region's GRP (by the end of 2023), which exceeds the national average of 2.9%.
/ Ministry of Information Policy of the Murmansk Region /