The Russian authorities have made a decision to restrict access to resort cities in the south of the country (the Krasnodar region), including highly popular Black Sea resort cities of Anapa and Sochi.
Holiday-makers who have not been fully vaccinated for COVID-19 will not be allowed to enter the above-mentioned resorts on the Black Sea coast.
The governor of the region, Veniamin Kondratyev, said that starting from July 1, tourists will be able to check into their hotels only if they have a negative PCR test or a certificate that confirms full vaccination.
According to the governor, such measures were taken due to the worsening epidemiological situation and an increase in the number of positive COVID-19 cases.
From August 1, the regional authorities will tighten the rules for visiting resorts - in order to prove their safety to others, tourists will have to present a certificate of vaccination. Resort hotels and sanatoriums will not be allowed to accommodate their guests without certificates of vaccination.
This innovation will not affect those who have a medical certificate about contraindications.
The new measures taken by the authorities of the Krasnodar region will not apply to children - they will not need vaccination certificates to be accommodated in camps.
According to regional operational headquarters to combat the spread of the coronavirus infection, as of Thursday, June 24, as many as 123 cases of COVID-19 infection were detected in the region in one day. At the same time, for the entire time of the pandemic, the total number of recorded cases exceeded 50,000. About 45,000 patients recovered and were discharged from hospitals, more than 3,000 died.
Russian tour operators have reported a massive cancellation of tours to the Krasnodar region after the authorities announced the introduction of new restrictions in the region, RIA Novosti reports.
Vice-chairman of the Russian Union of Travel Industry Yuri Barzykin said that the measures taken by the regional authorities could decrease the demand, but not dramatically.
In the last 24 hours, as many as 20,182 new cases of coronavirus infection were reported in Russia. Such a high number of positive cases was recorded for the first time since January.