OREANDA-NEWS Egypt is reducing prices for holidays, but Turkey will still lead in the number of travelers from Russia this summer, Dmitry Gorin, vice president of the Russian Union of Travel Industry (PCT), told RIA Novosti.

"Egypt and Turkey are competing destinations, but they complement each other. Egypt has many advantages in the autumn-spring season. But in the summer, Turkey will definitely be the leader in the number of Russian tourists, and this is despite the higher prices," Gorin said.

The expert also stressed that the demand for Egypt has decreased given the great competition with other countries. So, now tourists have a great interest in Thailand and the UAE. And Turkey occupies the leading position. "The country raised prices last year, but at the moment it is not doing so, analyzing the experience of last year. Naturally, Turkey is the leader in terms of the number of tourists," he added.

Artur Muradyan, Vice President of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR), also confirmed to RIA Novosti that prices for package deals for holidays in Egypt have decreased.

"This is especially noticeable for the next 10 days, where the average or starting price on the market will be about 110-120 thousand for two people on a tour to the resorts of the Red Sea. In principle, we have not seen such prices all last year," he said.

According to him, tours to Egypt have fallen in price by up to 30 percent over the past month compared to last year: this happened due to the sufficient number of available places in hotels against the background of reduced travel by tourists from European countries. Thus, Egypt is now one of the most affordable destinations compared to other countries, despite the continued volatility of exchange rates.