“We go unnoticed.” How Belarusians are now traveling to Anapa for vacation

Already two buses with Belarusians have suffered from drone attacks in Russia's Bryansk Oblast. Even Secretary of State of the Security Council of Belarus Alexander Volfovich urged Belarusians to refrain from trips to Russia.

But trips to Krasnodar Krai from Belarus have not stopped, a DW investigation showed; now buses are simply going “further away from cities and oil depots.” However, explosions and power outages in annexed Crimea in the fifth year of the full-scale war have finally stopped the flow of Belarusians.

“Now we bypass Bryansk Oblast”

In both cases, buses carrying Belarusians on vacation to Russia's Krasnodar Krai, to Anapa and Gelendzhik, came under drone attack.

On June 17, a drone attacked a bus carrying a children's football team and accompanying persons; six people were injured, and the coach's wife died.

On July 2, a drone damaged the Minsk — Anapa bus, with 19 passengers inside; two drivers were lightly injured. In both cases, Russian authorities accused Ukrainian forces of the attack, while the Armed Forces of Ukraine rejected the accusations.

After the second hit, Secretary of State of the Security Council of Belarus Alexander Volfovich urged people to refrain from trips to Russia's border regions and to vacation at home:

“Drones fall there every day, such bad incidents occur. We have not closed the borders; it's everyone's decision whether to go or not to go.”

“We immediately changed the route! We no longer go through Bryansk Oblast. We travel via a safe route, through Smolensk Oblast, Tula Oblast... The road avoids cities; there is no military infrastructure, oil depots, or oil storage facilities nearby. Nothing, so to speak, of military interest... We travel peacefully, unwanted and unnoticed,” a representative from one of the tour agencies that transports Belarusians for vacation, including to Russia's Krasnodar Krai, described to DW.

According to the manager, the journey was extended by only 2-3 hours, and the cost remained the same.

Approximately the same answer was given by two other firms.

“Everyone arrives, everything is fine, no one complains. Well, if it were really bad, they wouldn't go!” another manager asserts.

The main drawback, tour operators admit, is that the new bypass roads are not particularly designed for tourists; there are fewer roadside cafes, poorer facilities at sanitary stops, and fewer toilets.

However, the largest company among those contacted by journalists, one of Belarus's oldest multi-profile tour operators, is not offering trips to Krasnodar Krai this year.

“Offers on the website are only from our partners. We can offer you Georgia, Bulgaria,” they replied.

“We are only picking up people from Crimea”

Tour firms and carriers continued to send Belarusians to Russian-annexed Crimea in recent years. The bus trip took about two days — through Russia and across the bridge to the peninsula. For example, one option on a tour firm's website was: from Minsk via Gomel to Kerch, Feodosia, Koktebel, with an immediate note that "in case of force majeure circumstances with the Crimean Bridge," a transfer to minibusses or a ferry crossing with an additional payment might be possible.

The number of Belarusians who vacationed there is unknown; neither Russia nor Belarus discloses data. The head of the "Belarusians of Crimea" organization, operating on the annexed peninsula, stated that "about 150,000 tourists from Belarus" vacationed there in 2024, without citing a source of information.

In July 2026, tours to Crimea are still listed on tour operators' websites, but in reality, they have been canceled.

“Is anyone ready to go to Crimea now?” tour firm representatives skeptically asked the journalists.

They spoke on June 6, the day when there was an alarm on the annexed peninsula during the night, virtually no electricity in the morning, and gasoline was still distributed by coupons, no more than 20 liters per person.

“We took back the tourists we had already sent, and stopped everything. The website just hasn't been updated yet,” the managers explained.

“We have completely removed this destination. We go to Krasnodar Krai, but not to Crimea anymore; things are ‘more interesting’ there now... We prepared for the season this year too, but canceled all trips, and as far as I know, other companies did too. It's unlikely the situation will change this year. It's better to choose Georgia. More expensive, but health is also expensive,” another tour firm advised.

Georgian Batumi has both sea and mountains. A plane from Minsk flies four hours and departs several times a week.

Two days on a bus, but also twice lower prices

The main argument for vacationing in Russia is the cost, and compared to EU countries, it's also the visa. The cost of a trip to Turkey or Egypt, traditional vacation spots for Belarusians, starts from $800 per person for a week's vacation, and goes upwards indefinitely. Krasnodar Krai, however, is available from $300. But one has to travel by bus for 35 hours or more.

As an alternative to annexed Crimea and Russia's Krasnodar Krai, Belarusian tour operators primarily sell vacations in Georgia and Abkhazia (a self-proclaimed republic, which from the perspective of international law is part of Georgia). One can get there by plane, or by bus for two days through Russia, with usually an overnight stop on the way. The cost of a bus vacation becomes $300-400 lower.

There are also new destinations — for example, Dagestan, "a peaceful vacation, mountains and sea"; tour firms promise entertainment, but "one must remember the dress code, no exposed midriffs."

In 2025, Russia was the main vacation destination for Belarusians. 162.9 thousand people traveled there, according to data from the Republican Union of Tourist Organizations (RSTA). Turkey shared first place with it (162.5 thousand people), and the top countries also included Egypt (112,752), UAE (78,105), Georgia (45,956), China (28,321), Italy (22,849), Thailand (16,988), Greece (11,374), France (10,945). The data includes only those who vacationed through tour firms.

According to RSTA data, the top five leaders have not changed since 2020.

“Growth has been noted in destinations such as China, Thailand, and Vietnam thanks to the launch of Belavia flights from Minsk,” the organization noted.

Thus, tourist traffic to Vietnam grew from 1855 to 8724 people. Tours to Hainan Island in China are also increasing: a week-long trip there from Minsk will cost approximately a thousand dollars per person.

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