North of the city, another group of Gulf tourists crowd into a hot air balloon to drift over a vast snowy landscape. Four years into Russia's war in Ukraine, Moscow's pivot away from the West and its quest to draw nearer to other parts of the world has produced an Arabic-speaking tourism boom. There are more direct flights between Moscow and key Gulf capitals, new visa-free regimes and closer diplomatic ties due to the roles of Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia in brokering prisoner exchanges or the handover of children to Ukraine. "Virtually all Arab countries have at least doubled their numbers, said Alexander Musikhin, general director of the Intourist tour operator. Western sanctions mean Visa and Mastercard do not work in Russia, "so it has to be in cash", UAE tourist Rashan Godani said.

Source: The Edge Markets February 27, 2026 09:55 UTC