Russia, Lithuania, Latvia show strong interest in wellness tourism in Vitebsk Oblast
Svetlana Astanina, Head of the Tourism, Sports and Recreation Sector at the Department of Sports and Tourism of the Vitebsk Oblast Executive Committee, revealed which countries' citizens visit the health resorts of Vitebsk Oblast in a new episode of BelTA’s Nation Speaks project.
Conditions for tourists in Vitebsk Oblast are improving. According to Svetlana Astanina, additional facilities have been constructed at many resorts. The most recently built and likely the most well-known regional resort is Plissa. “Almost 90% of its guests are Russians, foreign citizens,” she noted.
Typically, those who visit the resorts in summer immediately book their stay for the next year, as dates are snapped up in an instant. “We [Vitebsk Oblast] border three countries: Lithuania, Latvia, and Russia. Last year, 92.5% of our guests were Russians. In second place was Latvia, with 3.7% of the total,” she said, adding that cultural ties with neighboring countries remain strong even nowadays: recently, a Latvian music group performed at a festival in Braslav.
