Russia plans to resume direct flights to the Seychelles in October
Flights to the Seychelles have appeared in the winter schedule of Aeroflot airline. How much planes might cost, and why straight-line flights are increasing demand for this island project, finding tour operators suspect.
AEROFLOT INTENDS TO FLY TO SEYCHELLES TWICE A WEEK FROM OCTOBER
In the Aeroflot schedule for the winter of 2022-2023. there were flights from Moscow to the Seychelles. The start of the flight program is scheduled for October 2, frequency – 2 times a week, on Thursdays and Sundays. Airbus A330-300 is declared on the route. Travel time is 9 hours 35 minutes.
Tickets to the Seychelles, as well as direct flights to Phuket, also required in the Aeroflot schedule since October, are not yet on sale. Sources of Vestnik ATOR suggest that ticket sales for destinations begin at least a month before the start of flights. In fact, sales are expected to open in August.
Earlier, the authorities of the Seychelles declared their non-compliance with anti-Russian sanctions and emphasized the high level of the Russian market for the island economy. A foreign guarantee of the inviolability of Russian aircraft is possible, which was due to the exclusive flights of Aeroflot from abroad.
Aeroflot operated direct flights to the Seychelles from April 2021 until March 2022. At the time of the suspension of flights, the national carrier flew to Mahe four times a week.
Thanks to the launch of direct flights, the Russian tourist flow to the Seychelles in 2021 increased by 2.5 times, to 31.4 thousand. Russia has become the number one entry market for this island nation.
HOW FLY TO SEYCHELLES NOW AND HOW MUCH TOURS COST
According to tour operators, the refusal of Aeroflot flights to the Seychelles will definitely increase the demand for the site, especially if there is a lack of attention on direct transportation. The PAC Group expects at least a 20% increase in tourist traffic.
Experts from tour operators Space Travel, TEZ TOUR and Russian Express recalled that now Russians fly to the Seychelles on connecting flights by Qatar Airways and Emirates. According to the observations of Russian Express specialists, most often these are Emirates flights on the route Moscow – Dubai – Mahe. In Space Travel, tours to the Seychelles are also carried out on connecting flights through the UAE.
Added to TEZ TOUR that Ethiopian Airlines flight offers are expected with a connection in Addis Ababa around 4.5 hours.
“The Seychelles are a great alternative to the Maldives. This country can offer a wide range of holiday opportunities, from budget deals to premium products, which can be found among compatriots expanding the pool of attention available in the coming winter period. Now the prices for weekly tours with accommodation in 3 * hotels with breakfast start at 125 thousand rubles per person,” TEZ TOUR said.
In Russian Express, on average, tours to the Seychelles from 10 to 14 nights cost from 2,200 euros per person, while about half of this amount (1,000 euros) falls on air tickets.
Space Travel tours to the Seychelles with accommodation in 5 * hotels start from 250 thousand rubles. for two. In PAC Group, the average cost of a tour to the Seychelles is 4000-5000 euros for two weeks in a 4 * -5 * hotel with a flight.
HOW MUCH WILL COST SEYCHELLES DIRECT TICKETS
According to experts, tariffs for direct flights to the Seychelles as a whole will be considered with what will now happen with Aeroflot when flying to the Maldives. So, according to the forecasts of Russian Express, the cost of tickets to the Seychelles is from 900 euros and more for a round-trip ticket for 1 person.
With such a pricing estimate due to the similar duration of the flight time of discovery and in TEZ TOUR. The duration of the flight on the route Moscow – Male (Maldives) is just over 9 hours, and on the route Moscow – Mahe (Seychelles) it will be 9 hours 35 minutes.
At the same time, observers do not assume that at the first stage of stimulating demand growth, Aeroflot offers very high prices for tariffs in the Seychelles, which are 15-20% lower than tariffs in the season.
Elena Myagkova
A photo: flickr.com (license Creative communities)