Russian holidaymakers are flooding European hotspots despite warnings of increased security risks following a series of Moscow-orchestrated cyberattacks. Italy recorded a spike in bookings from Russian tourists of 18.9% over the last year, data from The Telegraph shows, with France also up 7.8% year-on-year. The figures, alongside a rise in tourist visas granted to Russians in NATO member countries, have spurred Ukrainian diplomats to raise the alarm about the dangers of the trend. According to data cited by the EUObserver, over 552,000 Schengen free-movement visas were issued to Russian nationals in 2024 – marking a 9% annual rise.
It follows a spike in Moscow-linked cyber and hybrid attacks in Europe in recent years, with the number nearly tripling between 2023 and 2024, according to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). “In the fourth year of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, it is extremely surprising to see statistics showing an increase in the number of visas issued to Russian citizens and a growth in tourist traffic from Russia to EU countries,” Vsevolod Chentsov, Ukraine’s ambassador to the EU, said.
“We know that Russian society overwhelmingly supports the war. Moreover, it prefers to think that Russia is at war with the West and not with Ukraine, where the Russian army commits war crimes on a massive scale.”
“With [the] increasing number of Russia’s cyberattacks against EU member states, acts of sabotage and all sort of hybrid activities aimed at undermining democracies, it is disturbing that Russian citizens can so easily enjoy the benefits of travelling to Europe,” he added. “Continuing to ignore this reality is short-sighted. It’s a matter of European security.”
Britain and the EU closed their airspace to Russian airlines after the Ukraine invasion in 2022, but routes to European hotspots are still possible via countries including Turkey, Serbia, and Georgia.
Financier and anti-Putin campaigner Sir William Browder said: “Unless the Russians can demonstrate in a visa interview that they’re opposed to the Putin regime, they shouldn’t be allowed to Europe.
“Europe should be open for people in the Russian opposition who are being persecuted, but no visa should be issued to Russian oligarchs or mini-garchs and others who support Putin, and I think we should err on the side of non visa issuance in that respect.”
While Russian polls have consistently shown large-scale support of the country’s military campaign in Ukraine – with as many as 70% expressing support of Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion – independent canvassers have arrived at less straightforward conclusions.
64% of the respondents to a poll produced by independent research organisation the Levada Centre in June, which was carried out between May 22 and 28, said they favoured peace talks to end the conflict, while just 28% said they supported the war’s continuation.
“It is deeply troubling to see some EU countries returning to business as usual with Russian tourists while Ukraine continues to suffer under brutal oppression,” Jan Lipavsky, foreign minister of the Czech Republic, said.
“Czechia has taken a principled stance – we do not process any tourist visa applications and we believe this should be the standard across the European Union. At such volumes, we cannot rule out the possibility that individuals complicit in war crimes are among those vacationing at our resorts.
“This undermines the credibility of our sanctions regime and sends a confusing message about our values.”
A spokesperson for Italian Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani said: “Italy continues to regularly issue visas to Russian tourists who meet our requirements. Our opposition is to the Russian army’s military operations in Ukraine, not to the Russian people.”
The European Commission said the EU had suspended the Visa Facilitation Agreement, leading to longer processing time for Russian applicants, and advised member states to “deprioritise visas for Russians and focus on security and border control”.