Reviews of exhibitors and visitors

Reviews 2023

«For our endeavors in Russian outbound and inbound tourism, OTDYKH Leisure serves as the ideal launching point, emerging as the focal point of our Fair's central ambitions. We delightedly disseminated the latest information about the Maldives, fostering a communicative and warm relationship with the OTDYKH team. It is particularly gratifying that numerous meetings resulted in continued communication even after the conclusion of the exhibition.»

Mr. Mohamed Ziyad
Executive Director, Island Life Holidays by Island Zone Holidays Pvt Ltd, Maldives

«We liked professional level of the visitors of the exhibition, their tourism capabilities, interest in our country and destination in general, the ability to make contract and business during meetings. We congratulate you for such an amazing event!»

Mr. Edymar Mendoza
Office of the Minister, Ministry of Tourism of Venezuela

«In the Leisure Travel Fair 2023, we noticed there were a considerable number of visitors especially during the first two days. Organisers are doing a fantastic job. They are extremely supportive and friendly. The support I get from the fair organising team is the memorable thing about the Leisure Travel Fair»

Ms. Sasika Jayaweera,
Assistant Director, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau

«I was able to meet with our partners and conduct business negotiations. Our main task at the exhibition is to promote Thailand in order to further increase the flow of Russian tourists to the country. Thailand became the Partner Country of OTDYKH Leisure 2023.

Ms. Khanittha Phanvorawatthe
Director of TAT’s Moscow office, Tourism Authority of Thailand

«This is a full-fledged event, a real professional exhibition! I really liked the experts’ presentations, I liked that they were comprehensive, that everyone spoke to the point, they talked about important issues that can really change the tourism business in our country!»

Ms. Tatyana Dmitrova
Founder, TourDom.ru

«The exhibition is much busier than last year, with a large number of visitors. There is great interest in the autumn-winter season; we see that business representatives are actively interacting with each other. I would also like to note the business program, this year it is really very useful. It is hard to choose between working at the stand and visiting the business program. All sessions are extremely interesting and useful for various segments.»

Mr. Arthur Abdrashitov
Minister of Tourism of the Samara region

«The exhibition is going great. We never miss the opportunity to present the tourism potential of Kuzbass to Russian and foreign guests. This year Kuzbass is the partner region of the OTDYKH Leisure Fair 2023."

Ms. Elena Latyshenko
Minister of Tourism of Kuzbass

«The exhibition is loud, in a good way, which means work is going on. Stands are not empty; people are coming to communicate. I also like that people are coming to the business sessions, do not run back and forth, as it often happens - it means there is interest. And the number of visitors that we see here emphasizes that there are many people interesting in the business programme.»

Mr. Alexey Musakin Vice President
The Russian Hotel Association (RHA), Managing Director, «Cronwell Management».

«The exhibition is busy, dynamic and very interesting! A large number of colorful Russian and foreign expositions. Everything is great!»

Ms. Elena Malgina
Coordinator, MGIMO University

Reviews 2022

“We all know that Russian tourists in Egypt are a very demanded tourists, very appreciated tourists.“

H.E. Mr. Nazih El Naggary,
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Russian Federation

“The atmosphere is great at the exhibition! It is the offline event that we really missed. Our companies, which were represented here, 14 organizations showed what they have to offer for the upcoming fall-winter season.”

Mr. Artur Abdrashitov,
Minister of Tourism of the Samara Region

“This exhibition is a great opportunity, an excellent way to meet our partners.”

Mr. Neji Guider,
Head of the Tunisian National Tourism Office in Russia

“The exhibition, despite of many things that are happening now, is quite large and interesting. There are a lot of guests, including from abroad. The event is very interesting and informative”.

Mrs. Veronika Trikhina,
Director of the GAU "Kuzbass Tourism Agency".

“We were able to conclude a block seat agreement with tour operators and thanks to the exhibition OTDYKH Leisure we are improving our position on the Russian market.”

Mr. Joan Sotillo,
Director of the Russian Representative Office of Conviasa in Russia

“This kind of exhibitions help us to expand our cooperation within your market, with your tour operators, regions, and to promote our country to attract more tourists”.

Mrs. Dilfuza Samandarova.
National PR Center, Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Heritage of the Republic of Uzbekistan

“We had great opportunities for meetings with leading travel operators and we met them at OTDYKH Leisure 2022. Had massive experience and useful lessons. Thanks to organisers for their great support what have been done for us!”

Mr. Wasantha Wickramarathna
Director Operations Troja International Tours & Travels Pvt Ltd., Sri Lanka

“As a Global Travel Management Company, OTDYKH is undoubtedly a perfect platform to showcase our destination around the world. Thanks to OTDYKH Leisure we got a very good understanding of the Russian market and amazing response from potential business partners. We look forward to participating every year in this exhibition!”

Mr. Hemant Kalyani,
Director Sales & Operations Satguru Travel & Tour Services Rus LLC

Cuba takes part in every OTDYKH Leisure exhibition with great pleasure. We already feel like a part of OTDYKH team. We support each other. And despite the difficult time, the exhibition has not lost its relevance and popularity. Congratulations to the team!”

Mr. Juan Carlos Escalona,
Advisor of the Ministry of Tourism of the Cuban Embassy in Russia

“For Russian outbound, inbound and domestic tourism OTDYKH Leisure is the perfect start with “great ideas for the low season”, which has become the central aspiration of the Fair. We were happy to share the latest information about Tunisia with our old friends and with those who until now knew us only online. The communication was very friendly and warm, people smiled and joked: “We pack our bags and go to Tunisia immediately!” And it is especially pleasing that many of the meetings had a follow-up communication after the end of the exhibition.”

Mrs. Alla Filimonova,
the general representative of Carthage Group & Novostar Hotels in Russia, the CIS and Europe

“Thank you for your warm hospitality, a friendly atmosphere and feeling like on holiday! Thank you for the interesting business and entertainment program, for guests, participants and visitors! We miss you already!”

Ms. Irina Konstantinova.
Head of the Project Office "Creative Industries and Tourism" of the Tomsk Region Administration

“The Leisure Fair is very professionally organized, well thought out to the smallest detail. Senior tourism officials and high-level representatives; exhibitors themselves, a very professional implementation of the Fair- we liked everything! Good luck and keep pace with developments!”

Ms. Anna Averyanova,
Chief Specialist of the Sales Department of JSC TGC "IZMAILOVO" Gamma, Delta

«We all know that the Russian tourist in Egypt is a very demanded tourist, a very appreciated tourist.»

H.E. Mr. Nazih El Naggary,
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Russian Federation

«The atmosphere is great at the exhibition! It is the offline event that we really missed. Our companies, which are represented here, 14 organizations showed what they have to offer for the upcoming fall-winter season.»

Mr. Artur Abdrashitov,
Minister of Tourism of the Samara Region

«This exhibition is a great opportunity, an excellent way to meet our partners.»

Mr. Neji Guider,
Head of the Tunisian National Tourism Office in Russia

«The exhibition, despite of many things that are happening now, is quite large and interesting. There are a lot of guests, including from abroad. The event is very interesting and informative».

Mrs. Veronika Trikhina,
Director of the GAU "Kuzbass Tourism Agency.

«We were able to conclude a block seat agreement with tour operators and thanks to the exhibition OTDYKH Leisure we are improving our position on the Russian market».

Mr. Joan Sotillo,
Director of the Russian Representative Office of Conviasa in Russia

«This kind of exhibitions help us to expand our cooperation within your market, with your tour operators, regions, and to promote our country to attract more tourists».

Mrs. Dilfuza Samandarova.
National PR Center, Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Heritage of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Reviews 2021

We had great opportunities for meetings with leading travel operators and we met them at OTDYKH Leisure 2022. Had massive experience and useful lessons. Thanks to organisers for their great support what have been done for us!

U. Wasantha Wickramarathna
Director Operations Troja International Tours & Travels Pvt Ltd., Sri Lanka

As a Global Travel Management Company, OTDYKH is doubtlessly a perfect platform to showcase our Global Destination under one roof. Through OTDYKH we got very good exposure of Russian market and amazing response from potential business partners. We look forward to participate every year in OTDYKH!

Hemant Kalyani
Director Sales & Operations Satguru Travel & Tour Services Rus LLC

«The fair was indeed very successful for us. Our team in Russia were able to make some good sales leads. We are indeed looking forward to come on board next year too.»

Gayan Peiris
Manager of Corporate Events & Promotions | SriLankan Airlines Ltd.

«Russian tourists feel comfortable in Azerbaijan due to the lack of language barrier, common history and cultural values. Russian tourists love Azerbaijan and we hope that they will be back to our country soon.»

Kenan Guluzade
Advisor at State Tourism Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

«I would like to thank Russian travellers who supported us and were the first tourists back to our island. Thank you.»

Doros Georgiades
Head of the Department of External Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus.

«I am glad that my country is present at this very important travel and tourism exhibition with an exclusive stand and large delegation.»

Atanas Krastin
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Russian Federation

«Event was well organised and well planned and it was a great pleasure to be at Leisure 2021 and work with such an enthusiastic and supportive team.»

Sasika Jayaweera
Assistant Director – Marketing, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau

«We always participate at OTDYKH Leisure exhibition. For us this exhibition is a very important event. Firstly, we have an opportunity to present our country and our business to the public. Secondly, it is a great opportunity to communicate with our colleagues and partners, share our expertise and learn from others.»

Mr. Vladimir Karpechkin
Director of the Sanatorium Ruzhansk, the Republic of Belarus

«The OTDYKH Fair highlights first of all that the travel and tourism industry is still alive. Secondly it shows, that everyone put their efforts to ensure that the industry not just continue to exist, but also will flourish.»

Mr. Boris Paikin
Chairman of the Committee on Physical Culture, Sports, Tourism and Youth Affairs of the State Duma of the Russian Federation.

“OTDYKH Leisure 2019 became very special for Cuba. The exhibition has been running for 25 years and this time Cuba acted as the “Country Partner”, presenting itself as the most popular winter destination for Russian tourists. The Cuban delegation is very pleased with the organization of the exhibition itself and the opening ceremony. During excellent evening cocktails, thanks to our musicians, participants and guests of the expo were swept by the rhythm of Cuban music! Professional meetings were a success and important decisions were reached in a very favourable work atmosphere”.

Juan Carlos Escalona

Counsellor of the Embassy of the Republic of Cuba
Director of the Representative Office of the Ministry of Tourism

«ОТДЫХ Leisure высоко востребована среди участников стенда Доминиканской Республики. В этом году мы увеличили свою площадь до 200 кв.м и представили 11 компаний на стенде. Эта выставка играет для нас ключевую роль в связи с сезонностью в Доминиканской Республике. Также для нас очень ценна поддержка и отзывчивость команды организаторов.»

Галина Лысенко

Глава Представительства Министерства туризма Доминиканской республики в России, Украине и станах СНГ

“The exhibition "Leisure" is traditionally held in September, which coincides with the period of preparation for the high season in Egypt. For many years, the Tourist office of Egypt has been participating in this exhibition. We show our business partners and especially tourists who love Egypt and long for the Red sea our presence in Russia and «combat readiness".

We are especially grateful to the organizers of the exhibition for their excellent work, for organizing meetings with representatives of the key tourist media, to whom we were able to convey the positive changes that have occurred in recent years in the tourism industry of Egypt”.

Mohamed Abdelghani

Travel specialist and former attache of the Egypt Tourism Promotion Authority in Moscow

“It’s crucial, that Komi loudly asserts itself as a partner to the Leisure forum-exhibition, when the visitors’ attention is on the Republic”.

Grigory Sarishvili

Permanent Representative of the Republic of Komi to the President of the Russian Federation

“It was a great event and everything was well organized and superb. It was a great pleasure to work with OTDYKH team. Not only professionalism but also have a touch of humanity”.

Sasika Jayaweera

Assistant Director – Marketing, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau

“It’s our second time participating in a Moscow exhibition and our first time at Leisure. And we greatly appreciate the chance to present the tourism opportunities of our region at the Moldova stand. Unfortunately, Gagauzia isn’t very known in Russia”.

Alena Yalanzhi

Specialist, Department of Culture and Tourism of Gagauzia , Moldova

“The tourist brand of Spain has been a regular participant in the International Leisure exhibition for 25 years. The Institute of Tourism of Spain (Turespaña) shares the booth with representatives of travel agencies and regions of Spain. The Leisure tourism expo is the second largest specialized exhibition on the Russian market. Participants working with the Russian market foremost note its professionalism. Because the exhibition is held during the off-season it allows the tourism industry to evaluate the summer season performance and adjust accordingly for the upcoming winter season. Specialized tourism products, such as Travel Technology and Spa & Health, are presented at the expo, there are convenient areas created for working outside the booths, and an organized comprehensive business program. Participating in the Leisure expo allows the Institute of Tourism of Spain (Turespaña) to meet its main goals – strengthen Spain’s recognition as a tourist destination among final consumers; interact and cooperate between the Spanish and Russian tourism sectors, as well as engage with the media. We hope to continue cooperating with the exhibition in the future”.

Institute of Tourism of Spain (Turespaña) in Moscow

“For us “Leisure” exhibitions are foremost a wonderful opportunity to socialize with colleagues, specifically in terms of establishing inter-regional tourism ties and the chance to get acquainted with their experience. For us, for example, its especially important and interesting to see what our Tula neighbours have been doing these past few years”.

Kristina Kopceva

Specialist, Tourist-information centre, Kursk region

“We are very thankful for the support and give the organizers 10 points! See you in the next Leisure forum-exhibition!”

Gulchihra Rahmatulaeva

Director Shirin Sayyoh, Uzbekistan

“Our company debuted at Leisure 2019. Thanks to the participation in the exhibition, we were able to meet hosting tour operator representatives and tourism accommodation establishments from all over Russia, personally talk with upper management of the majority of them and got an idea of the work required in each specific region that was of interest to us for promoting to foreign markets. Already we’ve begun our joint operations for the upcoming 2020 and 2021 seasons”.

Viktor Jigachev

CEO, «Volga-Balt Tour» Ltd

“A splendidly organized exhibition. A massive thank you to the organizers for the invitation”.

Oksana Gladun

Tourism specialist, DCaT Baikonur

“Undoubtedly, the exhibition was organized to the highest level. What a wonderful idea to have the opportunity to schedule meetings in advance and conduct them in the comfortable Business zone. “I’d like to add regarding the business program – essentially “Leisure” is the most visited site, where the tourism community can meet and discuss pressing issues and receive new information”.

Yana Abdurazakova

Director, TIC Astrakhan Region

“We’d like to express gratitude for organizing the participation of the Kurgan region! The exhibition was held to a high standard with the possibility of acquiring business contacts among tourism professionals and resorts. Participation in international exhibitions of this scale helps us increase the number of tourists and positively influences the image of the region”.

Natalia Plotnikova

Tourism information centre specialist for Kurgan Region

“It’s very encouraging that the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) participated in one of the most important exhibitions on tourism in Russia - Leisure. We were able to present the republic and share the site with such great world tourist destination like China, Thailand, Egypt and European countries. Our most active tour operators “Sinaya-Tour”, “Colmar-Tour” and “Baza” participated as well. Over 700 people, both potential customers and company representatives involved in the industry interested in mutually beneficial collaborations, visited the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) stand. This demonstrates there is great tourism potential in Yakutia, many were interested in the possibility of organizing group and VIP tours. The 2019 exhibition was a great success!”

Tukavkina Natalia Vladimirovna

GAU RS (Y) National Tourist Information Centre "Yakutia" Executive director

“We are thankful and want to point out the high level of organization of this year’s business program, especially the medical and health tourism session, which was our partner.”

Elena Trubnikova

Chairman of the Health Tourism Association

“Thank you for the invitation to participate in the B2B Hosted Buyers program for Leisure 2019. The program was eventful, allowing us to meet many partners in the Russian regions and abroad. It was very important to us, as a tour operator for domestic and international inbound tourism, to establish new business contacts. Ideas arose for new destinations and routes. The business program met the expectations and requirements of the modern tourism market. The gastro-cruise along the Moscow River was a wonderful addition, allowing participants to socialize in an informal setting and exchange business contacts”.

Elvira Yashina

Director, "Ariadna-GROUP" tour operator, Nizhny Novgorod

“I’d like to express gratitude for the work done. This year the organization was on a good level, everything on schedule, without a hitch or delays. Organizing the meeting program in a workshop format was a success, we were able to get a lot of useful information and it was more convenient than working on a stand. The volunteers did a good job, they were able to quickly answer any questions and coordinate”.

Tatiana Bukina

Executive Director, Continent-Tour LLC, Kemerovo

“Thanks to your support, the Golden Ring Cities Union was able to bring together the best journalists from the Golden Ring cities to your exhibition, where they were able to engage in briefings, round tables and panel discussions, and ask the participants pressing questions. Journalists from Yaroslavl, Vladimir, Pereslavl-Zalessky, Kostroma, Uglich attended the press tour. As a result of the press tour, more than 15 publications about the exhibition were published on social networks, online portals, in print media and on official Golden Ring cities’ administration websites.”

Natalia Bulah

Executive Director, Golden Ring Cities Union

“Thank you for the wonderfully organized exhibition and all the business program events. My colleagues were very satisfied with the Hosted Buyers meeting. It was easy and a pleasure to work with you!”

Szabó Alla

Robinson Tours Kft

“A huge thank you for the excellent organization of the exhibition and all the great help in resolving arising issues”.

Svetlana Uhina

Deputy Director, Department of foreign economic activities, interregional relations and tourism, Kostroma region

“I visited the Leisure 2019 expo and received an unforgettable experience. Unfortunately, I couldn’t combine viewing the exhibition with the business program and colleague meetings, but hopefully next year it will be possible. I enjoyed the animation program at the Indonesian and Thailand stands, I don’t think anyone was left unphased by to the stunning costumes of Southeast Asia. At a Thai workshop I participated in drawing on scarves using the Mo Hom technique, I tried Cuban rum at the Cuban stand. I learned a lot about the flight program and sightseeing tours to Iran from Kavan Travel. At the Kursk region tourism information centre stand I listened the songs of their nightingale, the famous singer Nadezhda Plevitskaya and the famous works of composer Georgy Vasilyevich Sviridov. The cherry on the cake was winning a “Classic Tour to St. Petersburg” from the Tari Tour company group in the “Win at Leisure 2019” promotion. A huge thanks to the organizers of the exhibition for their work! I’d like to wish the exhibition yearly growth and expansion, and to increase the number of exhibitors and partners! I look forward to Leisure 2020!”

Olga Zukova

Manager, Workle Ltd