Forint among the most beloved currencies in Russia

That is what a Hungarian tourist paying an early-summer business visit to Russia told Blikk, a Hungarian tabloid. They said Hungarians swarm Putin’s country despite the sanctions imposed on travel and other aspects introduced by the European Union.

One of the travellers told Blikk that it is not easy to get to Russia but not impossible either. Russians accept dollars and euros, and even forints because there are a lot of Hungarian tourists visiting the Eastern European country currently at war with Hungary’s eastern neighbour, Ukraine.

Despite there being no direct flights between Russia and Hungary, you can easily land in Saint Petersburgh or Moscow from a Turkish or Middle Eastern country’s airport. Of course, you must obtain a passport, visa and a negative PCR test done in the previous 48 hours.

Péter came home from a three-week-long journey in Russia. That is not his real name, and he did not want Blikk to write his occupation either. He said a Hungarian travel agency did the paperwork for the visa. He travelled by plane to Helsinki and took a bus to Saint Petersburg. Afterwards, he travelled to Moscow by train. Border guards are friendly, provided everything is OK with the papers, they do their job.

The EU-Russia border sees Russian and EU licence plates either, and Russians receive EU tourists warmly. When you enter Russia, you get a “migration card”, which you must keep in your pocket during your entire stay. Apart from that, you are free to do whatever you want.

There are a lot of Hungarians in Russia for business and travel reasons. Tourism is at a peak in Russia, locals accept euros and dollars, but they are happy to get forints, even happier than getting dollars for some reason. Provided your debit or credit card does not work, Russian banks give you tourist cards immediately. Péter said he spent four nights in a business room of a 4-stars Moscow hotel and spend less than EUR 310.

The Hungarian Ministry for Foreign Affairs did not answer Blikk’s questions concerning the number of Hungarian tourists in Russia. Before, they advised Hungarians to travel to Russia only if it were inevitable. In that case, they asked them to register for consular protection.