How much did Israelis spend on hotels in Russia during the World Cup?
The answer? A lot less than the biggest spenders, who hailed from Saudi Arabia.
By TAMARA ZIEVEUpdated: JULY 17, 2018 03:56A man holds up an Israeli flag at the start of a soccer match [Illustrative](photo credit: REUTERS)
Israeli tourists to Russia spent an average of $190 per night for an average of 4.6 days during the World Cup, according to findings released Monday by the hotel price comparison website Hotels- Combined.5-star hotels were the choice of 3% of Israelis, while 26% opted for four-star hospitality, 30% went for three stars and 41% selected cheaper options.While 75% of all Israeli soccer fans visiting Russia during the games stayed in hotels, others chose accommodation options that are usually cheaper: 14% in vacation apartments, 7% in hostels and 4% in guesthouses.Mark Feldman, CEO and founder of Ziontours Jerusalem travel agency told The Jerusalem Post that the majority of Israelis who traveled to Russia through his company went for the first part of the tournament when tickets were readily available. He cited Aeroflot, which reported a 40% increase in ticket sales over the last month with the majority of their passengers going to see only one or two matches.“To fly in for the semifinals or final was cost prohibitive and personally we only had one couple that did so,” he added, noting that one half of that couple owns an Israeli football team.According to Eyal Segal of HotelsCombined, most of the tourists attending World Cup games were Russians who came from domestic tourism within Russia.Nonetheless, data showed that tourists came from almost every part of the world to watch the games, facilitated by Russia’s geographic proximity to many countries in Asia and Europe, in addition to the fact that it dispersed the games to various stadiums close to neighboring countries, which helped to appeal to different audiences, some of whom came for short periods.The survey also shows that Israelis who visited St. Petersburg paid an average of $169 per night and stayed on average for 3.7 days. Israelis who came to hotels in the city were divided thusly: 5% stayed in 5-star hotels, 34% in 4 stars, 41% in 3 stars and 20% at lower hospitality levels.In Sochi, Israeli tourists spent an average of $142 per night and stayed 3.5 days on average. 4% chose a 5-star hotel, 56% 4 stars, 33% 3 stars, and 7% less.The tourists who spent the most on hotels in Russia hailed from Saudi Arabia, who spent an average of $1,062 per night. The tourists who paid the lowest amount on accommodation on average were from Thailand, spending $60 a night.
Tourists who stayed for the most nights were from Morocco, with an average of 6.3 nights. The shortest stays were made by South Korean tourists with an average of 1.5 days followed by Polish tourists who spent an average of two nights in Russia.
![A man holds up an Israeli flag at the start of a soccer match [Illustrative] (photo credit: REUTERS)](https://images.jpost.com/image/upload/q_auto/c_fill,g_faces:center,h_537,w_822/428016 "A man holds up an Israeli flag at the start of a soccer match [Illustrative]")