Russia joins hands with Finland and Sweden to promote 'red tourism' among Chinese tourists

Red Square in Moscow, Russia.[Photo/Xinhua]

The city of St. Petersburg of Russia is planning to team up with Finland and Sweden to promote "red tourism" routes among Chinese tourists, which will focus on the life of former Soviet Union leader Russia in the three countries.

According to the Saint Petersburg Tourism Development Committee, the St. Petersburg team made their proposal in a meeting to consuls from Finland and Sweden, which was well received.

The three parties agreed to introduce the jointly developed tourism product to their Chinese partner in the next year.

St. Petersburg is the second largest city in Russia, and was the cradle of the 1917 Great October Socialist Revolution, known more commonly as the October Revolution or the Bolshevik Revolution. Since January of this year, more than 286,000 Chinese have so far visited this city.

Revolution-era tourism, also called "red tourism", is gaining popularity in China as the government pumps money into developing sites related to the Chinese revolution. It is estimated that by 2015, red tourism sites nationwide will welcome 800 million visitors per year and earn revenue of 200 billion yuan ($32 billion), according to Xinhua.

With red tourism gaining popularity in China, more Russian travel providers are looking to attract Chinese tourists.

Early this year, UTS Travel, an agency based in Moscow, introduced a route from Moscow to St. Petersburg called “Mao Zedong's Road”, during the Spring Festival. It was specially designed for Chinese visitors.

Other Russian travel agencies also promoted under the general theme "Red Route" at the China International Tourism Mart 2014 in Shanghai earlier this year. They provided different services, including cruise and railway travel around Russia, which does not require visa.

From July to August, 1,078 Chinese tourists visited sites in Russia associated with the former Soviet Union and the communist revolution, such as Red Square in Moscow, Lenin's mausoleum and the cruiser "Aurora".

The year 2015 will mark the 70th anniversary of the victory of the anti-Fascist war.