Seasonal concern: tourist flow in Sochi has noticeably decreased
Sochi was unable to compensate for the weak demand at the beginning of the year with the high summer season: the resort's hotel occupancy continued to decrease even in July and August, Izvestia found out. In the first six months of 2026, this figure decreased by 19.4%. At the same time, in June, the decline accelerated to 22.3%, according to the materials of Hotel Advisors. Experts attribute the dynamics to expensive flights, airport restrictions and disruptions in gasoline supplies, which have deprived vacationers of a key alternative to air travel. Against the background of reduced demand, hoteliers began to actively reduce prices: the average cost of booking a room has already decreased by 8-10%. About what else influenced the cooling of interest in the main resort of the country — in the material of Izvestia.
How much has the hotel occupancy rate decreased in Sochi
According to the results of the first half of 2026, hotel occupancy on the Sochi coast decreased by 19.4% year-on-year, according to the materials of Hotel Advisors. In June, the decline accelerated to 22.3%. In the mining cluster, the dynamics were better, but also remained negative: in January–June, the load decreased by 11.2%, with a drop of 25.4% in May and 21.4% in June.
The coastal hotels of the Mantera Group lost 3% of their occupancy year-on-year, said Ekaterina Khardjieva, head of its sales department. At Cosmos Hotel Group, the occupancy rate of five Sochi facilities remained at the level of 2025, said its president, Alexander Biba. According to CMWP estimates, in the first seven months of the year, hotel occupancy in the Sochi mountains decreased by 14-16% year-on-year, and on the coast by 20-27%. The most noticeable decrease was in the middle price segment: five-star hotels were able to keep up with demand, while in three- and four-star hotels it decreased more, said Marina Smirnova, partner, head of the hotel Business and Tourism Department of the company.
Sochi remains a predominantly seasonal tourist market, says a top manager at a large hotel company. Usually, the high summer season compensates for weak demand in winter and spring, but this did not happen in 2026, he notes. So, in July, hotel occupancy on the coast was 15.8% lower than last year, in August — by 11.6%, according to Hotel Advisors. In the mountain cluster, the decrease was 25.1% and 18.7%, respectively.
There were high hopes for July and August, Ekaterina Khardzhieva said. However, according to her, the increased influence of external factors worsened the situation. By the end of August, Mantera's coastal hotel occupancy had decreased by 20% year-on-year. The peak months of demand could not compensate for the accumulated backlog and, on the contrary, led to its further increase, the top manager stated.
Azimut Hotels and the Radisson Hotel Group declined to comment.
Why has the interest in traveling in Sochi dropped?
The decline is primarily due to the transition of the population to a savings-based consumption model, which reduces unnecessary expenses, including travel, according to the materials of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR). An additional factor was the increase in the cost of air travel. According to T-Bank, the average price of a Moscow– Sochi one—way ticket in July was 14.8 thousand rubles, 68% more than a year earlier. In OneTwoTrip, on the contrary, the average cost of a flight in January – June decreased by 12%, to 8,9 thousand. However, in August, the ticket price increased by 10% year-on-year, to 12.7 thousand rubles, the representative of the service said. Against this background, tourists have become more likely to choose short weekend trips during the summer season, Alexander Biba noted.
The situation was also complicated by periodic restrictions on airport operations and disruptions in the supply of gasoline, which is especially important for motorists, ATOR analysts say.
Hotel operators respond to declining demand by reducing prices and expanding promotions. In January – July, the cost of accommodation in five—star hotels decreased by 14% year-on-year, and by 10% in the average price segment, Marina Smirnova said. In Mantera, prices decreased by an average of 8% during the summer season, Ekaterina Khardjieva added.
According to Hotel Advisors, the average rate (ADR) of hotels on the Sochi coast decreased by 9.4% year-on-year in six months, while in the mountain cluster it increased by 4.8% over the same period. In June, the decline on the coast intensified: the cost of a room decreased by 17.8%, while in the mountains it remained at the level of June 2025. In OneTwoTrip, the average cost of booking a room decreased by 10.4% year-on-year, to 8.6 thousand rubles, a service representative said.
Now the booking depth has been reduced to two weeks on average, Ekaterina Khardjieva said. With earlier bookings, there is a higher chance of cancellation without penalty, so hotels adapt special offers to the behavior of guests to offset the cost of attracting them, she explained. In particular, they offer free accommodation for children under 11 years of age and focus on tariffs with included dinners, the top manager added.
At the same time, the combination of reduced load and average price directly affects revenue per room (RevPAR), noted Guestmate co-founder Elena Ismagilova. According to Hotel Advisors, in January – June, the profitability of rooms on the Sochi coast decreased by 27% year-on-year, in the mountains — by 7%. The most significant drop was in May: the indicator decreased by 39.7% on the coast and by 33.4% in the mountain cluster.
Marina Smirnova believes that there should be no significant improvement in the situation before the end of the summer season and the calendar year. The downward trend will continue in autumn and winter, Ekaterina Khardjieva agrees. According to her, the behavior of the guests is now unpredictably influenced by a large amount of news. At the same time, a lot will depend on the winter season, Elena Ismagilova believes. High demand for ski holidays may partially support the market at the end of the year, but it will not be possible to fully compensate for the decline, she believes. According to Hotel Advisors, by the end of 2026, the average room price in Sochi will decrease by another 11.3%, occupancy by 11.9%, and profitability by 22%.
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