Which flight destinations are available for our country in 2022

Flight rules for our countries are constantly changing. But are we really cut off from the whole world? Where has it become harder to get to, but where is it actually not so difficult? Understanding the rules relevant for the fall of 2022

The recession of the pandemic, unfortunately, has not made flying to other countries easier. It has become more difficult to get into some of them due to sanctions, for others covid restrictions are still relevant, and somewhere the issue is not so much the availability of flights as the issuance of visas. Consider which countries and how to get by plane.

Where is the easiest way to fly from our country

1. CIS countries

The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) includes countries that were once part of the USSR. In addition to our country, these are Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. All these countries still have direct flights of Russian airlines and national carriers of these states. Visas are not needed, cards of the Mir payment system are accepted almost everywhere (except for Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan).

2. Middle East

Direct flights of Russian and foreign airlines continue to fly to Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Israel from our country. Arriving in any of these countries, you can go anywhere in the region with local airlines. Our countries do not need to obtain visas to these countries.

3. Africa

You can fly to Egypt on a regular EgyptAir direct flight or catch a charter flight from other carriers. More direct flights from our country fly to Ethiopia, they are operated by Ethiopian Airlines.

From Egypt and Ethiopia, you can fly further to other states of the continent. Look for tickets from Middle Eastern airlines – they have a wide route network. For example, EgyptAir and Emirates fly directly from Egypt to Algeria and Kenya. In many African countries, our countries do not need visas, but somewhere, like in Kenya and Uganda, a visa is issued online or right at the border.

Which regions are more difficult?

1. Southeast Asia, Maldives, India, Japan and Korea

Aeroflot’s winter schedule now includes flights to India, Thailand and the Maldives. There are no direct flights to other destinations, but routes with transfers in the Middle East hubs are available. For example, Japan can be reached by direct flight from Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates, and South Korea from Uzbekistan and Turkey. In some of these countries, our countries do not need a visa or it is easy to obtain it, but somewhere, like in Japan, for the sake of a visa, you need to collect a fair amount of documents.

2. Australia and Oceania

States on islands and atolls in the Pacific Ocean – New Zealand, the Solomon Islands, Fiji, Samoa, Palau, the Marshall Islands and several other countries. All of these destinations and Australia are available with transfers at Middle East hubs.

Travelers from our country need to apply for a visa, and each state has its own rules. For a trip to New Zealand, it is made in Moscow, but our country must obtain visas to Australia, for example, in Belgrade.

Where it’s hard to get to

1. European countries

There are no more direct flights to most European countries, both EU and non-EU, but you can still fly there with a transfer. Of accessible Europe now remains Serbia. There are direct flights from Moscow to Air Serbia. Our countries who plan to stay in Serbia for less than 30 days do not need a visa. Those who have visas to visa countries in Europe can reach them from Serbia by direct flight or by land.

Other available countries for transfers on the way to Europe are Turkey, the UAE and the CIS countries. However, it will be much cheaper to get through the foot border with Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Finland. But be careful – these four countries have recently started introducing various entry restrictions for our countries, so planning such trips should be based on the news and the latest posts about the experiences of other travelers from travel forums. For example, our countries with a Schengen issued by this country cannot now enter Estonia for tourism purposes.

In general, now the issue of traveling to Europe for our country is much more visa-related than transport. So far, a tourist Schengen visa can still be done, although the conditions have become stricter – and everywhere there are nuances. European countries are more loyal to humanitarian visas and residence permits (these include work and study visas).

2. North, South, Central America

There are no direct flights on this route either. The easiest way to get there is to fly via Turkey or the UAE, but European visa holders can choose to transit through Europe. In the second case, the fastest way to get to Finland, since Helsinki Airport is the closest major European airport to the Russian Federation, and Finnair is a carrier with a large route network.

In all 12 countries of South America, our countries do not need visas. Signing up for a US visa is difficult, but possible – now the windows for registration are being caught in other countries, including visa-free Asia and visa-free Europe. Only citizens and residents of the country, as well as foreigners with WHO-approved vaccines against COVID-19, are now allowed into Canada, but there are no visas for our country yet.

3. China

Now there are direct flights to Beijing and Chengdu, but so far this is an option only for those who really need to go to China for some business: strong covid restrictions are still in place there, and there is nowhere for tourists to roam.