The native land is out of reach: why Karelians prefer Turkey to Karelia

      The accessibility of natural beauties is becoming a serious problem for Karelian families. For example, visiting Kivach waterfall costs 320 rubles, Mount Sampo — 400 rubles, and Ruskeala Park — already 650 rubles. Even the previously free Girvas volcano now costs 200–250 rubles. For a family with two children, just the entrance fees to the main attractions can exceed 6,000 rubles.

      The situation is aggravated by the fact that Karelia has entered the top three most expensive regions in Russia for hotel accommodation. The average price of a room in a three-star hotel has reached 14.8 thousand rubles per night, ranking only behind Adygea and Altai. Especially high rates have been set in the popular Priladozhye area, where Valaam, Ruskeala and the historical park "Bastion" are located.

      Local residents increasingly choose foreign destinations, where the price-quality ratio turns out to be more favorable. According to tour operators, in 2025 Karelian tourists are actively booking trips to Turkey, Abkhazia, as well as Asian destinations — Vietnam and Thailand. Within Russia, preference is given to Moscow, St. Petersburg and the Caucasus, reports the portal karelinform.ru.

      Experts associate the price increases with rising demand, infrastructure development and higher costs of maintaining tourist facilities. However, for local residents this dynamic means that traveling around their native region is becoming a luxury available only to visiting tourists.

      The paradox of tourism development: the more successfully a region attracts investors and guests from other regions, the less accessible it becomes to its own residents. Karelia risks repeating the fate of global resorts, where the local population cannot afford to vacation in their native places.