Michael Gebicki
April 18, 2023

I’ve just sat down for lunch at Kingfisher Restaurant outside Galle in southern Sri Lanka and the waiter asked me if I’d like something to drink – in Russian. The open-fronted restaurants, cafes and clothes shops surrounding the beachside restaurant, a doppelganger for Kuta’s Jalan Legian, sprout signs in Russian as well as English and apart from two or three tables, all the diners in the restaurant are speaking Russian.

It’s a particular demographic too, Russians between their early 20s and late 40s. They’re here because this is preferable to home, where they face the possibility of being conscripted into Putin’s war machine. It’s the same story in India’s Goa, along the coast of Kerala and in Thailand. Europe has tightened the screws on Russian visitors, and Asia’s beach resorts are an appealing alternative.

In the first two months of 2023, more than 370,000 Russian visitors arrived in Thailand, with beach resorts such as Pattaya, Koh Samui and Phuket seeing huge numbers. According to data from Phuket International Airport, more than 233,000 Russians arrived in Phuket between November 1, 2022 and January 21, 2023. Luxury apartments on the island are now renting at three times their pre-Covid value, and upscale real-estate sales have gone ballistic.

Russians are also setting up businesses, sub-letting apartments to their compatriots, hiring out motorbikes and even starting restaurants for fellow Russians homesick for borscht and blinis.

In Bali, 22,500 Russians arrived in the month of January 2023, making them the second most numerous visitors after Australians. Some are making a nuisance of themselves. They get drunk and cause a ruckus, dress inappropriately for temple visits, post social-media images of themselves mooning sacred sites, ride motorcycles wearing shorts and T-shirts and fall off and cause traffic accidents. Sound familiar?

https://www.watoday.com.au/traveller/tr ... e=rss_feed

I was amazed Putin permitted them to leave in huge numbers. Maybe Putin prefers a million men of fighting age who are opposed to the war to be out of the country, rather than in the country and ready for an uprising.

I'm surprised they haven't been showing up in PP in large numbers. Maybe the lack of decent beaches with proper infrastructure is putting them off.

Doc67 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 2:29 pm I was amazed Putin permitted them to leave in huge numbers. Maybe Putin prefers a million men of fighting age who are opposed to the war to be out of the country, rather than in the country and ready for an uprising.

I'm surprised they haven't been showing up in PP in large numbers. Maybe the lack of decent beaches with proper infrastructure is putting them off.

It might be just a matter of time. As more and more make dicks of themselves in other countries and presumably get kicked out, or maybe face tougher visa requirements in the future, PP might start to pop up on their chatrooms.

I've recently noticed the Russians a little more in the region. I had a Russian neighbor last year in Ubud who was batshitcrazy, always wanting to be joined at the special river to heal our spirits, fuse our energies, and try centre our chakras. Harmless enough but in possession of that all to common Russian character trait of being loud in most everything she did. I eventually moved rooms to put some distance between us.

Random Dude wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 2:45 pm It might be just a matter of time. As more and more make dicks of themselves in other countries and presumably get kicked out, or maybe face tougher visa requirements in the future, PP might start to pop up on their chatrooms.

You are right, it's already started. I am fluent in Russian, and recently there has been a growing number of questions in Telegram group chats about Cambodia. Most of them, however, are quite disappointed with the answers. They are really surprised that it's more expensive than Thailand and that to get a 1-year visa, you need a work permit. So, the number is growing but is still very low, so even if it doubles, it won't make much difference.

mi1 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 4:27 pm

Random Dude wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 2:45 pm It might be just a matter of time. As more and more make dicks of themselves in other countries and presumably get kicked out, or maybe face tougher visa requirements in the future, PP might start to pop up on their chatrooms.

You are right, it's already started. I am fluent in Russian, and recently there has been a growing number of questions in Telegram group chats about Cambodia. Most of them, however, are quite disappointed with the answers. They are really surprised that it's more expensive than Thailand and that to get a 1-year visa, you need a work permit. So, the number is growing but is still very low, so even if it doubles, it won't make much difference.

Hopefully, they'll go to Sihanoukville and they can fight with the Chinese.

Doc67 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 4:49 pm

mi1 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 4:27 pm

Random Dude wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 2:45 pm It might be just a matter of time. As more and more make dicks of themselves in other countries and presumably get kicked out, or maybe face tougher visa requirements in the future, PP might start to pop up on their chatrooms.

You are right, it's already started. I am fluent in Russian, and recently there has been a growing number of questions in Telegram group chats about Cambodia. Most of them, however, are quite disappointed with the answers. They are really surprised that it's more expensive than Thailand and that to get a 1-year visa, you need a work permit. So, the number is growing but is still very low, so even if it doubles, it won't make much difference.

Hopefully, they'll go to Sihanoukville and they can fight with the Chinese.

The Chinese and their guns would have no chance against the barrage of entitlement.

Edit because I don't want to generalize. Not all Russians are loud and entitled, I'm sure - just the ones I've met.

Sri Lanka and Thailand have always been very popular with Russian tourists

I wonder if current visitor numbers are any higher than what they were say in 2018, 2019 etc ?

Or is it that they're much more noticeable this year, due to the lack of Chinese tourists, who normally attract the most hatred from other tourists ?

" In Bali, 22,500 Russians arrived in the month of January 2023, making them the second most numerous visitors after Australians. Some are making a nuisance of themselves. They get drunk and cause a ruckus, dress inappropriately for temple visits, post social-media images of themselves mooning sacred sites, ride motorcycles wearing shorts and T-shirts and fall off and cause traffic accidents. Sound familiar? "

Behaving the same as many British & Aussie tourists then ?