Social vouchers, military and empty beaches: what the "record" season in Crimea looked like

The Crimean coast is almost empty: closed cafes, empty beaches, and silence where there should be crowds of vacationers. Yet official photo and telegram channels show alleged attendance records.

This is stated in a study conducted by Krym. Realities.

According to the official data of the Russian authorities, the summer of 2025 on the temporarily occupied Crimean peninsula should have been a record year for the number of tourists. The occupying head of Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, said that more than 5.3 million people visited the resort in January-August, 16% more than in 2024. The figures exceed those of 2021.

However, tourism experts question these figures. The Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in Crimea notes that the statistics include vacationers on social free vouchers and the military, while small and medium-sized businesses are barely surviving.

Bloggers and local residents note that popular resorts such as Yalta and Koktebel do not see crowds of vacationers. Cafes and entertainment often do not work, large beaches remain almost empty, and tourists use social vouchers or live in tents.

Crimean expert Serhiy Vikorchuk notes that before the occupation, the peninsula received about 5 million tourists a season, and then the beaches were really crowded. Today, "it is very difficult to verify the statistics," as some tourists may be counted repeatedly or include military personnel. The Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in Crimea confirms that the occupiers are manipulating the data, using "social free vouchers" and other tools to artificially increase the numbers.

Journalists checked the situation at popular resorts: Rybachye, Koktebel, Novofedorivka, and the "golden sands" of Feodosia. The streets of Sudak and Rybachoye are empty, and the prices for housing and food are more similar to Moscow's: a room at the Mriya Resort & SPA, which is under US sanctions, cost 3,000 euros for a week. Sevastopol's municipal beaches have emergency berths and sewage.

"Social vouchers and the military are the bulk of the 'tourists.' The real number of people who spend money on vacation is much smaller," noted Crimean expert Serhiy Vikorchuk.

"Local cafes and mini-hotels are suffering losses: most small businesses cannot count on stable profits and are forced to close or leave Crimea. Even the popular locations of Koktebel and Rybachoye were only half full this summer, and the infrastructure often remains Soviet: old gangways, shades that do not protect from the sun, and minimal amenities.

Tourists with social vouchers spend almost no money outside of the sanatoriums, which hits small and medium-sized businesses even harder. The economic effect of the "tourist records" is felt mainly by large sanatoriums and camps where "social" tourists and the military stay. In addition, the peninsula suffers from problems with fuel supplies and environmental consequences.

According to journalist Dmytro Yevchyn, after the annexation, the resort Crimea became a territory of formal records: the numbers in the statistics do not correspond to reality, and in fact, there are fewer tourists than claimed.

Due to rising prices, conflicts with locals, and the presence of the military on the peninsula, Russians are increasingly refusing to vacation in Crimea and choosing other destinations, such as Kamchatka, Sakhalin, and inland regions.

Анна Бальчінос