The Ukrainian travel industry responds to demand and changes to meet the needs of travelers. Thus, in all popular destinations, there are more opportunities for recreation with children, and the geography of departure points is expanding, both for bus and air tours. Join UP! tm tour operator has analyzed the main destinations and vacation formats that will be in demand this year.
Early start
Recent statistics show that tourists are more likely to start the summer season in the spring. Mostly we are talking about the Mediterranean countries: Turkey, Spain, Cyprus, and the Greek islands.
At this time, the weather in this region is almost summer-like – the average air temperature is +25°C and the water temperature is +19-20°C, and prices are lower and there are fewer tourists. Accordingly, tourists have a better chance of booking even the most popular hotels in high season and taking excursions that are already available in the spring months.
In addition, spring is a period of flowering, which makes the southern landscapes even more interesting. Another reason why traveling in spring is gradually becoming more popular is the rise in summer temperatures. Those who do not like excessive heat plan trips in April and May.
Leaders of queries
The list of the most popular vacation destinations remains unchanged – Turkey (from 8026 UAH*) and Egypt (from 17 281 UAH*). The countries differ in climate and nature, but are similar in their wide range of all-inclusive hotels. At the same time, both countries have a wide range of excursions, so even when returning to the resort, you can get new impressions again and again.
European resorts are also in great demand: Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Spain, Montenegro, and Spain. The share of tourists choosing these countries is growing every year. At the same time, each country has its own specifics. For example, Albania (from 17,027 UAH*) has the cheapest all-inclusive format for its region, Cyprus (from 17,689 UAH*) has an active nightlife, which is why it is popular with young people, and Crete (from 10,292 UAH*) is popular for excursions and natural locations, Montenegro (from 16,008 UAH*) is more often traveled by those who like to travel around the country, and Spain (from 26,958 UAH*) is appreciated for its combination of urban recreation, beautiful landscapes and amusement parks for children.
Tunisia (from 18,585 UAH*) is also worth mentioning, as the demand for it has been growing steadily in recent years. If last year Join UP! tm offered tours to this resort only with departures from Romania and Poland, now trips are also available from popular airports in Poland and Moldova and even Lithuania.
Tunisia attracts with a combination of high service (the country has a large concentration of hotels of global chains), beautiful beaches and a rich excursion program covering the Sahara, Carthage and the town of Sidi Bou Said, which is known for its traditional architecture in blue and white colors and spectacular sea views.
Exotic destinations
Traveling to distant countries – from equatorial Africa to the islands in the Indian Ocean or the coast of North America – has always been a relatively small but stable segment of demand. The Dominican Republic, the Maldives, Mexico, Tanzania (Zanzibar), and Sri Lanka attract many people, but the price often remains a deterrent.
However, recently, some tourists have been booking trips to these countries in the summer, when it is the low season. Prices during this period are much lower, and it is also possible to get into hotels that are usually unavailable in winter due to a significant increase in the number of tourists.
The price of traveling in summer is different from the main season, because hotels in this season make a discount of 20% to 50%. Thus, you can fly to the Maldives for a week from 63,948 UAH* per person, to Zanzibar from 61,551 UAH* per person (7 nights in a hotel), to Sri Lanka from 58,244 UAH* per person (7 nights in a hotel), to the Dominican Republic from 86,225 UAH* per person (9 nights in a hotel).
Vacations with children
Women with children have been one of the most active categories of travelers in recent years. This has led to some changes in the market: now most destinations are adapted to accommodate families with children. This applies to suitable hotels with animation and amusement parks, as well as excursion programs.
Popular air tours to Turkey for two adults with a child start at 22,406 UAH*. A trip to Montenegro for a similar number of tourists will cost from 47,590 UAH*, and to the islands: from 27,998 UAH* in Crete (Greece) and from 47,899 UAH* in Cyprus. A trip for two adults with a child to the Maldives will cost from 187,291 UAH*.
There is also an option to travel by bus. Thus, a trip to Bulgaria for two adults with a child will cost from 17,865 UAH*. You can go there from Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, and Kyiv. You can also travel to Turkey by bus: for two adults with a child, the trip will cost from 27,438 UAH*. Buses depart from Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, and Kyiv. It is worth noting that the service on board the buses is expanding every season: the opportunity to pre-order meals, use online cinema services, and much more is added.
“Ukrainians have learned to coexist with the war as much as possible. Parents work, children study, and rest in the summer. In addition, for many people summer is the sea, and since such a vacation is almost impossible in Ukraine, we are seeing a positive trend in the demand for foreign travel,” comments Kateryna Artyukh, Head of Product Marketing at Join UP! tm. – Of course, we are still far from the indicators of 2021, but compared to the previous year, we expect an increase in bookings by 30%. Ukrainians need a reboot to stay strong for the long term, and traveling is one of the best opportunities to stay safe and get new experiences.”
* – all prices are quoted at the exchange rate as of 19.04.2024 per person, based on double occupancy.
JOIN UP!, TOURISM, travel industry, UKRAINE, vacation with children
First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy of Ukraine Yulia Sviridenko said that more than 3.2 billion hryvnias are envisaged for Dnipropetrovsk region for this year under all support programs, the Ukrainian presidential website reported on Saturday.
At the presentation of the “Made in Ukraine” economic platform in the city of Dnipro with the participation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, she noted that the more actively the region’s businesses apply for the relevant programs, the more they will be able to receive. According to Sviridenko, they are distributed to the already familiar to business state support “5-7-9”, grants for processing, compensation and new programs.
Zelensky thanked entrepreneurs for staying in their region despite full-scale Russian aggression, supporting the economy and providing people with jobs. He stressed the importance of strengthening air defense and protecting the energy infrastructure in the region.
According to the president, the authorities realize that business is in a difficult situation during the war, so it was for its support, solving issues and development of domestic production that the “Made in Ukraine” platform was launched.
Canada will provide Ukraine with an additional support package in 2024, which includes budget support of 2.4 billion Canadian dollars, Ukrainian Ambassador to Canada Yulia Kovaliv said on her Facebook page.
“We have an additional package of support from Canada in the submitted budget for 2024.
Budget support in the amount of 2.4 billion Canadian dollars (of which 2 billion have already been transferred through the IMF Special Account), an additional 400 million will arrive in the coming months.
1.6 billion Canadian dollars as part of a new 5-year military assistance program under the Security Agreement signed in Kiev on 24.02.2024.
216.7 million Canadian dollars through the EBRD to fund Ukraine’s reconstruction projects.
76 million Canadian dollars to finance projects under the program to maintain peace and security in Ukraine, in particular humanitarian demining,” – wrote Kovaliv.
Also, the Ambassador emphasized, the budget notes the plan of the Government of Canada to cooperate with international partners, the G7 countries to bring Russia to account, including through the confiscation of sovereign assets of the Russian Federation.
Experts Club hosted a training aimed at psychological rehabilitation of people affected by the consequences of war. This training was part of a larger project organized by the Experts Club in cooperation with the NGO Club of Experts and the ADONIS network of centers. The initiative aims to support and restore the mental health of people who are under stress or have been victims of psychologically traumatic events.
According to Maksym Urakin, founder of the Experts Club, the rehabilitation course will consist of 8 trainings in three stages. The first stage focuses on the diagnosis of stress and post-traumatic conditions using internationally recognized methods, such as the Impact of Traumatic Events Scale (IES-R), the Trauma Screening Questionnaire (TSQ) and others. The next step is art therapy, where participants have the opportunity to work with qualified psychologists, and the final stage is to evaluate the results and develop further recommendations.
“Our goal is to show that recovery is possible, and every affected person can find support and a path to recovery,” – emphasized Maksym Urakin.
Inna Prysyazhna, training leader and psychologist-consultant of the ADONIS medical centers network, emphasized that art therapy uses primarily creative methods, such as painting, sculpture, composing poetry, fairy tales, etc.
“All this is used to express inner feelings and fears. This not only improves mood, but also helps participants find inner harmony and self-confidence. Art therapy does not just treat, but provides tools for self-help and self-realization. It promotes the development of skills that allow you to better cope with everyday challenges,” the psychologist notes.
The project is funded by the Experts Club project’s own funds. In addition, the initiative actively interacts with the media and social networks to raise public awareness of PTSD and the importance of psychological rehabilitation.
“Experts Club is an analytical center with its own video studio and educational center. The art therapy project is implemented in partnership with the Institute of Psychology.
On April 17, 2024, the Embassy of the Argentine Republic in Ukraine organized a tasting of Argentine Malbec wines at Le Silpo in Kyiv on the occasion of World Malbec Day.
The presentation was opened by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Argentine Republic to Ukraine, Ms. Elena Leticia Teresa Mukusinski.
The history of Malbec is amazing: born in France, it failed to become popular in its homeland and moved to another continent, Argentina, where it finally received well-deserved recognition and universal love.
This grape variety was brought to Argentina in 1853 by the French agronomist Michel Aimé Puget (1821-1875), who was invited to head the agronomic farm in Mendoza by Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, an Argentine politician and future President of the Argentine Republic. The project on their foundation was submitted to the local legislative assembly on April 17, 1853, which became the starting point of Malbec’s new history.
After the cold winter of 1956, when more than 75% of Malbec vines in Europe died, Argentina became the main region where this grape variety is cultivated, and Malbec wine became a kind of visiting card of the country.
In 2011, the Wines of Argentina organization declared April 17 as World Malbec Day to promote Malbec and Argentine wines on the global market.
On January 6, 1992, Ukraine and Argentina established diplomatic relations. The Argentine Embassy in Ukraine was opened in May 1993.
Source: Diplomatic News
The European Investment Bank (EIB), in cooperation with the European Commission (EC), is ready to assist in launching social housing programs, Oksana Remiga, EIB Senior Lending Specialist, said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
The Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development is currently engaged in housing policy reform, which aims to harmonize Ukrainian practices with the best European ones. One of the points that is only touched upon in the draft law, but is necessary to harmonize the overall framework, is social and affordable housing; a separate law will be developed in the future.
“The EIB, in cooperation with the European Commission, has pledged to provide assistance to launch this area. We are discussing the possibility of a EUR 200 million targeted loan, which will be supported by a significant investment grant from the EC. Plus a technical assistance package of EUR12 million, which can be used not only to develop technical solutions, implement and monitor them, but also to help develop the regulatory framework,” Remiga said.
She clarified that an active discussion is currently underway between the experts who participated in the development, technical assistance groups, and the future form of this sector.
“Together with the European Commission, we are trying to promote the model that was used in Europe after the Second World War to solve the problem of housing,” she said.
According to her, the model of social housing implies, among other things, that the facilities should be fully owned by the municipality, this sector should be self-sustaining and financially stable.
“What mechanisms can ensure this (financial stability)? One of the simplest ones used in European countries is that in a building under construction, 80% of the premises are allocated for social housing, which is rented by certain socially vulnerable groups at a reduced rent. This housing cannot be bought out. As for the rest of the premises – housing, commercial – it is rented at market rent, which allows to ensure the functioning of the facility,” explained Remiga.
Since it is more difficult to generate income from commercial space in small towns than in large cities, it may be more appropriate for smaller municipalities to establish joint regional offices.
Another key principle of social housing policy is to avoid ghettoization.
“The buildings of such a housing stock should not be located compactly, the buildings should harmoniously fit into the overall urban landscape. It is also important to provide social infrastructure and good transport links,” said Remiga.
At the same time, she noted that the EIB does not consider participation in affordable housing programs, social lease with purchase.
“We are considering programs aimed at creating and improving the quality of social housing packages in municipalities. However, I would like to emphasize that in general, the EIB does not offer programs whose ultimate goal is to provide loans to individuals for housing. Only the creation of housing owned and managed by municipalities,” said Remiga.
The start of the social housing program can be expected no earlier than mid-autumn 2024.
“The European Union and the EIB, which is the bank of the European Union, have a rule: legislative structural changes first. However, due to the extremely critical situation in Ukraine, we are ready to work in parallel. Since we are already working on the regulatory framework, this allows us to launch administrative procedures on our part in parallel. As soon as the (framework) parameters of the future legislation are clear, even before it is adopted and implemented, we can start working on projects,” Remiga summarized.
She added that the upcoming loan program for social housing with a budget of EUR 200 million is a pilot program.
“Given the needs of Ukraine, billions are really needed to solve housing issues. Only after the pilot project is launched and established, when we can see its effectiveness and the ability of municipalities to manage this pool of real estate, can we talk about launching the next stages. We are very interested in this,” said Remiga.
