The Finnish Tourist Board estimates that about ten percent less Russians will spend the holidays in Finland this year compared to the 2008-2009 season, newspaper Helsingin Sanomat reports. Last year, more than 100,000 Russians travelled to Finland to mark the New Year, many of them spent the holidays in Lapland resorts. The Finnish tourism industry to a growing extent depends on the Russian travelers. Currently, more than one in three foreign travellers arriving in Finland are Russians. They also constitute a powerful consumer group in the country. Last year, they shopped for almost 600 million EUR in the country’s shops, Helsingin Sanomat writes.
