The forum is organized by the Roscongress Foundation under the patronage of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Pankevich emphasized that Egypt remains a popular destination among Russian tourists.
“Frequent flights between Egypt, Russia, and St. Petersburg are very important to us. Russians love to travel to Egypt,” he said.
Pankevich also noted the importance of promoting tourism to St. Petersburg.
He pointed out that tourism benefits both countries, emphasizing that many Egyptians visit Russia and that joint promotional efforts have proven successful.
“Our way of promoting Egyptian cities encourages many people to visit St. Petersburg. We believe that this model of joint marketing works very well,” he said.
Pankevich described tourism as a strategic priority for St. Petersburg, stressing that the city is pleased to host the 29th edition of SPIEF.
He added that SPIEF provides international guests with an opportunity to explore the city’s cultural and historical attractions.
“Last year we received 12.4 million tourists, which is a good figure. We hope to achieve growth of between three and five percent by the end of this year,” Pankevich said.
He noted that St. Petersburg continues to attract visitors from China, India, and the Middle East.
The city, he explained, organized several tourism roadshows across the Middle East last year and hosted familiarization tours for travel professionals and media representatives.
Furthermore, the St. Petersburg tourism chief emphasized the growing importance of business tourism, describing it as one of the city’s long-standing priorities.
“We have been supporting business tourism for almost 30 years. St. Petersburg was among the first cities to recognize its importance and invest in marketing campaigns and infrastructure development to support it,” he said.
Pankevich explained that the city offers financial incentives to Russian companies or foreign partners working with them to attract major international events, including cashback programmes covering up to 30–50 percent of eligible expenses after an event concludes.
He described St. Petersburg as Russia’s cultural capital and an “open-air museum” that offers visitors a unique combination of history, culture, and architecture.
“St. Petersburg is a city that welcomes tourists from all over the world, including visitors from the Middle East, who come to enjoy its world-famous museums and landmarks, including the Hermitage Museum, the Russian Museum, Peterhof, and Pushkin,” Pankevich said.
He concluded by inviting Egyptian officials, tourism professionals, and travelers to visit St. Petersburg and participate in the annual Travel Hub tourism forum.
“We would be very pleased to welcome our Egyptian friends to St. Petersburg and to Travel Hub. It is an excellent platform for building new partnerships and expanding tourism cooperation,” Pankevich said.
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