Aldis Gobzems

LATVIA – Member of the 13th Saeima

Aldis Gobzems: «Why there will be no tourism in Latvia in the nearest future and why most Latvian families will not return? This time my story is the story of a person whose family has been living independently in another country for a long time now, with children going to school, etc.»

«…Look at the trend in recent years – it is possible to fly from Riga to another country very cheaply, while return tickets tend to be much more expensive. This is not a coincidence. It explains the flow of people out of the country, the flow of money out of the country and the flow of tourists out of the country. In addition, the flight routes are designed with the expectation that Latvians leave and spend their time elsewhere, rather than that foreigners take specific flights to Latvia. For example, how many specific flights are there to Latvia to see the golden autumn or to go skiing in Burtnieki? How many? That’s right – absolutely none. Just think where an average Spaniard with two children would go – to Paris, Riga or Oslo, if they are really tired of the sun and want to go north. Even Bucharest is cheaper. Tokyo for a family of four from here is only a thousand British pounds more than Riga. Where’s Tokyo and where’s Riga. That’s if you buy your tickets this morning for today! And it’s not just Spain, it’s almost everywhere – away from Riga it’s cheap, back almost always more expensive.

P.S. All those millions pumped into Magnet Latvia and shit need to go back. No magnets, no ticket prices, not even one creative story for one top instagram photo on a top instagram blogger’s profile. In golden autumn, Spaniards go to Tokyo to take photos, which is almost as expensive as a flight to Riga. Think about it!» (Facebook, 29/10/2022).

Data source: https://www.facebook.com/gobzems