OREANDA-NEWS.  July 11, 2014. Despite Russian tourism companies saying Russians are traveling abroad 20 to 30 percent less than in previous years, Estonian consuls in the eastern neighbor are not short of work.

The consuls in Russia gave out 60,000 visas in the first six months of 2014, which is only slightly less than last year, ERR radio reported.

The drop in Russian tourist numbers has hit Latvia and Lithuania far harder, as Estonia offers multiple visas at one time and cheap air tickets, Irina Tjurina, a representative of Russian tourism companies, said.

Tarmo Punnik, of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Estonia has 12 consuls in Russia and the slight drop in the number of visas issued is due to more multiple visas being handed out. He said the only problem with visas is the seasonality, as Estonian officials in Russia are overwhelmed before holidays.