HotelTravel.com Chief Information Officer Olivier Dombey said the new language was added in response to demand from Russian-speaking customers who prefer to make bookings in their native tongue.

“Based on our research, it was apparent that lots of Russians don’t speak English or another language. HotelTravel.com is tapping the consistent growth from Russian travelers, both for domestic demand inside the country and its already significant outbound market. We believe this will assist our Russian customers find better rates and make faster bookings.”

Russian-speaking customers can now access thousands of pages of original and user-generated travel information in Russian that is available only on HotelTravel.com. Every page of HotelTravel.com’s unique content has been carefully translated by native Russian speakers, unlike other online travel agents that often use auto translation tools. HotelTravel.com’s customer service center is also staffed by highly-trained native Russian speakers to handle customer inquiries.

According to a recent Euromonitor International Travel and Tourism report, Russian outbound travel is expected to maintain stable growth of 3 percent during 2011.

It said the crucial factor for growth in outbound tourism in Russia is stable annual income across the country. However, it noted that main consumers of tourism services are still located in the large cities; rural areas suffer from high unemployment and low salaries. Domestic travel within the country is also expected to increase for 2011.

Mr. Dombey said: “We are very confident that the Russian travel market will continue to grow in the coming years. Obviously it has huge potential, and the launch of HotelTravel.com in Russian is very well timed to meet future demand.”

City.Mobi

Also in Russia today, City.Mobi is celebrating the success of its new guide to Moscow.

City.Mobi offers the most comprehensive mobile travel guides available, with over 800 cities in 200 countries listed. Each is developed by the City.Mobi team to combine into a single global travel directory.

However, each city retains its own mobile identity via a dedicated domain. Already on offer are Brussels.Mobi, Paris.Mobi, Sanfrancisco.Mobi and Sydney.Mobi.

Moscow.mobi is the latest in this illustrious line up, offering click to call functionality – which means no scribbling down telephone numbers.

Most entries are also linked to websites where users can quickly access more detailed information if needed.

Other key features include information on accommodation, restaurants, attractions, entertainment, nightlife, shopping, and transport.

City.Mobi guides include user reviews and traveller utilities such as a translation guide, currency converter, news and local weather guide.