Press releases

29 Apr 2019

Slavianski Bazaar ticket holders granted visa-free entry to Belarus

VITEBSK, 29 April (BelTA) – Foreign citizens will be able to enter Belarus without a visa from early July provided they have a ticket to the International Festival of Arts Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk, Director General of the festival Gleb Lapitsky said at a briefing on 29 April, BelTA has learned.

Gleb Lapitsky said that the Belarusian president has recently issued an executive order granting Slavianski Bazaar ticket holders a visa-free entry to Belarus from 1 till 20 July through all Belarusian border checkpoints. “A ticket to Slavianski Bazaar will be a visa of sorts. This is not a new step, as Belarus has already implemented similar measures during large-scale sport events,” the director noted. “According to the executive order, visa free entry starts several days ahead of the festival and ends several days after [Slavianski Bazaar 2019 is due on 8-17 July]. Thus our guests will have time to settle without haste. We expect this measure will help us attract more visitors, first of all, from the neighboring countries,” he added.

The official websites of the festival will soon upload information about the way to purchase and register a ticket and the necessary steps to avoid problems at the border. Moreover, this year Latvia and Kazakhstan have for the first time obtained the right to sell tickets to the Slavianski Bazaar events via their national Internet ticket operators.

In 2019, the International Festival of Arts Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk will be held on 8-17 July. An opening ceremony and a gala concert will take place in the Summer Amphitheater on 11 July, and a closing ceremony on 15 July. Additional events are scheduled for 8-10 and 16-17 July.