Whether it’s the new cold war or the credit crunch, there seem to be very few foreign tourists in Russia this time around. Maybe it’s me. Maybe it’s Autumn. But definitely my impression.

Time was when you could tag on to any old tour party in St Petersburg and get a free English commentary. Now you have to snatch a little Russian.

This can’t be good news for the travel industry. Especially when you discover that many of those you thought were tourists aren’t tourists at all.

Attendance at The Peter and Paul Fortress appeared brisk. But that’s because it has become a top, post-wedding venue. Saturday is wedding day in St Petersburg. On the riverside walk it was brides all the way.

More bad news. Russian tourists don’t buy a whole heap of souvenirs. Certainly not hats and t-shirts with ‘Russia’ or ‘USSR’ on them. Outside the famous Avrora cruiser museum, the stallholders idle their time with soup and a crossword.

The water colour girl in Pushkin park wasn’t having much luck either. As you can see from her expression, telling her I liked her hat didn’t exactly make her day.

You can spot Russian tourists anywhere. Unlike Americans or the Japanese, they don’t carry cameras. They all take pictures with mobiles. This way it doesn’t interrupt their almost continuous microwave twitter. Russia really is the Land of 1000 Ringtones.

Another thing about Russian tourists is that they always have their photo taken right in front of something, or with their face buried in a pot plant, or in some statue’s lap. I nit you shot, there was a long queue of provincial Russian girls for this lap opp.

But if Russia needs to retarget itself towards domestic tourism, it can only be to the greater good. I’m sure you all agree, destinations like St Petersburg and Moscow have been wildly overpriced for almost a decade.