Social media users are discussing an unexpected reason Russians are traveling to Kazakhstan: going to the movies. The conversation was sparked by a post on Threads in which a woman said she flew to Almaty specifically to see the film «Avatar.»
A viral post fuels debate
The post quickly went viral, drawing tens of thousands of views and a flood of comments. Users expressed surprise, debated the logic of such trips and discussed what some have dubbed «cinema tourism.»
«I’m flying to Kazakhstan to see ‘Avatar.’ Kazakhs really wanted to know, because other Kazakhs don’t believe them, saying people fly from Russia to see movies,» the post said.
Why Russia-based viewers are traveling abroad
The motivation behind these trips is not that the film is completely unavailable in Russia, but how it is being shown. According to the post’s author, «Avatar» is largely limited to 2D screenings in Russia, along with pirated versions that suffer from poor image and sound quality, significantly diminishing the viewing experience.
As a result, some moviegoers are choosing to watch the film abroad, including in Kazakhstan, where it has an official theatrical release and is available in higher-quality formats.
