An educational program for tour guides of the International RUSSIA EXPO was launched at the "More than a Trip" All-Russian Tourist Rally

On September 29 the first stage of the educational program "School for Tour Guides" of the International RUSSIA EXPO was launched in Pyatigorsk at the All-Russian Tourist Rally "More than a Journey". Its goal is to prepare 2 thousand specialists to work at the exposition, which will open on November 4 in Moscow at the VDNH.

Lectures, master classes and group work will be held at the "Mashuk" Knowledge Center with the support of the Russian Society "Knowledge". The organizers of the contest selection and educational program for tour guides are the program "More than a Trip" and ANO «Directorate of the Exhibition of Achievements "Russia"».

Two thousand tour guides from 89 regions of the country will participate in the educational program. They submitted applications and passed the initial selection of the "Guides of Meanings" contest. Among them are both professional tour guides and museum staff, as well as students and bloggers.

"Special attention will be paid to schoolchildren and students at the International RUSSIA EXPO. For them, this work will be an important experience and will lay the foundation for their future careers. Also, tour guides will lead everyone along six thematic routes: "Art", "Society", "Technology", "Energy", "Ecology", "Professions" — so that each visitor of the exposition could choose the topic that is most interesting to him", — noted the head of the excursion circuit of ANO «Directorate of the Exhibition of Achievements "Russia"» Pelageya Sterligova.

The first round of training will be held in a part-time format on the basis of the "Mashuk" Knowledge Center and the online educational platform of the training center "Academy of Hospitality". In "Mashuk" participants will develop excursion routes for further work at the exposition, come up with creative names for them and immersive component.

Famous public figures of Russia will give master classes for the students. For example, one of the authors of the exposition V.D.N.H. Urban Phenomenon at the XV Architecture Biennale in Venice Pavel Nefedov, founder of the project "Moscow through the eyes of an engineer" Airat Bagautdinov, art and architecture historian Tatyana Denisova, and educational project guide Arseniy Aredov.

"The team of methodologists of the program "More than a Trip" together with the "Academy of Hospitality" designed a unique educational program based on the traditions and values of upbringing and education of youth. We made sure that lecturers and mentors for tour guides from all over the country — participants of the contest "Guides of Meanings" — were the best practitioners of the industry, representatives of the key areas of achievements of the country, who will be able to pass on their experience, tell about the outstanding successes of our country in a variety of areas. The guides, having absorbed this knowledge, will pass it on to children and teenagers who will visit the International RUSSIA EXPO. In my opinion, the educational program will become another stimulus for the development of educational, formative, socially useful excursions and travel in general, which will help young people to look at their native country in a new way and make a personal contribution to its success and prosperity", — commented Zhanna Fedayeva, head of the educational projects implementation direction of the program "More than a Trip".

Following the training, participants with higher or secondary education will receive a certificate of completion of the professional improvement program, and students will receive a certificate of completion of the educational program "Tour Guide School". Based on the results of excursions at the RUSSIA EXPO in April 2024, 200 guides who have proved themselves will be invited to the closing ceremony of the event, where the best in 4 categories will be awarded: "Tour Guide", "Guide-Inclusive", "Children’s Guide" and "Guide-Translator".

Anna Pivovarova, the best guide of Russia — 2018, the hospitality ambassador of Rostov region, is a lecturer of the educational program — her master classes will be devoted to the creative component in the organization of excursions.

"The value of the designed program is in its uniqueness, because it was created specifically for work at the RUSSIA EXPO. For novice tour guides it is an opportunity to get basic knowledge, and for more experienced ones — to update them and learn something new. It is no coincidence that the abbreviation VDNH and the word "inspiration" have a consonant pronunciation: during the educational program participants will definitely get a charge of positivity and be inspired with new ideas for further work", — said Anna.

The program of the contest selection "Guides of Meanings" is divided into 2 directions — "Regions" and "Moscow and Moscow region". Participants of the selection, which takes place in two stages — from August 18 to September 18 and from September 19 to October 19, can be professional tour guides and guides-interpreters, museum staff, self-employed authors of excursion content (bloggers, local historians), students and other professionals from 22 years old, regardless of the region of residence. Details can be found in the official press release, and the application form can be filled out on the website of the program "More than a Trip".

The All-Russian Tourist Rally "More than a Trip" is taking place in Pyatigorsk from September 28 to October 2. One thousand people came to the capital of the North Caucasian Federal District: 600 children and teenagers — participants of the "Movement of the First" — and 400 experienced and novice travelers, tour guides, representatives of the industry, public organizations and regional authorities from 86 regions of Russia. At the active and business events of the camp they will summarize the results of the summer tourist season, discuss measures for the development of hiking tourism in the country, develop excursion routes for the International RUSSIA EXPO at VDNH, become participants of the School of Tourism and conquer the peaks of Mashuk and Beshtau mountains, which are loved by residents and guests of the Caucasus Mineral Waters. The organizers of the camp are the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh), the program "More than a Trip" and the Russian Movement of Children and Youth "Movement of the First". The co-organizers are the government of the Stavropol region, the administration of Pyatigorsk and the "Mashuk" Knowledge Center.