New hotels, routes and points of attraction: the prospects of tourism were discussed at the Exposition
On June 12, the RUSSIA EXPO held a plenary session "International
Tourism. Russia and the World". It was held as part of the IV Russian
Tourism Forum "Travel! " — the central event in the sphere of tourism
and hospitality. The session focused on the development of domestic tourism and
the development of international cooperation in the sphere of leisure and
travel.
Russian President Vladimir Putin sent greetings to the
participants and organizers of the forum.
"It is gratifying that in recent years tourism in
Russia is developing dynamically, becoming a significant factor in
strengthening the economic, infrastructural potential of settlements, cities
and entire regions, contributes to the successful solution of demanded tasks in
the field of education and enlightenment, patriotic education of young people,
preservation of our rich historical, cultural and spiritual heritage. And of
course, the tourism industry creates conditions for the expansion of
entrepreneurial and creative initiative, growth of related spheres:
construction and catering, healthcare and trade. New jobs are opened, hotels,
cafes and restaurants are built, popular vacation spots are improved,
fascinating sightseeing tours are developed, interesting souvenirs are
produced, " Vladimir Putin said in his greeting.
Tourism is the fastest growing sector of the economy, said
Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Chernyshenko.
"According to Vladimir Putin's decision, the national
project ‘Tourism and Hospitality Industry’, which ensured the take-off of our
tourism industry, has been extended until 2030. This gives very clear,
understandable prospects for the entire industry. We have set ambitious goals
to increase the share of tourism in GDP up to 5%, to increase exports of travel
services and the number of tourist trips up to 140 million. We have a lot of
things to surprise tourists and can offer a variety of types of recreation:
sea, ski resorts, historical cities, thermal springs, balneology, industrial
and ecological tourism. Today we will talk about what more needs to be done to
create attractive conditions for recreation in our country, including for our
foreign guests," emphasized Dmitry Chernyshenko.
Tourism is developing largely due to changes in transport
infrastructure, improvement and business attention to the industry, said the
Minister of Economic Development of Russia Maxim Reshetnikov. Now it is a point
of growth in the economy, a space for investment, and an opportunity for
residents to have a vacation in their country. And people actively use it — it
is anticipated that the number of tourist trips in 2024 will reach 90 million,
reported the head of the Ministry of Economic Development. To achieve the
national project's goal of 140 million trips, efforts are being made in three
key areas: expanding accommodation capacity, creating new attractions, and
developing transportation infrastructure.
"Currently the room stock in Russia is one million. In
order to reach the target figures, we will need to create another 240 thousand
rooms by 2030. We are actively working to achieve this goal — we have programs
to support modular and large hotels. More than 240 places of accommodation for
57 thousand rooms are now under construction," Maxim Reshetnikov told.
In addition, Russia has launched major projects to create
new tourist points of interest — in particular, plans to create 22 new ski
slopes, amusement parks and water parks across the country have already been
selected, the minister said. There are also plans to create several large
amusement parks so that people from anywhere in the country can reach them with
their families in 3-4 hours. Another major project is "Five Seas and Lake
Baikal", which will give a boost to the regions. In terms of transport,
the Ministry of Economic Development is working with specialized organizations
to modernize airports, create new long-distance railway routes and create
infrastructure for car tourism.
"Undoubtedly, the development of inbound tourism is
extremely important for us. This year, we have seen a 50% increase in this
indicator in the first few months. We are now launching a program to promote
our tourism products in foreign markets. Our target countries are the Persian
Gulf states, China, and India. We have also started working more closely with
Southeast Asian countries," Maxim Reshetnikov informed.
The electronic visa, launched last year for foreign
tourists, has proved itself well, the head of the Ministry of Economic
Development noted. For 10 months it was used by 400 thousand people. It is
planned to reduce its cost in the future, and to simplify obtaining it. The
Ministry is also negotiating the abolition of visas with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain,
Kuwait, Oman, Malaysia and Myanmar. A number of agreements are expected to be
signed by the end of this year.
The session was attended by representatives of domestic and
foreign specialized agencies, legislative authorities, tourism associations and
businesses. They discussed international cooperation in the field of tourism,
industry logistics and investments, as well as exchanged experience in
international promotion of tourist products and marketing in this area.
The IV Russian Tourism Forum "Travel!" takes place
within the RUSSIA EXPO from June 12 to 16. This is a large-scale event that
presents Russia's powerful tourism potential, international tourism and
demonstrates the diversity of travel. The organizer is the Roscongress
Foundation. The Forum is held with the official support of the Government of
the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian
Federation, ANO "National Priorities", the Centre for Strategic
Research and leading industry associations. The Forum combines a business
program and a tourism festival.
The integration of special military operation veterans into peaceful life and the interaction between regions and municipalities were discussed as part of the Forum "SMALL HOMELAND – THE STRENGTH OF RUSSIA".
The second All-Russian Municipal Forum "Small Homeland – the Strength of Russia" is taking place at the National Centre RUSSIA.