Tourism in Russia - Article Example

Running Head: Russia Russia [Institute’s Russia Tourism has always been a major and imperative aspect globally that plays a significant role in the economic, cultural, as well as, social development of a country. In the past, such important aspect has been inauspicious in acquiring its significance; however, studies have indicated that a number of steps have been taken to develop the tourism industry since two decades, which has resulted in its noteworthy impact economically, as well as, culturally. In addition, tourism sector is now considered one of the most imperative industries that contribute significantly to a country’s economy. Specifically, this paper will discuss and analyze some of the different features of tourism industry in Russia, in order to understand its related factors, determinants, and its influence on other sectors of the country. Geographically, Russia is considered as transcontinental country having its boundaries in both Asia, as well as, Europe. In specific, a larger part of the Russian Federation is extended in northern Eurasia. Moreover, some of the countries that share their borders with Russia are Poland, Finland, Norway, Georgia, China, North Korea, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Latvia, etc. It can be seen that a number of these countries are rich in terms of culture and heritage, which is a kind of benefit for Russia, for being located in a rich cultural region. In terms of borders touching waters, Russia shares its boundaries with the Black Sea, the Baltic Sea, and the Caspian Sea. In addition, it provides sea route with the Pacific Ocean, as well as, the Arctic Ocean. (Jafari, pp. 516, 2003) A country sharing its boundaries with so many land and water locations is considered an immensely benefited location in context of tourism, which is the reason that despite of Russia’s image of battle land and superpower, its historical places attract millions of tourists every year. Another reason for selecting Russia particularly for this study is its recognition as the largest country of planet earth covering 17,075,400 square km, and thus, the paper will now try to identify different physical resources that are contributing in appealing millions of inbound, as well as, outbound tourists from different parts of the globe. Almost every country has been blessed with historical treasures, physical features, attractive sites, etc; however, it is essential that such places should be maintained and utilized according to the demands and specialties of particular region. In other words, physical features can be utilized for energy purposes, as well as, for tourism objectives. It is the responsibility of caretakers, either government of private stakeholders to develop the resources physically, biologically, as well as, culturally that they may contribute to the tourism sector in a significant manner. In this regard, Russia has been very fortunate in being a location of many historical places, landscape architectures, lakes, etc that have been successful in bringing tourists from inside, as well as, outside the region. In the year 1991, the former Soviet Union was collapsed that resulted in emergence of the Russian Federation. Since then, a rapid growth is observed in the tourism industry of Russia. A significant role has been played by the Russian government in maintaining and renovating empires’ treasures and historical towns and cities that are considered fortunes in tourism context. In specific, Moscow and St. Petersburg cities are the focal point of more than eighty percent of outbound, as well as, inbound tourists in Russia. According to studies, some of the most visited attractions in Russia are the Red Square, the Hermitage Museum, the Kremlin, and a number of other historical locations of the country. (Richardson, pp. 37-38, 2001) As earlier mentioned, despite of confused and conspired history of the Russian Federation, the country is immensely rich in cultural heritage. Some of the other attractive tourism locations of Russia are the Tretyakov Gallery and the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow, (Vorhees, pp. 31-32, 2003) and St. Isaac’s Cathedral in St. Petersburg city of the Russian Federation. Russia has also been famous for its white nights at Venice of the North, which has been able to attract millions of tourists in St. Petersburg city. (Charlton, pp. 21-22, 2006) Some of the other attractive locations found in St. Petersburg are the Summer Palace, the Russian Museum, and the Church of the Savior on Blood. (Masters, pp. 49-50, 2005) Recently, the government has inaugurated the Ilya Glazunov Gallery in Moscow that has received enormous response from tourists around the globe. Excluding the two cultural cities of Russia, Novgorod, Kirov, Kazan, Rostov, and Kaliningrad are some of the noteworthy cities and towns located in Russia. Before dissolution of the Soviet Union, a central management system of foreign and domestic tourism was practiced in the region. However, a reformation and restructuring of the tourism sector was carried out after 1991 that resulted in significant results in terms of revenue, as well as, its impact on employees and stakeholders in Russia, as well as, other parts of the globe. Today, tourism industry of Russia is one of the most developed industries of the globe. According to statistics, a rapid growth is observed in the established of tourism-related companies in different parts of Russia, as the experts have witnessed establishment of more than a hundred tourist companies in less than a decade. (Berge, pp. 19-21, 2004) However, it should be noted that a larger percent of such companies are operated on smaller level, and only fifteen percent of tourist companies are carrying out their operations on larger levels. Despite of rapid growth of tourism industry and significant efforts by the Russian government, it is observed that the tourism sector of Russia was adversely affected by the financial crisis of August 1998. (Jackson, pp. 23-25, 2002) A sharp decline was observed in the travelling capacity of Russians on domestic level, and such crisis affected foreign visits to Russia as well that resulted in a significant drawback for the country. For instance, tourism statistics indicated that domestic visitors in different towns and cities of Russia were more than 175,000 in the year 1998. On the other hand, financial crisis resulted in sharp decline in domestic visitors that were approximately 95,000 in the year 1999. Similarly, tourism statistics for the year 1998 showed approximately 210,000 foreign visitors in different Russian cities and towns; however, financial crisis resulted in only 180,000 foreign tourists in the year 1999. Experts have noted that domestic tourism was considered one of the largest industries in the USSR before its dissolution. However, significant importance has now been given to foreign visitors, as compared with domestic visitors in the country. In this regard, a number of cultural attractions have renovated during the last decade, particularly in Moscow and St. Petersburg, which are visited and preferred by more than eighty percent of foreign tourists in Russia. Recently, natural environment of the country has been able to create a new trend in tourism, and foreign travelers are visiting Russia for purposes of eco-travelling. (Trenin, pp. 59-63, 2007) According to statistics, more than seventy-five percent of foreign tourists belong to the United States, Poland, Germany, Japan, and China. In the year 2000, a study was carried out to understand the background of tourists visiting Russia from different countries. It was observed that more than thirty-five percent of tourists bring their families to Russia after visiting couple of times for business purposes. In this regard, government should take significant steps to integrate business environment with tourism attractions that may result in increment in tourists’ turnaround. In context of domestic tourism, noteworthy lacking is observed in marketing strategies at local level that has limited the pleasant appearances of different cultural heritage sites in Russia. Such lacking has affected visits by foreign tourists as well. Moreover, tourism-monitoring organizations have observed that a number of travel-related services in Russia are still not up to international standards. (Homer, pp. 137, 2004) As earlier mentioned, hundreds of small tourism-related companies have established in the country; however, the government has not been able to ensure implementation of international standards that have left a negative impact on tourism industry of Russia. In this respect, a number of new tourism related projects have been announced by the Russian government recently for institutionalization of hotel management, and other related services that play a crucial role in the success and development of tourism industry in the country. Still, a huge room of improvement is accessible, and consideration should be given to domestic tourism that can play a pivotal role in economic development of the country. After the break of the Soviet Union, a noteworthy role was played by the collaboration of Russian government and the private stakeholders. (Thomas, pp. 111-115, 2006) Presently, it is very imperative that private investors should be allowed to collaborate, in order to develop domestic tourism. According to the statistics for the year 2004, more than ten billion dollars were made by the Russian government through domestic tourism. In this regard, inbound tourism has great potential of contribution, and thus, proper steps should be taken to ensure elimination of any lacking in this sector. Studies have indicated that only a few companies have experienced individuals in domestic tourism, and therefore, it is a need of time to provide training to employees of tourism agencies and companies, which would be beneficial for tourism industry of the country. In the year 2005, the Federal Tourism Agency was established by the Russian government, and which has played a vital role in rapid development and advancement of Russian tourism industry. Now, it is the responsibility of FTA to ensure provision of quality of services to domestic, as well as, foreign visitors in different cities and towns of the country. A number of organizations have indicated complaints related to Russia Visa process, and it is suggested that common standards should be set according to international principles. Russia is an appealing tourism destination; however, it is imperative that the country should be promoted with proper planning, effective marketing strategies, and collaboration with private entrepreneurs. Russia is an energy superpower, permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, as well as, an important member of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Experts have indicated that Russia has a great potential of leading the tourism industry as well due to presence of a number of historical towns and cities, particularly, Moscow and St. Petersburg. Since a decade, a rapid growth has been observed in the development of outbound tourism, and it is now essential to consider inbound tourism as well, which has suffered adversely until now. A number of strategies have been suggested in the paper, which will be beneficial for profitable success of tourism industry in the Russian Federation. Conclusively, the paper has discussed some of the significant aspects of tourism industry of Russia. It is hoped that the paper will be beneficial for students, teachers, and professionals in better understanding of the topic. References Angela Charlton. (2006). Frommer’s Moscow & St. Petersburg. John Wiley & Sons. Ann Berge. (2004). Russia ABCs. Picture Window Books. Dan Richardson. (2001). the Rough Guide to Moscow. Rough Guides. Dmitriĭ Trenin. (2007). Getting Russia Right. Carnegie Endowment. Jafar Jafari. (2003). Encyclopedia of Tourism. Routledge. Mara Vorhees. (2003). Moscow. Lonely Planet. Rhodri Thomas. (2006). Tourism in the New Europe. Elsevier. Richard H. Jackson. (2002). Geography of Travel & Tourism. Cengage Learning. Susan Homer. (2004). International Cases in Tourism Management. Butterworth-Heinemann. Tom Masters. (2005). St. Petersburg. Lonely Planet. Total Words: 1761 Words Read More