TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN RUSSIA AND KUZBASS: AWARE OF THE PROBLEMS

Abstract

The paper discusses the main features of the development of the tourism industry in Russia and Kuzbass under the state authorities’ realizing the need to diversify the economy and recognizing the tourism industry perspective. The authors come to the conclusion that today tourism in Kuzbass, as in Russia in general, is developing very rapidly, but not problemfree. The Russian economy has focused mainly on the export of resources, Kuzbass facing the same problem. The country’s government is keenly aware of the need to diversify the economy through the formation and development of new industries, which will make a significant contribution to the country’s GDP, one of these sectors is tourism. However, they also state that guiding Russia’s tourism development is really not a priority. The adopted conception of cluster development of tourism is bringing results, but they are not as significant as they could be. Despite the development and implementation of Federal and regional programmes, tourism is developing more by inertia under the influence of many external and internal factors. The conditions of the 2014 crisis have set prospects for the development of domestic and inbound tourism, but still this process is limited to old problems: lack of infrastructure and fairly uncompetitive prices of tourist services. However, the development of sustainable tourism industry that brings a significant contribution to the country’s revenue is a difficult and long process in the Russian context, but relevant and irreversible.