OREANDA-NEWS. November 24, 2009. The II workshop conference Northern Tourist Destinations as a Dominant of Tourism Development in the Northwest Region devoted to the travel industry Development in the Northwest of Russia and in the Nordic countries has finished its work in Petrozavodsk. The conference was organized by the Ministry of Economic Development of Karelia, administration of Petrozavodsk urban district, Russian International Academy of Tourism, Karelian Institute of Tourism and Petrozavodsk State University.

Opening the conference, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Karelia Evgeny Kotkin has noted that "creation of conditions for increase of competitiveness and attraction of any region is the task to be solved by a joint effort of authorities, representatives of tourist business, public organizations and scientific circles. Discussion of today's problems in the sphere of travel industry assumes practical result of development of joint strategy of solution of these tasks."

Sergey Shpilko, President of the Russian Union of Travel Industry, has taken part in work of the conference having told that now experts observe 7% decrease of the world tourist flow. According to the statistics, in the first six months in Russia decrease in the outgoing tourist flow has made about 23%, and the inflow decrease has made 15%. At the same time, many Russian tour operators speak about the accretion of demand in the home market. In the context of the crisis the tendency of accretion of demand for less expensive unorganized vocation revealed. Sergey Shpilko also said that in this season Russians actively bought passes to the best health resorts of Russia. "Me can't but mention Kivach medical and preventive treatment sanatorium, that is a marketing legend. Kivach has acquainted other health resorts of Russia with its marketing experience," – Sergey Shpilko has noted.

Head of the Department of economy and tourism development of the Ministry of Economic Development of Karelia Vladimir Gromov in his report On Features of Tourism Development Management in Frontier Regions During the Crisis has noted that many companies of Karelia under the present severe constraints of the competition keep developing and offering new rather interesting products of attraction of tourists during the winter season. There are tour agencies offering, for example, ice diving. In Zaonezhie, the famous area of Karelia, tourists will be offered excursions to places of extraction of schungite, the unique mineral possessing medical properties.

Vladimir Gromov also has told about some anti-recessionary actions implemented in Karelia directed on maintenance of travel industry. In particular, it is subsidizing of a part of the commercial credit interest rates, which is considerable help for the companies that submitted applications for such support. For the first time in 2009 the republic is implementing the program of granting entrepreneurs willing to start their business, and in Karelia there are businessmen working in the sphere of tourism who have taken advantage of such help from the state.

At the same time, now stimulus for tourism development could be granting of tax deductions for citizens buying internal tourist producst and revision of the system of use of the so-called financial guarantees in the sphere of inbound tourism – tour operators' liability insurance. Besides, one of effective measures for the travel industry development could become decrease in the VAT rates for hotel business.

At the conference rector of the Russian International Academy of Tourism Igor Zorin who has told that experts in cultural heritage will be trained on a special program under the aegis of the UNESCO. Their task will include promotion and increase of lists of cultural heritage. Igor Zorin has emphasized, that "regions of Russia will have an opportunity to declare those objects of natural, cultural and historical value which may be included in the list of the UNESCO World Heritage. It will allow to raise interest to this or that region considerably from the point of view of its tourist prospects; and in Karelia in this respect there are objects worth receiving such status."

Carrying out of the conference in Karelia has emphasized the increased role of the republic as the region perspective and attractive for tourism development.