The Government of Dagestan summarized the tourism results of the past year and outlined its plans and objectives for 2019. This was announced by Minister of Tourism and Folk Arts and Crafts of the Republic of Dagestan Rasul Ibragimov at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of Dagestan.
In his report, he noted that the annual increase in domestic and inbound tourist flow in 20% creates the need to increase the number of accommodation facilities by 1.5 times.
According to him, over the first 10 months of this year, the republic's tourist flow totaled 604,000 people, and next year the republic plans to welcome approximately 850,000 tourists, according to the official website of the Government of the Republic of Dagestan.
"Currently, there are 242 collective accommodation facilities operating in the republic with a total of 20,770 beds, including 52 tourist centers, 25 sanatoriums, 125 hotels, and 40 guest houses in 22 municipalities. Furthermore, in 2018, six hotels with a total of 272 beds were commissioned through private investment. Five hotels underwent the assessment and classification process, and now 10 hotels in Dagestan have been assigned a classification," Rasul Ibragimov noted in his report.
Speaking at the meeting, Rasul Ibragimov said that in 2019, greater attention will be paid to developing the tourist and excursion network, which currently includes 41 routes.
"We plan to update existing routes and select and promote branded routes in the region to the Russian and international tourism markets. We've also begun a project to develop a mobile app, 'Tourist Routes in Dagestan,' which we plan to launch by the start of the season. We'll also be creating an official online tourism portal with an English-language version, as well as new online and printed materials. Next year, we'll hold a number of significant events promoting our image—the international tourism forum 'Open Dagestan,' the international gastronomic festival 'Visit Dagestan,' the international extreme tourism festival 'Yarydag 2019,' the interregional fishing tourism festival, and a number of other events," the minister emphasized.
In addition, he supported the idea of developing extreme sports and winter recreation in the Republic, as well as holding various festivals.
"We must remember that extreme tourism is always closely linked, first and foremost, to ensuring safety, which means we need to work closely with the republic's Ministry of Emergency Situations. I'm a skier myself, and I can say that people aren't interested in going to the same places over and over again. Furthermore, skiers typically come for four to five days or more, and that's crucial in the tourism industry," Rasul Ibragimov noted.
Source: trn-news.ru