From 11 to 13 June, the first travel forum "Travel!" was held at VDNKh in Moscow. The main theme of the forum was the development of tourism in the regions and the presentation of national brand routes. The business program of the forum touched upon topical matters of the industry: the development of tourism products and services, the demand for recreation in the country among Russians and foreigners, the issues of attracting investments to realize the potential of the regions. Camping sites, motorhomes and travel equipment became the exhibits of the interactive exhibition. The guests of the forum were able to explore new technologies in tourism themselves.
The forum opened with a plenary session "Development of domestic and inbound tourism". Tatyana Sharshavitskaya, Deputy Chairman of the Moscow City Tourism Committee, spoke about the tourist projects of the capital. According to her, a deferred demand has formed in the industry, for which Moscow was able to prepare during the pandemic. The focus on the main trends in the industry – individualization and digitalization, according to experts – is the main priority in the creation and promotion of new travel products. New travel formats and sustainable interregional routes require constant information support.
“Tourism is a complex area where impressions and emotions are based on very simple earthly things: roads, services, rest stops, hotels. The presentation of all this is also tourism, and one is impossible without the other,” commented Maya Lomidze, Executive Director of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR).
The main task was to prepare and bring the Russian tourism market to the level demanded in the post-Covid period.
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The practical discussion "Large-scale IT: B2B and B2G communications in tourism" touched upon the issues of attracting investments to tourism products in the regions, their popularization and bringing them to a new, mass level. The session "How to create demand" outlined the primary methods and tools for revealing the demand for recreation in the regions, the main of which was the presentation of national brand routes and entertainment events and holidays that are interesting to travelers.
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Lovers of independent travel discussed new trends in the industry: auto routes, gastronomic, water and film tourism. Experts noted their growing popularity and new benefits such as the combination of active and intellectual components of travel. A separate important event was the open dialogue "Legal subtleties of tourism. How can a tourist protect him/herself?". There, the main mistakes of vacationers when planning a trip, and legal problems tourists face and how to solve them were discussed.
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The basis of the exhibition was the presentation of five brand routes that passed the expert assessment of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia. Orenburg presented the "Horizons of Discovery" route: three days on the border of Europe and Asia – mountains, steppe, eco-farm and treasury of ancient nomads. The route "Chelyabinsk. Even meteorites fly to us" in four days will reveal the main attractions of the region: Miass, Ilmen Reserve, Zlatoust. "Hello Altai!" – a 7-day sightseeing tour of mountain beauty without extreme activities and physical exertion will go from Barnaul through Katun and Teletskoye Lake to Belokurikha. "Kuzbass – Fire in the Heart" is a creative route that combines history, culture, technology, nature and ethnicity of the region. The interregional tour "Tsar's Road" reveals the historical path of the formation of the Russian State and connects the two capitals – Moscow and St. Petersburg.
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The interactive exhibition presented new trendy holiday formats – camping, glamping and caravanning. Forum visitors tested spacious modular houses with transparent walls with a 360-degree view, functional motorhomes with trailers for tourists traveling with children, as well as a new capsule passenger car for long-distance trains from Russian Railways. A distinctive feature of such cars is the introduction of an individual space for passengers: each will have an individual table, power outlets, lighting, seats will have the option to be separated from the passenger compartment by a curtain that does not let light through and muffles sounds, and the berth will be 15 cm longer. In addition, vending machines and showers will be installed in the new cars.
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The aesthetic touch to the exhibition was the photo zone "Searching for the New. Traveling with the Russian Geographical Society" with the works of the finalists of "The Most Beautiful Country" competition, as well as a VR-cinema showing the film "Russia. A virtual tour” – a spherical video that creates immersion effect.
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As part of the street exhibition, ATVs and snowmobiles of the STELS brand were presented, which, together with the Russian Geographical Society, took part in the development of the “Sayan Ring” route, that runs through the territories of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, Khakassia and Tuva.