National tourist rating of Russian regions: Typological diversity

Abstract

In the context of increasing interest in the development of the tourist and recreational sphere of activity, the rating of Russian regions, which makes it possible to identify leaders and outsiders in the development of domestic and international inbound tourism, is one of the effective tools for strategic planning and management at the federal and regional levels of government, at the same time contributing to the formation of preferences of Russian citizens about the possibilities of leisure and recreation. The aim of the study is to identify typological groups of Russian regions and the main trends in the development of their tourist attractiveness based on the dynamics of the values of the National Tourist Rating for the period 2016-2020. The approach based on the dynamics of the values of the National Tourism Rating for the period 2016-2020 and their medians allows us to identify typological groups of the regions of the Russian Federation in terms of tourist attractiveness, oftourist potential and popularity among domestic and foreign tourists, as well as to determine the main trends in its development.The open data of the official website of the National Tourism Rating for the period 2016-2020 as well as scientific developments on the issues under study by Russian researchers are used. The analysis revealed five typological groups of Russian regions in terms of the level of tourist attractiveness: high (12.9%), increased (16.5%), medium (18.8%), insufficient (32.9%) and low (18.8%). In addition, three main trends in the development of regional tourist attractiveness have been identified. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the tourist development of Russian regions is different. The part of the regions of the Russian Federation received benefits and strengthened their positions with varying degrees of growth in the National Tourism Rating (38.8%), a large share reduced their values (47%), the fifth part of the regions retained their positions in the ranking (21.2%). The material is of interest to researchers focusing on the tourist competitiveness and tourist attractiveness of Russia in general and in the regional context, to regional authorities, specialists as well as students of specialized institutions.