Ecotourism in Murmansk area, Russia
- Climate - Religion - History of tourism on Kola Peninsula -Tourism today - Nature of tourism in Murmansk region -
- Main attractions -Tourism impacts -
Climate.
Murmansk is situated on the very edge of the Eurasian continent just before the icy void of the North Pole. However, this does not mean to say that it is always cold. In winter the average temperature is -10*C and in summer between 15*C and 25*C, resulting in an average annual temperature of around 0*C. The climate is fairly moderate due to the warm Atlantic Gulf Stream from the Barents Sea. It is very rare for there to be frosts of lower than -30*C, yet in summer the sweet smell of lilac and rowan blossom fills the air. During the hazy, lazy days of summer the people of Murmansk even sunbathe and go swimming in Semyonovskoye Lake in the northern part of the city. Those who have never been to Murmansk are positive that polar bears roam the deserted streets.
Religion.
The majority of the population of Murmansk are Russian Orthodox. There are 3 Russian Orthodox churches in the city: The Cathedral of St. Nicholas, the Church of St. Trifon of Pechenga and the Church of St. Panteleymon. Also, however, there are people of other religious faiths living in Murmansk. And these include Catholics, Evangelical Christian Baptists, Seventh Day Adventists, Jehovah's Witnesses, Lutherans, members of the New Apostle Church, Muslims, Buddhists and believers in Krishna. They even building their own churches.
History of tourism on Kola Peninsula.
To begin with the remark should be made that the essay will present only current situation in Murmansk area, because Russian trends are unpredictable and the structure of tourism differs a lot in every special area of the country.
If you take a look at the map of Kola Peninsula you will notice a suitable harbor in-between surrounding hills. From the ancient times aboriginal population lived there. Their main occupation was hunting, fishing and rein deer breeding. The first visitors from entire world were Vikings. Later, in the sixteenth century, due to military threats from Sweden and England, the northwest Russians built big fortress-styled monasteries. The remnants of these serve today as an important base for tourism. At that time the first settlement of Kola appeared on the bank of the gulf. Valuable geographical position was on of the reasons. The port was built there, which is the only port in the north of Russia to remain ice-free all year round. The majority of the population was bonded with the trade of fur and fish. So a big number of travelers were merchants mostly from Novgorod area. At the end of 19th century Russian Empire needed to protect itself from the north as never before and from that time Kola became strategically important region. Some years later near the old settlement of Kola a new town was founded in the reign of the Romanov Tsar, Nicholas II, in 1916 and was originally called Romanov-on Murman. In 1917 the town was renamed Murmansk by Soviet power. At that time most of the foreigners were alien countries sailors from all over the Globe, including Africa. After the revolution the new Soviet power established huge fishing and trading fleets there. And nowadays large enterprises are connected with the sea. These include the Merchant Sea Port (founded in 1915), the Fishing Port (1934), the first Russian Trawler Fleet (1920), the fish produce manufacturing industries, the Murmansk Shipyard Association, the Murmansk Shipping Company. Fairly recently some firms have been created specializing in the exploration of oil and gas in the northern seas. But the real growth of industrialization began only after the Second World War. Many of tourism theorists consider the World growth of tourism industry at that time as well.
During the cold war northwest Russia again had a strategic military position. However, the remnants of the cold war are a threat both for the inhabitants and for tourists: the old-fashioned nuclear installations on the Kola Peninsula; the nuclear bomb testing island Novaya Zemlya; the military marine base in Severomorsk on the Kola Peninsula. Though threatening, these installations are monuments from an important historical period, and are not without interest to tourists.
People living in the north are called "northerners" and are traditionally said to have a special type of mentality. They have a peaceful past. For various reasons this part of Russia avoided involvement in Russian wars until the Second World War. These encounters gave rise to commercial and cultural activities which distinguished the northward from the rest of Russia. The northerners became a frontier people, merchants and sailors, an extroverted and open people.
Mass tourism as we imagin it began only at the end of 70th. But for a long time most of the tourists were from other socialist countries, nevertheless there were official guests going to Murmansk from Finland, Sweden and Norway.
Essential changes in tourism happened in the early 90th.
Tourism today.
Ref.: The area of Murmansk region is populated with about 1,1 mil. And 70% of them living in urban areas. Most of the territory is wilderness with Arctic climate.
As it was said before, after the collapse of USSR a new economical policy caused changes in tourism industry - lots of tourist companies were established. The borders have been opened. Efforts were made to re-establish old trading relationships between the northern countries in Europe. During Soviet time there was the state monopoly in tourism ? "Intourist", which exists till now, but it lost its market shares, because it had no competitors and occurred to be inefficient structure. Nowadays in Muramansk area operates more than 30 different tourist companies. Most of them recruit up to 10 employees and many are run by former "Intourist?s" staff. Approximately half of the companies operate in outcoming tourist niche other part in incoming, but there are also ones trying to operate in both of the markets and usually the reason for that is not a very successful marketing strategy. At last time tourism business in Murmansk has begun to resemble an analogue one in any other developed country. From all the number of tourist agencies distinguished one or two, which became to arrange its own products acting in the mode of tour-operators. Before the crisis in 1998 one company even invested huge money in promoting the destination and had success. I would like to illustrate this wtith an example. That was Bulgarian so-called 3S product (sand, sea and sun), it was chip and middle class families could afford it, besides they arranged straight charter flight from Murmansk to Burgas. To give you the whole picture of tourism I should give different example of bad-planed marketing strategy. A company tried to promote brand-new destination ? Cyprus, presenting it as 3S and high level service (but not elite), but they fortunately finished the season with zero-balance only because its marketing unit made research on this destination in time. The results of research show very low level of informational awareness of respondents on the subject of recreational facilities in Cyprus and most of them appeared to prefer well-known destinations. The mistake was in positioning the product as 3S and alternative at once. Alternative here means that it was presented as extremely new (nobody offered it before in Murmansk). According to hierarchy of Maslow, motives of traveler should be in different levels at the time: 3S ? safety, alternative element of the product ? self-esteem. So, it made impossible for mass tourist to buy Cyprus as well as for seeking adventures. The conclusion could made that to do business in tourism in Russia is a matter of big risk and the industry requires well-educated and experienced professionals as well as a big amount of research, which should be the base for forecasting to set down the risks.
Now about outcoming tourism destinations. The first thing that should be taken in consideration is that in Murmansk winter lasts for more than half a year. Severe climate conditions and long Polar night explain the main stream of tourists destinations. It looks like outcoming tourism industry exists from May till September, when most of the people try to flee from the north to the coast of a warm sea and sun. As it was mentioned in the previous paragraph, before the crisis 1998 most of middle class travelers could afford chip 3S destinations such as Turkey, Bulgaria or Ukraine, but after fall 1998 people not only have got fewer income, they became to save much and reduced their consumption. The result was that in summer seasion?99 these leisure tourists turned to go to Russian south ? Caucasian coast of the Black Sea and Azov Sea coast. So we can figure out that the main decision-taking criteria for choosing 3S destination is family?s budget available. There should be added that all above concerns mass tourist, which, however, makes 90% of all 3S market in Murmansk. This group of mass tourist consists mostly of middle aged people ( 30-50 years old) often with families, spouses and children. Old people can be meet in that group very seldom, except grandparents with grandchildren. The main reason for that is the most of them are pensioners. This is a Russian paradigm that people who worked all their life finally got tiny allowance from the state. For us it means that they hardly can be considered as customers of tourist product. This is important when dealing with receiving Russian tourists in the place of destination, because old people from all the rest of developed countries are now desired and expected a lot by hotels of the destination.
As far as the topic of the essay is aimed to present tourism in Murmansk area we can distinguish, perhaps, second important peculiarity of outcoming travel stream. Russia has the only long inland border with "classic" capitalist country ? Finland. That is why after Russian borders were opened Mass Russian tourist comes to Finland actually only from the bordering areas ( St. Petersburg, Petrozavodsk, Murmansk and etc.). This stream exceeds 50% of the number of all Russian tourists going to Finland. In the Table 1 you can see the total amount of tourists from Russia. In general Russian tourists are prepared to all this formalities, normally nobody forgets to obtain visa in advance. Concerning tourists from Murmansk, there is another important thing that keeps some travelers from going to Finland ? awful road at the Russian side of the border (approximately 100 km to Lotta?s customs). There is no any statistic data, but I?ll take the responsibility to say that the main stream of tourists from Murmansk area to Finland, nevertheless, passes "the northern gates" of Lotta and spreads expiring in middle Finland. The main destinations are Saariselkä (tropical swimming pools and spas) and Rovaniemi (shoping, Santa Claus, Arcticum, seldom ? safaris ).
Nature of tourism in Murmansk region.
"Tourism in the north-west Russia is filled with paradoxes? The mixture of modernity and with tradition and heritage makes it an interesting tourist destination? Tourists may find enjoyment in unexpected and surrealistic events during their stay. Northern Russian society today provides something very essential to tourism experiences: the unfamiliar, unexpected and occasional."
( C.Michael Hall, Polar tourism, p. 101)
In that part of the essay only incoming tourism is taken in concern. The territories for fishing and hunting in Muramansk area are enormous. Most of incoming tourists from abroad are attracted mostly by ecotourism or its varieties. The tourism infrastructure (transportation mainly) is not developed so far, accommodation standards only in few cases could compared with western. As a fact the quality demands in the accommodation sector are lower for group of alternative tourism (e.g. ecotourism) than for mass tourist. And possibilities for that sector are great. Let?s take for example Khibiny mountains, which don?t have good infrastructure for marketing it as a skiing resort, though natural facilities are outstanding, but some tourist companies promote adventure tourism with success (hiking trips, rock-climbing competitions, water tourism).
	There are two forest reservations in Kola Peninsula: Laplandskii (founded 1930, 1584 sq. km) and Kandalakshskii (founded 1932, 289 sq. km), both of them are 1% of the territory of Murmansk region. A number of tourists companies mainly from the southern part of Kola Peninsula (Kandalakhsa, Poliarnie zori, Allakurti, etc.) organize hiking routs for foreign tourists in those reservations, where it is allowed.
Another historic root of tourism in the Russian North is the pilgrimage, seen in the Russian?s voyages to northern monasteries and sacred places. Today we may look upon this as a form of special interest tourism. Besides religious contemplation, the stay might have included outdoor activities. There are many sacred places, chapels and crosses which could be reached by foot or by rowing through canals and lakes. Each sacred spot has plates with inscriptions and information about the place or monument.
At present time foreign tourists visiting Murmansk area could be characterized as extreme tourists, except business travelers.
	"Tourist trips to northern Russia, as to all Russia, except Moscow and St Petersburg, should be marked as alternative tourism or special interest tourism."
(Smith and Eadington, 1992)
Northwest?s Russia history is well documented and much of its heritage is well preserved. The rank of historical monuments is endless. In Murmansk and Archangel areas there more than 800 archeological sites, 200 of which has been excavated, 8 monasteries, hundreds of churches, prehistoric sites such as labyrinths and rock carvings, many interesting pre-Revolutionary cultural sites and monuments from the Soviet period.
		So as to plan an efficient marketing strategy for the region the convenient image of Murmansk area should be promoted. The image should include items: wilderness, "cold war monument", nuclear threat, pollutions. These things, according to other different researches, are able to attract tourists from abroad even now, without good tourism infrastructure and insatiable economy. "The Cultural Russian Arctic" might be an appropriate image slogan for this area.
Main attractions.
well worth visiting is the Oceanarium, where seal?s shows take place;
Bark the "Sedov" ( owned by MSTU). The vessel was built in Krupp shipyard, Kiel (Germany) in 1921. The ship is to accomodate 164 cadets were equipped, a conference hall, a ward-room, mess-rooms, a gym-hall, a museum, a sauna-bath. Class-rooms were equipped, the most updated equipment for navigation control, observation and communication have been installed. The "Sedov" tall training ship has been entered into the Guinnes Book of Records" as the biggest of remaining currently sailing vessels. From the date of transferring to the Ministry of Fisheries of the USSR(beginning in1966 to 1998) the vessel made 55 training voyages and took part in international races of tall ships for many times during which she entered over 200 times ports of Europe, America, Africa. She has covered over 300 thousand nautical miles. From the upper edge of the keel to the top accorn) comprises 62.6 m, the height of the first and the second mainmast amounts to 63.5 m, that of the aftermast is 54.7m
Nuclear (atomic) ice-breakers are in great demand for a couple of last years. Expensive voyages to the North Pole are arranged for a small group of participants annually. There are guests from Saudi Arabia, USA, Iran, Australia.
Big sporting events and concerts held in the Ice Palace also await you.
there are nearly 30 statues and monuments in Murmansk, some of which are unique. If, apart from your tour guide, you also happen to know someone who lives in Murmansk, then no doubt you will be taken to stroll through quiet hidden backstreets and picturesque neighbourhoods.
in winter you may be invited to go skiing in the hills and in summer to picnic by beautiful lakes.
from Murmansk across the Gulf of Kola to the Barents Sea is a distance of 50 km. There are regular boat trips to the open sea and cruises to the islands of Spitsbergen and Novaya Zemlya and even to the North Pole.
the most northern trolleybuses in the world travel along the streets of Murmansk. In the 33 years since their introduction they have clocked up 133,000,000 km, which is equivalent to going round the world along the equator 3,319 times. And this is with 2 billion passengers. Why don't you go for a ride on the 3,320th trip!
folk dancers perform for tourists, and local festivals are quite common. Murmansk is also the capital of the international Festival of the North, which attracts sportsman and visitors from different countries and continents.
There are some tourist companies in Kandalaksha, which offer extreme excursions to the Nuclear Plant.
fishing and hunting as well a snowmobile safaris, hiking and boating are available.
"Even more interesting for many tourists is to meet local people and to talk to people who have been living in one of the biggest social and political experiments ever seen."
(C.Michael Hall, Polar tourism, p. 107 )
Tourism Impacts.
	Nowadays there is no mass tourists in Murmansk area, so it is difficult to distinguish different impacts. State?s policy of Russia doesn?t pay enough attention to development of tourism industry, a often happens in countries, where other industries contribute into the budget much. But the peculiarity of Kola Peninsula, as it was mentioned before, is that it is a frontier zone. Well known that the economy growth depends on how good entire world connections established, so only through developing tourism in boarder?s regions we can support the economy on the whole. Another important thing is that Kola is considered to be one of the most ecologically dangerous area in the world (nuclear submarines are based, nuclear plant, Monchegorsky plant and etc.). So there is no sense to speak about environmental impact of tourism when it makes 1/ 1 000 000 000, I guess, in compare with industry influences the nature. The task is to attract attention to this environmental problems, in other words to make people know the real situation. Half of that problem could be solved by developing of ecotourism in Muramansk area. More people will know ? much attention would be paid by local authorities and hopefully by the state. Economic impact plays an important role. Development of tourism sector will increase budget funds, which could be aimed to solve ecological problems as well.