Rouble in paradise

By TATJANA FLADE

Only a tiny trickle of the worldwide flow of travellers ever visits Russia, the world's largest country. Yet the nation has a great deal to offer, culturally and in terms of natural beauty.

The crown jewel of tourism is the city of St Petersburg, with its castles and parks, its largely preserved historical centre and museums of top world quality.

It has done too little to capitalise on this. But now the city fathers want to make St Petersburg into a capital of tourism, not only in Russia but in north-west Europe.

"Tourism could become the most important economic factor for the city," says the St Petersburg committee for tourism.

It reports that about two million foreign guests visit each year, with numbers slowly rising.

But there could be many more visitors - "up to 30 million", according to Sergei Korneyev, vice-president of the Russian travel offices federation. This estimate is based on surveys, he says.

To lure those millions, a number of things must be accomplished, and the city knows it.

"We need 100 hotels," said Valery Golubev, chairman of the tourism committee. "Above all we need two- and three-star hotels for mass tourism."

He contended that the city has enough luxury-class hotels. It has around 140 hotels but many are small or not of international standard.

Infrastructure also needs improving, he says. "The airport needs a new terminal building and we must also build a new sea terminal."

One of the biggest obstacles to tourism remains the question of visas. After many years, there has finally been some movement in this regard, with a three-day visa now on offer for about $NZ50.

"This is the average length of stay of tourists in the city," Golubev said. He hopes that visitors of the future will not visit St Petersburg just once but will come back to the city on the Neva River several times. "After all, you don't visit Paris just once."

Korneyev of the travel bureau federation is counting on the new visa system. But he says there are also "other weak points", noting that Russian embassies abroad sometimes work "according to their own methods", something which causes immense damage to the country's image.

"Documents go missing, invitations are required, or the visa is too expensive. For the same money people can afford to spend nearly a week in Turkey," he complains.

Another problem is the dual pricing system for foreigners and local residents for museums and theatres. While Russians can get into the Eremitage or Catherine Palace for a tiny sum, foreigners come away with a bitter taste, knowing they have had to pay up to eight times as much.

- NZPA