Hiking in the mountains for the first time. An ironic story about tourism
Before starting a story about the history of tourism, let's try to define the subject of our conversation. Today, science has several dozen definitions of tourism. Each of them is correct in its own way, although it emphasizes different or, more precisely, different sides, aspects, facets of one concept.
Without going into the intricacies of scientific disputes, one can definitely say that from ancient times to the present day, the idea of the versatility, diversity of the phenomenon, its social essence is seen as the main one here. Considering this question historically, we will try to name some of these facets. The triad formula that has existed in our country for many years is widely known: tourism is recreation, knowledge, sport.
Tourism is not just a hobby or a fashion. This is a vital need for most normal people. At different times and eras, about the same thing attracted them to tourism: the romance of travel, which means an escape from the ordinary, and even the possibility of informal communication. Each participant of such trips begins to feel like a discoverer and explorer. Thanks to ever new changes, tourism makes life more interesting, fills it with unexpected discoveries in nature and in society. Such trips help to form and enrich a person spiritually and physically.
The world is changing before our eyes. And different people talk about tourism in different ways. Time always dictates the limits of the possible. Could we have considered two decades ago that tourist travel is, first of all, trips to Canary Islands and the Bahamas, to London or Rome? Today it is very simple: open almost any newspaper and choose a point on the map. There would be enough funds, more precisely - money. And then such a tourist learns the world from the window of a bus or carriage, from the board of a ship or an airliner.
A legitimate question arises: how many citizens of our country in today's, very difficult time for most honest workers, will be able to find the necessary amount of funds for such a trip? We can say for sure, even without looking at the statistics - very little! Only a few percent of the rich and well-to-do. Most people have different problems.
The whole world has traveled and continues to travel along the paths tested by travel agencies, having a voucher in your pocket indicating hotels and well-known excursion objects. For many countries, tourism is the main budget item.
Consider another paradox of our modern life. Who was most recently considered or called a tourist? The man with the backpack! A backpack or knapsack was an integral part of a traveler. Nikolai Mikhailovich Karamzin wrote about this back in the 18th century in his book “Letters from a Russian Traveler”: “A man in a traveling dress, with a staff in his hand, with a knapsack behind his shoulders, is not obliged to speak with the careful intelligibility of some courtier, surrounded by the same courtiers” .
Two decades ago, in a tram, they pointed the finger at such a "backpack" and almost never made a mistake. People with backpacks are used to measuring the way with steps or ropes, they are used to holding paddles, ice axes, bicycle handlebars, ski poles. Today, the backpack has become the property of young people who have nothing to do with tourism. Literally everyone wears it. Especially teenage girls. Behind most of them are miniature backpacks of various shapes and cuts. This fashion came to us from abroad. What does it mean? A symbol of tourism, but without tourism?
More recently, we were proud of other tourism - amateur. These are the so-called organizations independent travel along a route thought out by a leader or a group with home-made equipment and almost amateur food. This phenomenon was inherent in almost only one country in the world. But the country occupied a sixth of the land, and the phenomenon had to be reckoned with. I must say that the state and trade unions supported amateur tourism. And here, too, has its own story.
Tourism was, is and will be a deeply social phenomenon. Recall that in the dictionary of foreign words edited by Professor I.A. Baudouin de Courtenay, published in 1911, on the concept of "social policy" says that these are "legislative measures to improve the economic, political and moral situation of workers." It was said almost 90 years ago.
Why do people travel at all? Many philosophers of the East in their writings wrote the word "path" with a capital letter, understanding it as a person's choice of the path to truth, to goodness, to perfection. And a person goes along this path not alone, but with friends, good and reliable associates. Joint passage of the route, close life in a team, mutual assistance in difficult conditions become the generally accepted norm of behavior.
Who needs such tourism? Undoubtedly - to every Russian and to society as a whole. Such trips form and enrich a person spiritually and physically. It becomes better due to the inclusion of elements of practical camping activities, communication with nature. One can agree with those who called tourism a school of education, tempering of character, formation of patriotic views and beliefs. Tourism until quite recently acted as one of the methods of improving physical and spiritual qualities, the general rise of human culture. Such a school of upbringing is especially necessary, one might say, it is necessary, first of all, for youth, youth, and schoolchildren.
Let's try to highlight the seven most important facets of tourism: health, sports, aesthetic, educational, social and communicative, emotional and psychological, and, finally, creative.
Tourism is a great way to maintain and restore health, maintain activity and efficiency. Physical activity is, according to the definition of academician I.P. Pavlova, "the muscular joy of being", it helps, prepares for a meeting with life's difficulties. That is why tourism from a recommendation in the fight against physical inactivity develops into a necessity.
All of the above is not our discovery. All the media wrote and talked about it. Until recently, the authors of popular books predicted an “explosion” in our country of those wishing to travel by the end of the century.
"100 million people will travel, twice as many as now," trade union tourism leaders predicted. Such predictions were not unfounded. In a survey of various social groups, 41 percent of those surveyed put amateur tourism in first place for their vacation, and 26 percent preferred hiking to camp sites. Even pensioners, in a survey in Literaturnaya Gazeta, put amateur tourism in second place, right behind sanatoriums.
Alas, the prediction did not come true. With the change in the principles of state policy in the field of recreation and leisure for the broad working masses (trade union vouchers, tourist bases), mass amateur, as well as sports tourism dropped to the bottom today. True, extreme tourism began to develop. Separate groups had sponsors or considerable funds received in another way. They could make campaigns of the highest difficulty through the passes of the Karakorum, into the Himalayas or through the deserts of Egypt. But such “pro” tourists are literally few, well, maybe dozens.
At the state level, amateur tourism was practically forgotten, and problems social tourism are still being discussed in the Duma. And in the professional environment there is an opinion that amateur tourism does not require regulation. They simply forgot about him. Tourist clubs began to close or switch to a commercial mode of activity. The article “tourism” simply disappeared from the subsidized part of the state budget, it is dissolved in many other parts, and therefore is not indicated anywhere. The attention of all has shifted to commercial tourism, bypassing the true mass tourism of the people.
At the same time, the incomes of the population fell sharply. There were almost no sports trips. Many interesting and traditional travel areas ended up outside of Russia - in the Caucasus or Central Asia. But the expanses of Russia are immense. There are many more beautiful explored and unexplored places suitable for tourism. You can make short trips, weekend trips. They are the most popular and attractive. Unfortunately, there are fewer and fewer such types of tourism, because tickets for suburban trains are constantly rising in price.
Future workers, managers and ordinary citizens of Russia still have to answer many complex questions in order to solve the problems of amateur, social tourism. Common sense must win to make it clear to everyone: tourism is an integral part of the life of any person. Already today we need to look for and find those opportunities that will help to revive, and as early as possible. Tourism with a capital letter, in all its diversity.
Travel is life. 100 interviews about tourism and travel
People in interviews talk about their travels, about the countries and cities where they visited and what they saw. Project participants share their stories and emotions from travel.
This is an open social project, anyone can take part.
How to participate:
Register on the site. In the community, create an entry by clicking the green "Add Article" button.
Create the title of your interview, answer the interview questions in detail in the form for the text.
ADVICE- For the convenience of creating an interview - copy the questions to a text file or Word and slowly answer all the interview questions. Then add the finished text to the site.
If you have travel photos, add them to the interview.
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
(You do not need to copy questions into your created interview, put only numbers and answer).
1) Introduce yourself and tell us a little about yourself. Where do you live, what do you do? When did you discover and start traveling? How do you travel - with friends, with family, alone?
2) Who do you consider yourself to be, a tourist or a traveler? How do you plan your next trip, where do you get the idea, information where to go, what to visit?
3) Do you remember when was your first trip abroad? What country was it? Tell us about your first trip abroad. What were your first impressions of the trip and what you saw?
4) What countries of the world have you visited? List countries and cities. How did you travel, as a package tourist through a travel agency, or as a solo traveler?
5) Which country of the world and the city you visited did you like the most? Tell us why and what exactly did you like?
6) What travel means to you, what they give you. Why are you traveling? Do you have a dream to visit a certain country and see a special attraction?
7) What are your nearest plans for a tour or trip? What kind of country will it be, and why such a choice?
8) What do you remember most from all your travels? What was the most vivid and memorable trip to the country, or travel history? Tell us about it in detail.
9) About an adventure or incident that happened to you on a trip abroad. Share a story or adventure with you on your journey. Where and how did it happen, how did it all end?
10) Do you like domestic tourism in your country, or do you prefer to travel to other countries? What places and cities in your country have you visited, tell us what you liked the most?
11) What was your most recent trip? Tell us about your last trip or tour. When and with whom did you travel, what country was it, cities, what route, where were you, what did you see?
Recently, posts of various content have been accepted for publication from visitors registered on that site, namely, travel stories of tourists, reviews of establishments and different stories (funny and not so funny) that happened to compatriots (and not necessarily compatriots) during their stay on foreign land (abroad or in other parts of Russia) on the occasion of a business trip or vacation.
Travel stories from travelers
Here are collected stories about those places where our Russians (and not only Russians) went on vacation, as well as travel diaries of tourists. Collected in this section, claiming to be a work of art, travelers' reports on their trips abroad or in Russia are neatly arranged into the appropriate subsections.
Each story or travel diary, in addition to useful textual information, is supplied with a dozen other photographic materials filmed at the places where the author of the story is located using a digital camera, tablet or a simple mobile phone. The reader, even with a cursory examination of such a post, will already have a sufficient idea of what will be waiting for him in one or another corner of the planet.
Reviews about establishments
This section is designed to collect feedback on various commercial establishments (shops, cafes, restaurants, pharmacies, hairdressers, car services, shoe repairs, etc.) located both abroad and in Russia. Each of these reviews is written either by the administration of that web project, or by visitors registered on it who once visited those institutions.
The main advantage of Norge-info is that all reviews, by and large, are like a short story, which lists such main points as the process of visiting a cafe, restaurant or other institution, its legal address. And, of course, there are advantages and disadvantages.
In addition, it would be useful to mention that the administration of Norge-info is fighting for the quality of the web resource, minimizing the number of so-called paid "fake" reviews whenever possible. The fact is that only those visitors registered on Norge-info who have been assigned the status of Journalists can leave their opinion about the hotel, restaurant, shop and other institutions. To achieve this status, you will need to publish a certain minimum number of posts.
Stories with travelers
In this case, we are talking about cases told by travelers where they describe the situation in which this or that tourist (or business trip) found himself during a vacation, business trip or living abroad. Such cases could occur for various reasons: imperfect knowledge of a foreign language, local traditions and customs, as well as the traveler's own absent-mindedness and oversight.
Without a doubt, all the stories presented in this section will seem quite interesting and fascinating to a certain circle of people. Yes, and those who have never found themselves in such situations may be interested in these posts, if only because banal curiosity will prevail.
Collected in this section told by tourists short stories about what a sad experience they had during the trip, what an awkward situation they found themselves in due to the fact that they mixed up foreign words, how they were robbed during their holidays and other troubles they experienced abroad. And not only abroad.
If you are going to go on a trip to Russia (to the resorts near the Black Sea, to the Volga Delta or to Far East), it is impossible to predict everything. So, having gone on a trip on your favorite iron horse, you are already cherishing the dream to quickly find yourself in a long-awaited place. And then there is an unplanned stop due to a car breakdown. We have to call a tow truck to transport the car to the nearest car service.
There are many such examples.
Welcome to the Norge-info project!
I worked as a tourism manager in a company. My duties included advising clients, selecting and designing tours. Well, in fact, I sat all day on social networks and read all sorts of nonsense, from time to time answering calls, and telling potential tourists about the wonderful distances.
Why did I go to work in tourism? Probably because the work is interesting, forcing you to constantly develop, learn more, not burdening the aimless paperwork in the office. Basically you work with people, and then with pieces of paper.
The main motto of a good manager is: we work primarily for the tourist, we give holidays, holidays. We practically help people to relax.
In general, this is not an easy job. In a simple store, the main task is to sell, here the first task is to give a person a holiday. This is what attracted me.
Photo: Leo Hidalgo.
The benefits of this kind of work It's an atmosphere and quite creative work. It's not often you see a tourist here who comes to clot the manager's blood. Who dares to get the person who plans your vacation? It is incredibly pleasant to tell people about heavenly corners: the bright pictures of tour operators are fascinating, and you want to go on vacation a hundred times a day, discovering new places for yourself. Another nice feature is grateful tourists who, after returning from vacation, bring you some nice trinkets as a gift to your favorite manager, and tell you how they had a rest. And at that moment you are overwhelmed with pride that you organized it all.
Of the minuses I will note the fact that there is a lot of work during the season. There are so many of them that you don’t have time to have lunch for a whole working day, you stay late at work, you go to the airport at 4 in the morning to issue documents to tourists who didn’t bother to pick them up in advance.
The main disadvantage that causes a nervous tic in all managers is the request for burning tours. For two years now, this term has not been in tourism at all, and there will never be Thailand for 10 thousand, but everyone is actively asking for them.
Operators are not stupid, and no one will sell the tour below its cost. If you want a tour for 10 thousand - go to Primorye, it's cool there, and you don't need to buy a phrasebook, and there is less chance of running into one-day scammers. There is another big trouble for managers - these are tourists with whom you work, you select a tour for them, you wait for them to be processed, but they go to another company.
Photo: Esmar Abdul Hamid. Tour managers are not paid money until the tour is sold. That is, they work with you for free until the tour is issued.
It seems to me that we are making a holiday for people. In the course of work, you come across different people and different preferences. The manager must know everything, really everything, down to whether fruits are sour in a particular hotel, what is the temperature of the water or how much ice cream costs on a beach in Cambodia. Therefore, we are constantly developing, reading millions of travel portals for tour managers. Moreover, the geography here is the holy of holies: none of the clients will like it if you don’t tell them where on the map the place you send them is located. So the map is like a mother, the breadwinner of any agent.
To open your own travel business, you need at least five years of work in an agency to have your own tourist base, without it anywhere. In general, opening your own travel business is quite easy: 300 thousand are enough for documents and a small office with a computer and the Internet.
I remember we had a conflicting family. First, my wife turned to us with a request to pick up something for them in Cuba for a couple of weeks. Money, they say, does not matter. We discussed all issues with her for a couple of days, even chose a hotel, but then my husband writes: “You know, this doesn’t suit us, we want bus tour in Europe". Next comes the discussion with the husband. Two days later, the same story, the wife writes: “No, we don’t want a bus, we want to go to the Philippines.” We got the feeling that they were just poking their finger at the map at home and choosing a vacation like that. They ended up going to Portugal.
There was another funny case with my friends. I don’t know why, but from the moment I started working, everyone decided that I was a walking computer and that I knew all the prices for all tours, taking into account changes in the exchange rate. In general, I'm relaxing with friends on the weekend, someone from the company finds out that I work in a travel agency and asks how much a holiday in Iceland will cost in February. Moreover, the question was asked with such a serious look that if I were in the office, I would immediately start looking for an answer to the question posed, I would start preparing documents for the tour.
There are strange situations. Somehow I accidentally met my tourist on the bus. She recognized me, but I didn't recognize her. She sat down next to me and began to tell me how the vacation went, how the children are doing. And, of course, I did not forget to ask how much tours to Thailand cost now. I remembered the name of the tourist only when I came to the office and took out a filing cabinet with passports. It came out awkward.
Photo: Ian Sane. If you are sociable, positive and ready to cope with complex tasks, for example, finding a tourist who is in this moment located far away, a cheap souvenir shop, then this job is for you. Tourism is a very soulful job, and even the nastiest client can become a good friend in the future. This work does not allow the brain to dry out and the heart to harden. Every person wants have a nice rest, and we are good fairies who make their dreams come true.
In our opinion, the Louvre Abu Dhabi is an excellent center of culture and leisure, where you can usefully spend time with the whole family, including young children, for whom two thematic halls have been created: with active games and an educational one, in between viewing the exhibits (there, in addition to own collection, there are also imported exhibitions from various museums of the world), you can drink coffee and have a snack. Although the Louvre Abu Dhabi is considered a branch of the famous French museum, it is still the first of its kind: the museum has a new generation design with an unusually beautiful openwork dome through which rays of light stream and create a feeling of “sunny rain”:
A huge floating dome covers almost 2/3 of the museum, which not only creates a great space view, but also reduces energy consumption by providing shade to maintain more... read more
Masdar means the Source, perhaps even more broadly - the Source of new changes. This, one might say, is a city within a city. it sits alone in Abu Dhabi. We took a taxi from the center (from the Ancestral Fort of Qasr al-Hosn) to Masdar City for about half an hour, perhaps because we got stuck in a traffic jam on the bridge at rush hour, paid 69 dirhams - not close, but we liked it there. Quite an ambitious and unique project, as, indeed, almost everything in the Emirates.
Taxi stop in front of the entrance to the town, inside an exclusively ecological zone, no gas contamination. Read completely
I really liked the Christmas tree in the golden Palace of the Emirates in Abu Dhabi
Majestic, fabulously refined under a huge dome
Toys are also some kind of unusual, with kind faces and muzzles of animals, it is felt that they are made with a soul, it is interesting to look at them.
In the corners from the Christmas Tree, there are Snowmen under golden ceilings (really golden!) among snow-covered Christmas trees - the atmosphere of the holiday is right in the air.
I have a large family: husband, three children, mother-in-law. And once a year this cheerful company needs to be healed at sea. We chose Berdyansk because there sandy beaches, shallow sea, suitable for children and a huge selection of entertainment for both children and adults.
Housing was rented via the Internet, in the very center of the city, right behind the amusement park. To Lunapark, central beach and various cafes - one minute walk. If you arrive by car, then this is a great option. You can always go to the beach by car, before evening entertainment - you do not need to drag the children far. Within walking distance are all the sights known for Berdyansk: a bull-breadwinner, a chair of desires, a fisherman boy, a monument to a toad. A varied selection of cafes where you can have a delicious dinner, dance and even sing karaoke. Lunapark in the center will please both adults and children. A large selection of extreme rides for fun people (above 140 cm), and positive trains and carousels for children. If all this is noisy for you or already tired, passing ... read more
This spring I was lucky enough to spend almost a month on vacation in Odessa, in the capital of humor and sun. I just left my previous job and have not yet got a new one, so I was able to come to South Palmyra for the whole of May. Luckily, my friends said that I could stay with them for free. Maybe I was lucky, but already in May my vacation was as resort-like as possible and included, among other things, swimming and sunbathing, the weather did not differ from summer, but there was no influx of tourists yet, because the beaches were as clean as possible. Therefore, I sincerely believe that going to Odessa in May is the best idea, if the weather allows, and if you are not from the cold.
I opened the swimming season here already on April 30, they also swam for May Day, like the whole month of May after that. The water temperature in early May was about 20 degrees, which was already quite comfortable for me.
As I said, I stayed with friends, but they, as locals, guided me in the future, where is the best place to stay in the city. Give... read more
This was our first trip to Montenegro. We chose the time to rest, having studied the information on the sites about the average temperatures of water and air. We decided to fly at the end of August. Tickets were bought in advance, in May, on the website of the low-cost airline Pobeda. For two they paid 28,000 rubles. Accommodation was booked online. After reading the reviews and looking at the prices, I chose the Milyutin apartments.
Sveti Stefan wanted to visit for a long time after seeing a picture of this wonderful place. The location is convenient, near Budva. The situation in this village is calm, it is not suitable for youth recreation. For couples, parents with small children, this is a great option. Milocer Park has a playground for kids. The air there is special, various vegetation, mountains and the sea. It's just an amazing combo!
We didn't choose the right time to rest. In subsequent years, the mistake was taken into account. The best time is from mid-September to October 10th. There are much fewer people. The weather is sunny, the sea is warm.
This was not our first trip to Tenerife, but this year we were surprisingly unlucky with the weather. We were on the island in the first half of July, completely sunny days was not at all, the sea was not very hospitable, it often rained. Basically, the picture outside the window was like this:
We lived in the Sandos San Blas Nature Resort & Golf 5 * hotel near the town of Los Abrigos. I am not ready to praise or scold the hotel strongly, but the well-heated pools were a big plus, thanks to which our vacation did not go completely without swimming. In terms of beach accessibility, this location is only suitable for those who, like us, rent a car. The popular Los Cristianos and Las Americas can be quickly reached by the hotel's shuttle, but without a car it would still be inconvenient.
There are some very decent fish restaurants in Los Abrigos that compare favorably with those in the more touristy parts of the island. I liked the range of products in stores: good... read more
I have long wanted to visit the UAE. In December, 2015, a vacation and a last minute tour to Sharjah coincided. They flew away from cold Moscow, it was either raining or snowing, it was uncomfortable. The flight took just over 4 hours. Flying up to Dubai, we saw the Persian Gulf and oil platforms all over the surface of the Gulf. It impressed. The second thing that struck me on the plane was the skyscrapers. From above, they looked impressive. At the airport in Dubai met the guide and the bus. It was warm and comfortable. What a pleasure to travel from winter to summer! I believe, that best time for a trip - this is the beginning of December. Prices for tours are falling, as everyone is preparing for the New Year. Any trip can be made affordable price. At this time it is warm, the sun is +27 degrees, the water is also a comfortable temperature. In the evening, of course, they dressed in windbreakers and jeans so that it would not be cold to walk around Sharjah at night. 
