Abstract
In the context of globalized processes, the importance of the sustainable development concept in solving the problems of local tourism systems development is growing. Unprecedented challenges caused by the COVID-19 crisis in the tourism sector, on the one hand, questioned the possibility of fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the goals of sustainable tourism. On the other hand, they emphasized the need for balance between three pillars of sustainability, both as an urgency tool to cope with the pandemic crisis and as a solid basis for long-term development in the post-pandemic period. The study presented in the paper discusses sustainability issues in rural tourism as one of the most promising sectors for the development of domestic tourism on the example of the Russian tourism industry. The overall goal of the study initiated in the pre-pandemic period is to find ways to support sustainable rural tourism in Russian regions and to develop indicators for monitoring the effectiveness of local strategic development programs, taking into account national and regional specifics. This paper discusses intermediate results obtained with the adjustment for pandemic challenges. The authors combined a number of methods and techniques, namely desk research, statistical analysis, and analysis of empirical data obtained by means of in-depth interviews, as well as a survey using a formal questionnaire. The results confirm that Russian enterprises and local communities considered the three pillars of sustainability as important to develop tourism in rural destinations both in the pre-pandemic period and in times of challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, the findings show weaknesses in the federal and local policy, including the lack of systemic measures to improve the sustainable management of Russian tourism destinations. From the authors’ point of view, it makes sense to adapt the European tourism indicator system for sustainable destinations (ETIS) for local peculiarities. ETIS is a useful tool to boost the sustainable development of rural destinations by encouraging stakeholder engagement and monitoring processes. In the case of Russia, one needs to add indicators for monitoring the effectiveness of the implementation of strategic development programs in the field of tourism.
Highlights
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic became “the Black Swan of Black Swans” (Cavanagh et al 2020)
The Russian tourism market actors increased the use of computer reservation systems and global distribution systems, sharing platforms, geographic information system (GIS) technologies, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technologies; Changes in the structure of supply and demand, including the emergence and development of new tourism types and the corresponding niche market segments; An increased share of independent travelers and a corresponding decrease in the share of organized group tours offered by tour operators and travel agents
The results confirm that Russian enterprises and local communities considered the three sustainability dimensions as important to develop tourism in rural destinations both in the pre-pandemic period and in times of challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic
Summary
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic became “the Black Swan of Black Swans” (Cavanagh et al 2020). It has already had a significant impact on many sectors of the global economy (Amankwah-Amoah et al 2020; Bartik et al 2020), as well as on the lifestyle and quality of life (Laato et al 2020; Sheth 2020). In the context of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world tourism sector has faced the deepest crisis in history (UNWTO 2020). Airlines, cruise ships and tourist operators have suffered an unprecedented number of cancelations and a large volume of economic losses (Alonso et al 2020)
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