Krasnodar, 18 August – Yug Times. Our today’s interviewee is Denis Zabolotny, General Director of the Abrau Durso Tourism Centre.
Q.: How would you describe the current level of the enogastrotourism market in Russia? What does the market need most of all?
A.: Due to the external factors, most tourist enterprises on the Black Sea coast are showing interest in wine tourism. In July this year, the historical complex “Abrau Durso” was visited by a record number of tourists – 52,000.
Despite the existing demand, there are areas for development that market players should pay attention to. For example, legislative restrictions that hinder promotion of wine tourism, as well as lack of trained personnel in the tourism sector. Creating suitable conditions and motivation for employees is also an important issue. The Abrau Durso Tourism Centre is actively working on building and maintaining its HR brand, which allowed us to enter the top 10 best employers in Russia according to Hh.ru.
Q.: Does the Centre see itself as a trendsetter and competence centre in developing the enotourism sphere in Russia, given your potential?
A.: We were the pioneers of enotourism in Russia. Over time, we expanded the possibilities of the Abrau Durso area and set ourselves a new goal – to create the infrastructure of a year-round resort suitable for gastronomic, active, eco- and family recreation. This was necessary because our tourist flow used to have a pronounced seasonal character and directly depended on the flow of tourists holidaying on the coast. Then we opened new points of attraction, entertainment and sports facilities, thanks to which we began to receive guests all year round. And now we are proud that Abrau Durso can be safely called the flagship of Russian enotourism.
Over the past ten years, we have done a lot of work to create a comfortable tourist agglomeration, and thanks to this, the Abrau Durso Tourism Centre has become one of the most popular enotourism destinations in Europe, and has received many international awards and recognition from its guests.
Experts assess our yearly potential at a million tourists, which makes us a leading tourist cluster of national importance.
Q.: How many visitors do you receive on an average weekend, ranked by season? What is the standard tourist route through the centre?
A.: We have between 2,000 and 50,000 visitors a month, depending on external factors and seasonality. Often guests choose the following itinerary: a tour of the Abrau Durso Historical Complex with the museum exposition, ancient tunnels, modern production, multimedia modern art space “Abrau Light Gallery”, Lake Abrau embankment, water tram cruising, visiting the resort’s speciality shops and restaurants, and watching the fountain show on Lake Abrau.
