TumenNET logo UNDP/Global Environment Facility - Tumen River Strategic Action Program.
A Northeast Asian Strategic Action Program to protect Transboundary Biodiversity and International Water Resources and to attract Green Investment.
UNDP logo
|| Home || || South-Western Primorye || || Project participants || || Project components || || Investment Opportunity || || News, Events || || Publications || || Educational information || || Links ||
  • South-Western Primorye
  • Project participants
  • Project components
  • Investment Opportunity
  • News, Events
  • Publications
  • Educational information
  • Links
  • Ecotourism development

    Favourable preconditions for the development of different kinds of tourism in Primorsky Krai is determined by its large diversity of natural recreation resources and also by its contact coastal and boundary location and contrast cultures of the adjacent countries (Russia, China, Japan, Mongolia, Korea and others).

    Therefore, the region has considerable potential appeal to tourism. It is possible to organize complex tours in a transboundary zone, orient to domestic and foreign tourism to the neighbouring countries and develop the transitory functions of tourism. Creation of tourist-recreation infrastructure is needed for the perspective development.

    At present only 5-8% of tourist potential is used that allows us to characterize this region as underdeveloped that means that it has opportunities for the further development of the perspective branch of economy.

    Tourism is a specific branch of economy of Primorsky Krai, which is developing even under the conditions of deep crisis. Its social-economic functions are realized in relationships between other branches and kinds of economic activity. In this case not only tourism is developing, but its interacting branches of the regional economy obtain the extra stimulus to the development. They are transport, hotel services, food chain and production of souvenirs. Therefore, one can consider tourism as “the locomotive engine” for the development of other branches of the regional economy.

    Objectives for the further development of the tourist branch in Primorsky Krai are conditionally divided into the following periods of time:

    - current - creation of preconditions for the development of tourism infrastructure including inter-regional;

    - mid-term - active development of tourist infrastructure and broadening of activity to provide sustainable improvement of tourist services;

    - long-term - the wide development of all kinds of tourism, including international and domestic interregional.

    Taking into account the specific features of the region, it is needed to determine the following priorities:

    Foreign ecological tourism from China and also from Republic of Korea, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Japan, Mongolia and other countries;

    The development of interregional tours including international;

    Expansion of sea tourism.

    In using different variants of tourism development in Primorsky Krai, the achievement of the set objectives will make it possible to estimate the gross output from US$ 250 to 1,500 billion only from foreign tourism

    Prognosis estimations of the gross output from foreign tourism

    Indexes

    Factually in 2000

    Variants

       

    I

    II

    III

    Number of tourists (thousands)

    160

    500

    1000

    1500

    Output from 1 tourist a year ($)

    200

    500

    800

    1000

    Gross output (USA $ billion)

    42

    250

    800

    1500

    In this case the maximum use of natural resource potential of the region (at present only 5-8 % is used) will make it possible to increase only the domestic product of the tourist branch up to US $ 110-120 billion. Expansion of the tourist-recreation structure can increase the domestic product in many times.

    Recommendations.

    Taking into account the present state and basic constraints, the following generic recommendations for the development of ecotourism in Primorsky Krai can be identified:

    It is necessary to develop in detail and realize the tours, which are the most important on the international and national levels (tourist routes).

    In the key populated points (cities) the establishing of the developed infrastructure of tourism both specific and public is needed.

    To develop and realize measures for the improvement of tourist facilities (organizational, economic, information, transport, hotel and others) should be developed and realized.

    To make more attractive the Tomen River Area for tourists.

    The prior tours, which should be developed in detail and realized, are as follows

    1. Alpine tourism

    The tour starts in the middle mountains of the Russian part, then transits to the Chinese Mountain Changbaishan (in Korea - Mt. Paekdu). Tourists can climb the volcanic top Changbaishan. Its height is 2.750 meters. From this top one can see large mountain-forest spaces of China and the North Korea. As the existing myths say, this is the very Mountain Changbaishan (Paekdu), where the Korean civilization was born. The Mountain-Volcano Paekdu is a holy place for the Koreans of the whole world like Mecca for Moslems of the whole world.

    2. Tour of the Tumen River area by bouts and rafts

    The Tumen River is a transboundary river. It is 350 kilometres long. It starts in the mountainous areas of the North-eastern China. Its height is about 1,000 metres. About 180 kilometres of the Tumen River flows across the Chinese territory. Further 150 kilometres of the frontier between China and the North Korea follows the Tumen River. Then 15 kilometres out from its flowing into the Sea of Japan the frontier between Russia and the North Korea follows this River. In the lower stream the Tumen River has about 100-150 meters in width and its speed is little. Hence, tourists could go by boats and rafts along very beautiful mountainous areas of China and the North Korea. It will take them 4-5 days. Then they can walk as far as the low coastal plain of Russia and the North Korea and get to the East Sea.

    3. On the traces of Amur tiger and leopard

    In this area one can see unique wild animals, such as Amur tiger and Far East leopard. The Tumen River area is the place where Amur tiger inhabit. In transboundary areas of China, Russia and the North Korea about 40-50 Amur tigers live. Amur tiger is a very beautiful animal. It is involved in the Red Data Book. Far East leopard is also a very nice animal. Like tiger, it inhabits taiga mixed coniferous broad-leaved forests. It is possible to organize a joint tour to taiga and boar and roe deer hunting.

    4. Bird’s meeting

    In spring and in autumn many migratory birds, such as ducks, geese, swan and cranes, gather at the mouth of the Tumen River. They rest there when they fly from north to south in autumn and from south to north in spring. Regulated birds’ hunting is possible.

    5. Tours to the different reserves.

    These tours could become a specific type of ecotourism. There is a very beautiful taiga reserve “Kedrovaya Pad” in the Russian part of this area. Very large cedar trees (Korean pine) grow there. There live Amur tigers and Far East leopards. The only Marine Reserve in Russia-the Far Eastern State Marine Reserve-is located in the sea zone in Posiet Bay. It unites a large sea zone, some islands and the coast. Unique sea animals, such as trepang, sea urchin, scallops, different weeds and stars, inhabit this sea zone. The coast with its cliffy coasts, sandy beaches and clear seawater is wonderful.

    6. “Lets live on a desert island”

    Island tourism can become the specific type of tourism in this area. About 30 small islands with very attractive landscapes and coasts and many bays are located in the Peter the Great Bay. A larger part of islands is inhabited. There is no constant population. That is why tourists can live on desert islands and then visit other places.

    7. “Sea fishing”

    Fishing in the coastal waters of the Sea of Japan can become a very interesting type of exotic ecotourism. In summer it possible to catch a lot of fish and molluscs. Winter fishing is the most interesting. Certain shallow bays are frozen (1-2 kilometres in width). Thickness of ice is about 0.5 meters. Fishermen drill a hole in ice and catch fish. Smelt and navaga are the most delicious fish. And winter is the very season when it can be caught. Such a type of ecotourism can be very attractive for citizens of the south countries because there is no winter, snow and ice.

    8. “A ring around Lake Khanka”

    Lake Khanka is a very interesting place for ecotourism. Fishing (including winter), waterfowl hunting and overview of reserves (both Russian and Chinese) are possible there.

    Besides these types of exotic ecotourism in the Tumen River area, there are many different tourist routs in the Russian, Chinese and Korean parts. These routes include excursions on other beautiful natural landscapes, reserves, cities and settlements, historical and cultural monuments. On the Russian part it is possible to visit a number of scientific stations, where studies of natural systems and impacts of technogenic factors on them are being conducted. It is possible to visit large seaports and organize sea trips.

    The development of tourism infrastructure

    To increase the number of ecotourists, visiting the zone under consideration, and to strengthen the social-economic effect, it is necessary in the near future to create on the territory of every tourist-recreation zone the following objects of recreation-engineering infrastructure:

    Cottage cities and dude ranches in the a summer variant in every tourist-recreation zone;

    Food chains with summer houses and pavilions;

    Small summer restaurants, bars and movie theatres;

    Rental stores to hire tourist and diving equipment, boats etc.;

    Systems for water and energy supply;

    Water stations with Security Service instructors;

    Objects for waste utilization;

    Recreation parks;

    Observation platforms and towers;

    Sports grounds, first of volley-ball, golf fields and tennis courts;

    Swimming-pools and saunas;

    Camping, places for picnics;

    Grounds in recreation parks for special events, such as festivals, folklore performances, jubilees, holidays and various shows;

    Parking places and small parking places for specific events.

    These measures for the development of infrastructure and attraction of tourists will allow us to increase the number of the tourist tours within the TREDA and also to increase the output from every tourist thanks to the improvement of the quantity and quality of tourist facilities.

    Under the existing conditions it not real to create the perfect tourist structure in all the zones at the same time. It makes sense to identify some stages of the development. During the first stage it necessary to create 3 tourist bases (on the coasts of the Troitsa, Vityaz and Boisman bays). Establishing of infrastructure in other zones is possible at the next stages of the development of the tourist-recreational complex if finances increase.

    The complex of organizational and economical measures for the improvement of tourist facilities and the services of tourist firms should involve to:

    Establish the regional and local funds to support tourism;

    Create a favourable taxpaying conditions for tourism and its related branches in order to attract investments from legal and individual persons;

    Establish a specific bank giving reduced credits for tourism;

    Reduce transport prices for pensioners, invalids, students and tourists of other categories;

    To simplify the procedure of attraction of the foreign investments for the construction and exploitation of tourism objects.

    The proposed system of preventing measures will favour to the formation of the positive tourism image in the society as one of the factors of a healthy life and essential condition for its independent development on the next stages.

    The preliminary marketing results of investigations and the use of the richest experience of the home specialists made it possible to distinguish a number of the tasks, which are necessary to solve in the near future. The tasks of higher priority are as follows to:

    Reconstruct the service objects and provide them with modern equipment;

    Improve reliability and quality of tourist facilities;

    Expand the spectrum of tourist-excursion services;

    Use the flexible price policy in different seasons;

    Adjust the proposals to the changes of tourists’ demand;

    Make a reservation system;

    To improve tourist-excursion services depending on the natural conditions;

    Develop intensive and flexible promotion.

    The following measures are needed to strengthen the natural attraction of the Tumen River area:

    The improvement of beaches and unique underwater landscapes in all the recreation zones;

    Planting of pine and yew groves in specific areas of the tourist-recreation zones;

    Breeding of spotted deer, roes and musk- deer under the conditions when large predators do not inhabit the islands;

    The improvement of available caves, waterfalls, lakes and the creation of new ones in combination with planting of valuable (first of all coniferous) species of trees and creation of unusual artificial landscapes;

    The creation of fences under the close natural conditions for rare wild animals, such as tiger, leopard, spotted deer and others, which are typical of these places in order to attract tourists.


    News

    31.10.2001
    Findings for discussion with stakeholders on the Tumen River Basin Zone

    08.08.2001

    International working meeting resolution on “Biodiversity Conservation in Northeast Asia”, June 2-3, 27-28; July 28-31, 2001.
















    || Home || || South-Western Primorye || || Project participants || || Project components || || Investment Opportunity || || News, Events || || Publications || || Educational information || || Links ||






    2001-2007 - Vladivostok