Local tourism researcher - about how a suburban vacation has changed in recent years

This is the name of campsites in which guests offer comfortable living in nature: for example, in safari tents, tents or yurts. The name was formed as a result of the merger of the words “glamorous” and “camping”.

In the spring of 2022-against the backdrop of problems with foreign trips and leaving the Russian market Airbnb-Petersburzhenka Evgeny Golege launched the telegram channel “ Kitik, exhale! ", Dedicated to suburban rest. “Paper” asked her how local tourism changed after two years of pandemic and restrictions on the border, which housing is popular today and how to choose it better.

Read how much prices have risen over the past year, why glampings are actively building near St. Petersburg and where to watch reviews at hotels and cottages.

Evgenia Goleg

The creator of the telegram channel about travel "Cat, exhale!"

How local tourism has changed over the past year

- I became deep into the question [travel from St. Petersburg] I became after the appearance of the channel "Kitty, exhale!" In March 2022. But as an ordinary tourist, of course, I traveled before and looked for information on social networks.

I can say for sure: there are many times more suggestions. Just because local tourism has become more in demand, especially among residents of megacities - Moscow and St. Petersburg. I am sure that these are the consequences of the pandemic, it was she who gave a strong impulse to development. Alternatives appeared to classic campases, demand has grown, it happened very sharply.

Also, in my opinion, there were more tourists among young people: before Pandemia, these travelers went on the weekend to Finland or Tallinn, where they got used to the European recreation format. This year they also rest in Russia, although the borders with European countries are again open - even now.

Thanks to increased demand, prices were not lower even taking into account the emergence of new suburban projects. On the contrary, prices rose. Here I cannot give a complete analytics, but I will give an example. Last year, I was resting in one of the glampings of the Leningrad region, the cost of living was 9 thousand rubles per night. This year, the same glamping in the same dates cost 11 thousand - draw the conclusions yourself.

I also drew attention to what kind of thing: the site published a common price for placement, but when you start booking, prices can be one and a half to two times higher. All this is explained by the “dynamic” formation of book prices, that is, the cost is formed from the number of requests and reservations. This is very unpleasant, and it is impossible to influence this. Many times I faced the fact that I posted a review in the telegram channel with the same prices, and after a few hours the cost was different.

What are the latest trends in local tourism

- Now there is a heyday, or rather a boom, glampings. Moreover, there are different variations of them: geocupols, safari-tents, typi and other types of tents. The category of glampings also includes very small panoramic modular houses. Another important point in the classification is the bathroom. Somewhere it is placed in a separate building, some glampings put dry closets in places of accommodation, in other places they make extensions to geocupol with a shower and toilet. In short, who is more than what.

The trend was also picked up by some camp sites, which this year began to put tents on their territory. The cost of living in them varies from 5-6 thousand rubles per day, despite the fact that amenities, in fact, are “on the street”. In my opinion, the trend with glampings is easily explained: it is cheaper and faster in implementation than to build a camp site or a country club. And if the land is rented, glMPings reduce risks for the owners: the tents can be transported to new places.

Another trend is A-Frame , triangular houses. Their popularity began even earlier than glampings. As a rule, on the ground floor there are a kitchen and a living room, on the second - a bed. Other options for modular construction are also common - this is a format when the house is completely assembled in production, and then brought to the desired location, all communications are brought there and the structure is assembled as a constructor. In Russia, modular construction is popularized by Dubbledom , now for living more and more often they offer such houses. They are year -round, the bathroom is inside the house, and in general the buildings look pretty - for example, they usually make panoramic windows.

I also note Furako fonts - vats or fonts heated with firewood. They replace the classic bath or sauna and are placed by the house, tent or dome. The fonts are increasingly placed in glampings and in areas with country houses, they can be used all year round.

What problems can tourists face and how to change the industry

- Many owners of camp site and glampings do not care about tourists without a personal car - they simply do not write how to get to the location without a car. It happened that I myself called the large suburban clubs of the Moscow Region and asked the administrators how to get there by public transport.

There is also a matter of pricing: the service received by tourists does not always correspond to the cost of living. For example, in Russia, extremely low competition in terms of beach tourism, hence the terribly high prices. Of course, in these conditions, many tourists prefer Turkey the same Sochi.

In general, before the pandemic, local tourism existed mainly due to classic tourist bases. They did not change at all for 10–20 years, but there were no other options, so everyone went there. The owners of such objects live perfectly, they already have a stream of tourists and it seems that nothing else needs to be done.

But now the younger generation of cool children-enthusiasts who began to create glampings have come to do this stylishly and in European in the point of view of appearance, comfort, service. They invent new leisure options and popularize outputs to the nature of the weekend as a norm, and not once a year on a birthday. Such places have become a fresh breeze in the musty world of a camp site with their old sites, sad social networks and the same attitude.

Glampings attract youth, people from 20 years old, their owners even have conferences where they form a common agenda, service standards, etc. Yes, all this is only born, but I want to believe in this story. I am sure that the state could stimulate the industry - for example, normal loans at a minimum percentage and subsidies for those who make cool projects.

And the point here is not that local tourism should replace foreign trips - in my opinion, this is narrow thinking. People must recognize the world outside the country in order to analyze and gain experience. But I think you need to be interested in internal travels, allowing you to better get acquainted with your country. This is very important, because travel and local tourism are part of the formation and personality formation. Such a lesson in geography and sociology live. How can we change something in the country if we do not know it? But there are enough problems: in the ecology, the protection of nature.

How to choose worthy options at reasonable prices

-Look for life hacks about specific places in my telegram channel, but I can share some general recommendations.

Be sure to see the reviews and marks in search engines and social networks: in Yandex.Marts, choose places with a rating above four points (and I always read reviews there and watch photos from guests). I also watch photos and videos of locations in Instagram's mark, read comments on posts and evaluate how the project communicates with subscribers. Many good cottages are presented at Avito - if you use this service, I recommend reading reviews. But Tripadvisor in Russia, in my opinion, is not relevant.

Also, do not be afraid to look for places of residence at the request and keywords on social networks. For example, if in search of an instagram to drive a “glamping” - for this word you will be shown many options. By the way, in September, I plan to launch a telegram boss, which will help to look for locations just for key requests: remoteness from the city, type of trip and other things.

Summer trips are better to book in advance - the owners of many projects make discounts on such reservations. But do not be afraid of spontaneity: often on the eve of the trip there is a bunch of good options. This is because people very often book housing in advance, and cancel trips shortly before the date of settlement. In some cases, information about free houses, rooms or domes can only be obtained on social networks.

🏠 For our application, Eugene advised Six classrooms in the Leningrad region and Karelia : from eco -compound on the lake to glamping near Gatchina

You can download paperapp here

Photo: Evgenia Goleg

What else to read:

• Fields, lakes and desert . Five routes for a bicycle walk from the editor "Paper".
• A lot of lakes, an all -season resort with a highway and a wooden church. Come in Sosnovo .