Creative tourism in Saint Petersburg: the state of the art

Abstract

Tourism development in St. Petersburg, which is a major cultural centre, has improved in terms of tourist flows; both tourism demand and tourist products have become more diverse. These improvements give grounds for a fairly optimistic prognosis for the tourist industry in St. Petersburg. At the same time, there are a number of factors which may endanger sustainable development of tourism in St. Petersburg. The current situation calls for a more flexible and innovative approach to industry development. Among these factors are the pronounced seasonal character of tourism, the short-term visits of most of the tourists, and the rather conservative, academic cultural image of St. Petersburg, which compromises the city’s appeal as a destination for certain tourist segments. Another critical limitation on the development of cultural tourism in general and of creative tourism in particular is the low involvement of the population in cultural and tourist events held in the city. This makes it relevant to look for new approaches for creative tourism development in St. Petersburg as an important tool for the sustainable development of the industry. This article considers the existing and potential competitive advantages of St. Petersburg as a tourist destination on the basis of creative tourism development.