Gambling zones work for the development of Russian tourism
On March 2, the Russian Bookmakers Forum took place in Moscow. As part of this event, a separate discussion was held with representatives of the Russian gambling business. The speakers were Anfinogenov Dmitry Sergeevich, Chairman of AIRIS, Baloyan Sergey Shalvovich, Deputy General Manager of the Altai Palace casino of the Siberian Coin gambling zone, Pivovarova Elena Yakovlevna, Legal Director of the Tigre de Cristal casino of the Primorye gambling zone and Kushnirenko Elina Igorevna, PR- director of the gambling zone «Krasnaya Polyana».
The key topic for discussion was the impact of the gambling business on the development of the tourism potential of the regions. Speakers and the moderator of the session unanimously noted the important role of gambling zones in the generation and growth of the tourist flow. The participants of the discussion also emphasized that the presence of gambling clusters additionally stimulates leaps in the development of transport infrastructure and related business.
AIRIS Chairman Dmitry Anfinogenov drew the attention of the session participants to the current strategy for the development of the gambling business: «Today, gambling zones work to create the tourism industry. This is our main task and priority. Modern gambling clusters are developing along the path of multifunctional entertainment centers. Today, the main flow of investments is directed to the creation of non-gaming projects, such as: the RED ARENA entertainment venue and the V I Game theater in the Krasnaya Polyana gambling zone, an amusement park, a beach and a campus for employees in Primorye, new hotels and restaurants in Altai and in Kaliningrad. Such facilities help level out seasonality and bring new guests to the gambling zones. Thus, such tactics stimulate the development of event, eco and gaming tourism in the regions.»
Attracting international guests has become a separate topic of discussion. Representatives of the gambling business from Sochi and Vladivostok shared their experience and results of work in this direction. «Before the global quarantine was announced, the Krasnaya Polyana gambling zone actively received tourists from Turkey, Israel, Bahrain and China. Direct flights were organized with these countries, and the percentage of revenue from foreign guests reached 30%. The pandemic temporarily crossed out this practice. However, now there is a trend towards a gradual return to past performance. Sochi already receives direct flights from Tel Aviv, and at the beginning of the year, the Chinese authorities announced the resumption of group trips of their citizens to Russia. This is positive news for the gambling and tourism industry in Russia. For example, in the pre-Covid period, the Primorye gambling zone received about 250,000 guests from China annually. And now, finally, the conditions are being formed for the return and even increase of this flow, ” said Elina Kushnirenko, PR director of the Krasnaya Polyana gambling zone, about the international work.
The participants of the session separately noted special natural locations where gambling zones are located. The general point of view and vision of development was expressed by Dmitry Anfinogenov: «Pay attention to the exclusive geo-locations of gambling clusters. These are the confluence of the Black Sea coast and the Caucasus Mountains, the coastline of the Baltic, the Altai Mountains and the Ant Bay in the Far East. The nature of these places needs no introduction and invariably attracts a huge number of people from Russia and other countries. In this picture, gambling clusters will act as additional points of attraction for tourists. Unique natural areas only benefit from the proximity to the casino, receiving additional investment, the development of transport and other infrastructure, the growth of the market for related goods and services, the creation of career opportunities for the local population, and much more.»
