Kazakhstan Tourist Open Space

Iliya BLOGGER

The republic will be interesting first of all to amateurs of a wild nature, open spaces and minimal presence of the peopleDevelopment of tourism strategy remains the normal variant for modern Kazakhstan. All the positive achievements in tourist business during years of independence are the result of spontaneous development but not of state policy or assistance.

The Kazakhstan segment

On the eve of XXI century many of experts unanimously confirmed that the tourism will be the most profitable sector of economy in the coming century. Even international terrorism choosing for its purposes the tourist Mecca like the Egyptian pyramids or Bali Islands, has not forced the experts to reconsider their prognosis. The global economic crisis puts a great number of questions to shipbuilding and pharmaceutics, and tourism is again in favorites with only one reserve: the competition will be more strict, and rate of returns is lower.

The world (global) tourist business is so various, its turnover estimates in hundreds billions dollars. It is economically proved that money spent by the foreign tourists should be included into a gross national revenue (GNR) of the hostess state, and money spent by the compatriots abroad should be subtracted from GNR. For example, in France income from the foreign tourism exceed profitableness of national motor industry.

Kazakhstan occupies a large territory, and is ninth biggest country in the world, about the size of Western Europe. The most perspective types of tourism for the Republic are the following: licensed safari (hunting on wild animals and birds, additionally fishing); sports tourism (especially, mountain climbing, etc.), routing tourism (for example, rafting on Ili river), stay and rest at sanatoriums (including medical) and visiting archeological monuments/tombstones. Kazakhstan should occupy its niche within the world (global) tourist business, mainly due to specificity of a natural landscape and high degree of wildness of a nature. In comparison with a segment «beach and palma» the territory of Kazakhstan is developed poorly.

The Finland tourist guide-book says: «Territory — 338145 sq. km, population — 5111 thousand. The large opportunities for the amateurs of space and solitude». In comparison with the overpopulated Europe Kazakhstan has unlimited opportunities for space, rest and solitude in the diversified landscapes.

The main tourist magnet in Hungary is the largest lake of Central Europe — Lake Balaton, its area is 596 sq. km, and greatest depth is of 11 m. The area of Lake Balkhash makes up to 18300 sq. km, maximal depth is 26 m. the taste of water is unique: half fresh and half salty. The strong winds of Lake Balkhash give the great opportunities to the amateurs of sailing sports. There are 48262 lakes in the Republic of Kazakhstan, including 3014 lakes with area of more than 1 sq. km.

Deserts, semi-deserts, steppe, forest-steppe, forests, rivers, mountains, all these things are the ready base for tourism. South-east Kazakhstan lies along the northern edge of the Tian Shan mountain system. The mountains located here differ by a variety of a relief, vegetation and fauna. In 1995, according to experts, Almaty city and its environs with all the infrastructure available at that moment, could give a tourist revolution up to one billion US dollars. More than 10 years passed, but enormous potential is used in the extremely limited volume.

The channel «EURONEWS» is occupied by the tourist advertising of Montenegria. The main thesis is the primordial nature. The picture confirms the said.

Kazakhstan for its part has a great potential for creating of tourist business.

The tourist business promotes development of the infrastructure in the form of hotels, sanatoriums, motels, shops, enterprises of public catering, filling stations, branches of banks, roads, communication (connection). The national crafts and souvenirs become of interest. This opens the new working places for many specialists. Of course, the state budget will win a lot. Besides financial benefits, the visitors from abroad bring cultural, language and psychological diversity to a host country. The years passed but nothing had changed.

Products of an inattention

To develop the model and system of tourist business is rather complicate task as well as to implement financial and raw. The results of financial and raw strategies can be observed already today. But all this confirms a principle: it is necessary to do any job well, the worth will be done itself.

In the meantime resource base for tourism became worth. For example, the number steppe antelope saiga in 90-s' was reduced to 99 % (from 2 millions to 24 thousand heads). In 2000 the number of saiga has increased but the former volume is not reached. A lot of hotels, sanatorium and preventive clinics located at picturesque places had disappeared because of the lack of investments, absence of qualitative management and balanced state policy. Also, the beautiful places of visit disappeared because of unreasonable economic activity. Somewhere the ancient relict forests are cut down, somewhere the rivers and lakes are poisoned, and some beautiful landscapes are simply transformed into garbage dumps. There are a great number of state plans on protection and restoration of a nature in Kazakhstan, however the state support is still formal due to the state charges on protection of an environment remain at a rate more than USD 0,5. per one man in a year.

Introduction of a private property on the land has affected inconsistently on development of tourism. In some cases it established order, but in the other cases it led to unreasonable capture of places, suitable for a rest. To bring everything to the order the balanced state politics and participation of profile NGO-s and business-associations therefore is required. The private property is only one of the bricks, and it is not enough to construct a new normal house. In the conditions of bureaucracy permissiveness and weakness of judicial system the real and potential owners of hotels, sanatoriums, alpinist bases, yachts-clubs and etc. have no sufficient guarantees of their property rights.

Tourists (especially the rich ones) are «choosy» people. They want to be safety by all means and have benevolent attitude of the local population. Our neighbors in Kyrgyzstan have a great number of problems with those who wish to have a rest on coast of Issyk-Kul. Many of experts mention that Kazakhstan people is tolerant enough due to their polyethnic nature, polyculture, religious variety and high level of education. However, people become more irritated because of socio economic problems, and the country loses its advantages. On the other hand, the tourist business is both job and precise understanding that means of livelihood depend on comfort of the visitors.

The tourist Slovakia guide-book declares: «There is no sea in the territory of Slovakia, but there are picturesque mountains and absolute safety». The last component is not a matter of proud for the nowadays Kazakhstan. Local police is far from being always friends of the individual in general and tourist in particular. This problem is partially solved by security of organizations specializing on tourism. These are tasks of tourist associations and other organizations. But, the practice shows, that without due support from the state they can't do a lot.

It is impossible to call tourist sphere of Kazakhstan accomplished/perfect, but if in you have the element of adventurism, readiness to new and novel things, open spaces of the large country in heart of Eurasia is a place for you.