Most of us are used to vacationing 'according to the weather.' In summer we go sunbathing, in winter - skiing, and we spend the golden autumn in Paris or Prague. Meanwhile, event tourism is gaining increasing popularity in the world, when a vacation is timed not to the peak of heat outside or fatigue at work, but to interesting cultural, sports, or political events taking place in various parts of the planet.
According to British tour operators, for those who like to feel part of a global process - this year is a feast. They should definitely go to such places.
To Beijing for the Olympic Games. 'Moreover, the Games will generate hot demand for tours to China not only in 2008, but also in 2009,' asserts ABTA. In other words, the summer competitions will end, but people who didn't make it, were afraid of the crowds, couldn't afford it, but still desperately want to breathe the Olympic air, will still be going to China. According to domestic tour operators, our fellow citizens are not lagging behind global trends and are actively booking tours to China, despite their considerable cost - from $4,000. In total, the Celestial Empire expects to receive about 4.5 million foreign sports fans.
To Israel for the 60th anniversary of the state. It is expected that the May anniversary will become one of the most beautiful Independence Days in the country's history. Specifically for the festive date, 60 amusement parks will be built, where concerts, video shows, and mass festivities will take place.
A special gift will be a festive match between the Israeli national football team and one of the best European clubs, presumably Manchester United, or the Anglo-Russian Chelsea. Perhaps that is why the birthday of the Middle Eastern state will become a 'high season' for British travel companies.
To Austria and Switzerland for the European Football Championship. A football match, even the most inconspicuous, always brings a bus of fan-tourists. Not to mention the long-awaited Euro-2008, which will take place in June. This time, so many guests are expected that the authorities of the host countries intend to call in police officers from France and Germany to maintain order.
To South America. Nothing extraordinary will take place on the continent itself this year. The influx of tourists will be boosted by the wide release of the film 'Love in the Time of Cholera', based on the novel by Gabriel García Márquez. Filming took place in Cartagena (Colombia), a city considered one of the most beautiful in South America, which most viewers will definitely want to see.
This trait of Europeans and Americans to travel in the wake of high-profile film premieres has long been noticed by the tourism business. It is known that after the release of 'The Lord of the Rings', tourists flocked to New Zealand, after 'Harry Potter' - to England, and even little-known Kazakhstan began to generate interest once the world got acquainted with 'Borat'. True, as experts note, our compatriots are not yet susceptible to such cultural tourism. For example, after the release of the book and film 'The Da Vinci Code', travel agencies tried to organize tours to the novel's locations in Paris and Rome. However, despite the popularity of the work, the excursions were not in demand.
To Siberia for the solar eclipse. One of the most significant events of the year - a total solar eclipse - will occur in Russia on August 1. The eclipse path, about 250 km wide, will cross Western Siberia from north to south, then go to Altai and further through inaccessible areas of Mongolia and China.
The sun will disappear for almost three minutes. Foresighted tourists are already buying summer tours to Siberia. For the eclipse period, most places in hotels in Novosibirsk, for example, are already booked. Among those wishing to see the unique phenomenon are both individuals and groups of curious residents of Europe, America, and Canada.
'If we talk about event tourism, our tourists are more attracted to sports competitions, fashion shows, or carnivals,' comments the vice-president of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia, Vladimir Kantorovich, on the passivity of compatriots. 'Interest in unique natural phenomena has not yet awakened among us.'