To see the North and not die

In recent years the Northwest region of Russia is actively engaged in development of marine tourism. The third largest city in Europe - St. Petersburg having a huge tourism potential, is only now beginning to develop the cruise and ferry tourism. And to visit the Arctic on a nuclear icebreaker was made possible by the proposal of Atomflot.
 
St. Peter help you
 
Regular international ferry service was provided in St. Petersburg until 1996, but in connection with the bankruptcy of the Baltic Shipping Company has been suspended.
 
In 2000s there had been not several attempts made to revive the service, but a number of problems aroused - from lack of infrastructure for the reception of tourists to the imperfection of the Russian visa laws.
 
To increase the influx of tourists the city officials succeeded in lobbing the adoption of a law authorizing the tourists’ visa-free visit for 72 hours on the territory of Russia. It solved the legal issue.
 
In April this year, ST. Peter Line company made another attempt, starting operation of the Princess Mary ferry on St. Petersburg-Helsinki line. The ferry with 606 cabins of various classes is designed to carry 1,638 passengers and nearly 395 vehicles on board.
 
That day, the PortNews correspondent also took part in the ship’s maiden cruise. He had mixed impressions – there was a delay at the border crossing, and late arrival of the ship in Helsinki.
 
Anyhow, by the end of this summer navigation (April-September), the ferry line had carried 100,000 passengers. The number of passengers is expected to increase up to 180,000 people by the end of this year, far cry from the announced plan to carry 500,000 passengers a year, half of them – foreign tourists. Nevertheless, the available results gives hope to believe that the service line will be further developing.

 

Among the factors that contributed to the relative success of the ferry line cruises were simplified visa regime, this summer heat (sending many Russians fleeing from smoke-filled cities) and low prices. The minimum cost of a one way ticket on the ferry now stands at 1,202 rubles versus 800 rubles for a bus ticket for a tour from St. Petersburg to Helsinki - a small overpayment for comfort and marine experience. All that is a lot cheaper then going to Helsinki on the high-speed Allegro train to Helsinki (RUB 3,300 / €84).
 
However, to all appearance, such low prices will not last long - entering the market, the operator will be only hiking them. Eventually, its price competitiveness compared to other modes of transport will decrease. As ST.Peter Line’s CEO Igor Glukhov said in an interview with journalists, now the ferry ticket cost remains at a very low level, below which the company would operate at a loss. "Only swimming is cheaper. Therefore, we are not going to reduce the cost any more, it will only grow", Mr. Glukhov said.

Nevertheless, the St. Peter Line officials are confident in the growth of tourists flow and are planning to start operating in 2012 the second ferry on the new route Saint-Petersburg-Stockholm, calling at Tallinn port. To increase the attractiveness of the company’s services it will develop the entertainment tours that neither train nor bus companies could offer. Besides, the company’s ferry has the casino on board, which could also attract some tourists.
 
St. Peter Line also plans to use a ferry complex for tourists to be launched at the new passenger port of St. Petersburg Marine Façade in 2011.
 
In addition to St. Peter Line another St. Petersburg company, S-Continental (part of PMI Corporation) provides cruise tourism. In June this year, the company launched a regular cruise service at the passenger port for Russian tourists. As Eugene Finkelstein, the PMI Corp’s president told the PortNews correspondent that the company has been operating a ferry line service with weekly calls at Helsinki, Stockholm and Tallinn (while St.Peter Line only plans to launch its own St. Petersburg- Stockholm cruises (with calls at Tallinn). For this purpose S-Continental operates the upgraded SC-Atlantic ferry carrying 236 passengers on board. The cruise operator is initially focused on a cruise vacation, not competing directly with St. Peter Line, which is largely engaged in ferry services to Finland with a certain level of comfort offered by the company.

According to PMI officials, the company sold 95% of the tickets for the maiden tour.
 
Some international operators’ large cruise liners call at Marine Façade of St. Petersburg.

In 2009, there were 115 calls at the passenger port Marine Façade, 97% of total capacity of the port’s first phase, and 245,000 passengers that arrived in St. Petersburg during last year’s navigation.

Nothing ventured, never sail

Declining attractiveness of St. Petersburg for tourism caused by ongoing urban development that is changing the city image may become a risk for tourism business. Recently, the city officials announced the construction of a 400-meter-high skyscraper that is believed to distort a unique Petersburg architectural line. This may lead to a decrease in number of tourists visiting the city. The image of Russia in Europe is also degrading. Thus, the proportion of foreigners in the total passenger flow of St. Peter Line during this summer navigation was only about 30%.

Another problem - transportation of tourists outside the Vasilevsky Island. It's well known that city is suffocating in traffic jams and additional dozens of tourist buses downtown will lead to a full traffic collapse. In this regard, the city government stakes on the development of river transport making first steps in this direction. The Marine Façade port project includes construction of a river station, but it's still the matter of an uncertain future.

At the same time, according to Tatiana Gavrilova, executive director of the Northwest regional branch of the Russian Union of Tourism Industry, this is the best time launching of ferry and cruise lines."This is a very right time for the opening of new lines, as the Russia’s tourist industry shows rapid growth" Tatyana Gavrilova said.

According to her, to increase the attractiveness of maritime tourism the companies could offer holding of different conferences and meeting on board of the ferries. The offer seems reasonable since there are very few congress centers in Russia that meet the latest international standards.

Speaking about the development of maritime tourism in the North-West Russia, it is worthy of note such an extreme tourism as tours aboard the nuclear-powered icebreakers in the Arctic. Similar services are provided by Federal State Unitary Enterprise Atomflot, a member of a state corporation Rosatom that is engaged in escorts of merchant vessels in the northern seas. However, Atomflot’s CEO Vyacheslav Ruksha has refuted the widespread opinion that the Company’s revenues obtained from Arctic tourism make up almost the lion's share of the company's revenues. According to him, this share amounts to just about 2%.

 

The company offers tourist cruises to the North Pole, islands and archipelagos of the Central Arctic.

Vitaly Chernov.