Tourism Development

Yakutia has a powerful tourism potential. This is a ideal place for people with a spirit of adventure and taste for discovery who always dream of challenging close taiga, vast plains of tundra, massive highlands and boundless arctic distances.

The point of absolute cold of the Northern Hemisphere is situated in Oymiakon district, Yakutia. There mid January temperature is - 50,0°C. Sometime it drops down to -68°C . The lowest negative temperature of -71.2°C was recorded there in 1926. Yakutia is a land for people who dream to see Aurora Borealis in natural conditions of Arctic region.

In Yakutia takes place traditional March a festival of tourism “Cold Pole” with Grandpa Frost from Great Ustyung and Santa Claus from Lapland. It aims development of international and inner tourism, and investments gaining.

The most popular tours are the Lena river tours, hunting and fishing tours, national park, Ust-Lensk reserve, and cultural program “Yakutsk” and its surroundings. Tourists from Japan, Austria, USA, France and other countries of the world visited our Republic. It's observed the growth of activity of business tourism.

A lot of attention is paid to creation of tourist infrastructure. New hotels “The Polar Star” in Yakutsk and “The Cold Pole” in Oymiakon district were built. It's continuing building new tourists complexes – “Chochur Muran” (Yakutsk).tourism-ethnography complex “Yamjizkoe podvory” and “Visit center “Lenskie stolby””, the residence of Santa Klaus on the Pole of Cold. In 2005 is also planning to begin construction of the tourist sites the “Visit Center “Diring Uryah”” and “Pitomnik lesnyh bizonov”.

The new tours are being developed. The realizing of the “Po zemle Olonkho” tourist zone project, which unites the central regions of Yakutia has been started. The plan of organizing “golden tours” (gold-mining sites) in Oymiakon and Aldan is worked out.

In 2005 “Sakha travel” exhibition-fair” have taken part 80 tourist companies and sites – tour industry of the republic, the Far East and Moscow from abroad the RPC, South Korea, Kingdom of Marocco, Italy. Exhibition-fair was visited by 500 people. For progressing of the tourist resources on the international and Russian market, formation of good image, the republic every year has take part in the Moscow international tourists fair “MITT” and “MITF”, international tourists exhibitions-fair “ITB” (Berlin), international tourists exhibition-fair “JATA-WTF” (Tokyo) and “WTM” (London).

With the purpose of formation of a competitive tourist product on the basis of an effective utilization of resources of the Republic, in May, 2005 the State target the program “Development of tourism in Republic for 2005- 2010” is expected.