DOMESTIC TOURISM OF UKRAINE: TRENDS, ISSUES AND DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WAR PERIOD

Abstract

The article is devoted to issues of the development of domestic tourism in Ukraine and Transcarpathian region as its part in the period 2019-2023. The relevance of the study is that precisely during the period of pandemics, wars, natural disasters within the borders of the country and its regions, domestic tourism is clearly distinguished as the main lever of "maintenance" of the tourism industry. Its role in the economic growth of territories, preservation of natural and historical and cultural resources, development of new tourist routes, etc. is determined. The purpose of the article is to identify new trends in domestic tourism in Ukraine and outline ways to solve problems of its development within the study area. In order to achieve the goal, the concept of "domestic tourism" was defined in the research process and new trends in its development during the war period were identified, namely: narrowing of the time frames for tourists to plan their trips, rest with a small number of people, the popularity of sanatorium tours, a summer weekend for two with a term of 3 days. In the research process, general scientific methods of cognition, induction and deduction, analysis and synthesis were used. According to the results of the study, it was established that modern migration processes, stress from shelling, the destruction of cities and villages as a result of military operations, the undermining of the Kakhovka Dam HPP and blackmail regarding the possible destruction of the Zaporizhzhia NPP or the use of nuclear weapons lead to the choice of short-term trips, which are the main factor in restoring strength, a way of recreating the citizens of Ukraine. The Transcarpathian region is the only one that has not yet felt the military aggression of russia, located behind the Ukrainian Carpathians along the border with European countries, it is considered the safest in terms of tourism and currently a significant movement of vacationers is directed to its territory. Both domestic and transit tourism in Transcarpathia is growing, as evidenced by the data on receipt of tourist tax of the united territorial communities (hereinafter - OTG) to the regional budget, among them: Poliana OTG (21.8%), Uzhhorod OTG (13.8%), Baranyntsi OTG, Mukachevo OTG (5.8%), others OTG (38.7%). It is the Poliana OTG that is the most profitable and confirms the fact that the main trend of domestic tourism during the war for recreation is the choice of sanatorium tours. There are 4 sanatoriums, 40 hotels and 60 homesteads within the boundaries of this OTG, which can host 60,000 vacationers annually. At the same time, the development of domestic tourism in the study area is complicated by a number of issues associated with the disruption of the territory's logistics, the loss of a significant part of tourist and recreational resources, and the destruction of the tourist infrastructure. To solve these issues, it is necessary to implement a number of measures to ensure the safety of tourists on the territory of Ukraine through timely notifications about possible threats, development of alternative tourist routes, reconstruction of infrastructure with the involvement of foreign investors, support of the tourism industry from the state.