Saint Petersburg Will Host the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization in 2019

Events of the General Assembly of the United Nations World Tourism Organization are currently taking place in Chengdu, China. The winner that obtained the right to hold this important event in 2019 has just defined, and it can be said with confidence that the Russian Federation will adopt the next General Assembly.

The holding of the General Assembly in St. Petersburg will make it possible not only for the city, but also for the whole country, to enhance its image on the world stage and to increase the flow of tourists, as well as to enable the world's experts to be involved in the development of mechanisms for the further development of the Russian Federation and its subjects as the leading world tourism center. This is an opportunity to change the condition of the tourism industry, due to the transfer of valuable experience, knowledge and developments on a wide range of issues, ranging from technologies for the promotion of tourism product on world markets to new standards and educational methods for the professionals of tourism industry, because UNWTO is the main center for the collection, analysis and dissemination of tourism data from more than 180 countries and territories.

(Source: Visit Petersburg)

Andrey Muskarev, the Chairman of Committee for Tourism Development, comments the situation: "This victory means recognition of the Saint Petersburg tourism industry by world leaders as a city that is able to become a center not only of cultural but also of business tourism. The city authorities have done a great deal of work to bring this event to St. Petersburg, and I can say with certainty that this is a well-deserved victory."

We recall that St. Petersburg Committee for Tourism Development had signed a memorandum of understanding between the Government of St. Petersburg and UNWTO in 2016, and an application for the General Assembly had been made by the city in 2017.