DESCRIPTION OF RUSSIAN RESORT CLUSTERS

Natural and geographical diversity of our country provides ample opportunities for the development of resort activities. Three main resort clusters can be singled out: seaside, mountain, balneological and bioclimatic clusters. Sochi is unique because here all 3 clusters are combined: the Black Sea coast, the Krasnaya Polyana mountains, and salubrious sulphur springs of Matsesta.

The crucial point in the development of Sochi as a year-round most popular resort city in Russia was the creation of infrastructure in line with international best practices, a well-developed network of roads and railways, and a modern international airport. At the same time, the seaside and mountain clusters enjoyed better growth. Matsesta has one-of-a-kind medical facilities that were established during tsarist Russia. In the Soviet period, a major reconstruction was carried out, and Matsesta became a health resort of national importance. At present, the health resort facilities are in need of a comprehensive renovation in order to comply with modern standards of hospitality and recreational activities.

The Black Sea coast boasts the most developed infrastructure for entertainment and recreation, which is available mostly for comfort, business and premium classes. These segments show the most confident growth in the price per square meter.

The established steady demand for resort real estate encourages growth in business-class and premium-class segments in Tsentralny and Adlersky City Districts of the city of Sochi (including federal territory ""Sirius""). According to the forecast for autumn and winter of 2022–2023, a moderate growth in prices for real estate in higher segments is expected. The economy-class real estate is poorly represented in Sochi due to the high cost of construction and the limited quantity of suitable land lots.

Supply and customer demand in the Kaliningrad region increased significantly over the past year. The average real estate price in Kaliningrad is 166 000 rubles per square meter. Investments in the region, relatively low prices on the new construction real estate market, high quality of construction, and proximity to the European Union acted as catalysts for growth. Current transportation and external restrictions may adversely affect investment demand. According to the forecast for the following 6 months, there will be stagnation or an insignificant drop in prices.

At present, the resorts of the North Caucasus (Arkhyz, Kislovodsk, Pyatigorsk) cannot offer many newly erected buildings; the real estate market consists mainly of secondary housing. In the medium term, new destinations and apartment complexes may be expected owing to the development of a year-round tourism and recreation complex ""Arkyz"".

Provided that proper positioning and an integrated management approach are applied to the cluster of balneological and bioclimatic resorts, we could consider the strategic development of these territories in a way similar to that of foreign balneological resorts, such as Baden-Baden, Karlovy Vary, Montecatini Terme, Emilia Romagna, etc. These locations could be developed for mass and average-budget recreation, which, in its turn, would improve the investment potential of the real estate market in this region. Mountain skiing tourism also requires development in the regions of the North Caucasus, the Urals, and Siberia. Construction of new resorts and renovation of existing ones will act as a catalyst for regional development and, first and foremost, will drive up construction.