Fostering Tourism Through Regional Culture in the Russian–Chinese Borderland: A Case Study of Zabaykalsky Krai and Northeast China

China Report. 2024. Vol. 60. No. 3. P. 235–249.

Valentina Sergeevna Morozova, Dorzhi Dondokovich Dondokov

The article focuses on the cultural and civilisational potential of Russian eastern borders and China border regions. The issues raised in this article seem to be topical in the context of two circumstances: first, tourist contacts have undergone significant transformations in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and second, the aggravating situation with the emergence of barriers to entry into the European tourism space makes China one of the most attractive regions for tourism development. The concept of ‘border’ appears as a unique sociocultural space where regional culture functioning is mediated by the influence of three cultural dimensions (national, local and foreign). In the era of digitalisation, online platforms act as a modern space for the concentration and accumulation of tourist content. Updating the work on online platforms can become one of the ways of solving the identified problems in the border tourism sector. The article gives a possible solution to the above issues based on the original model of ‘regional cultures dialogueness in the borderland’, its integration into the concept of tourism development in the border areas. The authors suggest recommendations on the vector of modern state policy regarding the development of tourism initiatives in the Russian–Chinese border area.

Keywords: туризм, regional culture, региональная культура, tourism, Russian-Chinese borderland, российско-китайское приграничье, Zabaykalsky Krai, Забайкальский край