Ethnographic parks, villages and farmsteads as a strategic resource of regional tourism development

Buryatia is a region located at the crossroads of East and West, where Asian and European cultures merge together. Buryatia’s reclaiming began with the arrival of Russian Cossacks in the 17th century. Multinational population of the republic had shaped an original cultural land­scape of the region. Unique cultural landscape of Buryatia is a valuable resource for tourism development in the region. Today, popularization of Cossack culture is actively supported at the federal level, many projects, dedicated to Transbaikal Cossacks, including tourist ones, are functioning successfully. The article evaluates the potential of ethnographic tourism pro­jects in the territory of Buryatia, determines the strategic importance of ethnographic tourism related to Transbaikalian Cossacks for regional tourism development.