A creative approach to tourism management in the region (the case study of Murmansk Oblast)

Significant changes that have occurred in the domestic tourism market in recent years, shifting tourist preferences, and changes in the tourist flow compel the search for new methods and ways of managing regional tourism. The Arctic regions, which do not rank among traditional and mass tourist destinations and for which the rapid development of tourism has been a real challenge, are particularly in need of novel management approaches. This article analyzes the experience of employing creative approaches to managing the tourism sector in the Murmansk Oblast, located entirely within the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation, throughout the period from 2020 to 2024. During this time, a separate governing body with a subordinate institution responsible for the development of tourism in the region was formed. The article also examines unconventional management decisions taken at all stages of managerial activity: during planning both at the regional and municipal levels; in organizing tourist activities; in the process of stimulating the creation of new regional tour products; and in the process of quality control of the organization of tourist activities by the local professional community, highlighting creative managerial tools. As the article analyzes projects implemented in the region, it also presents the results achieved using a creative approach in developing tourism in the Murmansk Oblast during the designated time.