National tourism in Russia: unrealized potential

The paper deals with issues related to the characteristics of the current state and prospects for the development of domestic tourism in Russia in the context of the pandemic and the closure of borders in the European Union and North America. On the basis of domestic and foreign sources, it is proved that domestic tourism has become the main direction in the activity of the tourism industry both in the leading tourist powers of the world and in Russia. It is noted that the country is far from fully realizing the existing potential, which is able to bring the tourism industry to a qualitatively new level. In connection with the beginning of the construction of the Moscow - Kazan expressway, the author puts forward the idea of creating a tourist and recreational cluster, which would include small cities of the regions adjacent to the highway. The paper substantiates the need for a project similar to one of the most famous and commercially successful tourist routes, the Golden Ring, launched half a century ago. The author of the article concludes that the implementation of the project will contribute to both the development of domestic tourism and the revival of small towns in the Volga regions of Russia.