| Abstrakt: |
Abstract: Odessa, as a port town, has been open to many foreign influences practically since its foundation in 1794. These would impact not only the area of economy, but also the realm of everyday culture. The character of the Odessa urban environment was therefore in many ways different from other cities of the Russian Empire at that time, and the lifestyle of its inhabitants took on a peculiar form in comparison to the rest of the empire. As a result of these specifics, Odessa became one of the first places in Tsarist Russia where modern tourism began to develop under conditions comparable to those in Western and Central Europe. Not only was one of the first tourist clubs in Russia founded here, Odessa was also probably the first destination of Tsarist Russia which was visited by an organized group of foreign tourists. Another aspect of the city’s attraction was the fact that it is located on the seashore in a climatically rather favourable area. Another reason determining the touristic appeal of the monitored locality lies in its spa tradition and in the fact that Odessa can be considered, at least from a historical perspective, as a spa town. It is argued in the text that all these local circumstances have influenced the fact that Odessa has become a ‘cradle’ of mass tourism in the Russian and later Soviet empire. |
