From the history of the development of tourist and excursion business in Nizhny Novgorod in the 1920s.

Ryabova Ol'ga Vyacheslavovna ORCID: 0000-0001-9017-0983 PhD in History Associate Professor, Department of Service and Tourism, Institute of Economics and Entrepreneurship, Federal State Autonomous Educational Institution of Higher Education "N.I. Lobachevsky National Research Nizhny Novgorod State University" 606420, Russia, Nizhegorodskaya oblast', Balakhninskii Raion, P. Bolshoe Kozino ul. Voinskaya, 2, kv. 13 orabova034@gmail.com Other publications by this author

Smirnova Irina Pavlovna ORCID: 0000-0001-7383-6296 Senior Lecturer, Department of Advertising, Public Relations and Tourism, Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of Higher Education "Nizhny Novgorod State Linguistic University named after N.A. Dobrolyubov" 603155, Russia, Nizhegorodskaya oblast', g. Nizhnii Novgorod, ul. Proviantskaya, 20, kv. 94 ma17ma@yandex.ru

 After the inclusion of the tourism industry in the number of national projects, the interest of researchers in the history of domestic tourism has grown significantly, especially in its first decades. The explanation for this can be given as follows: it was the 1920s and 1930s that were the time of a unique experiment in the field of tourism, when tourism was closely connected with sightseeing, cultural and educational policy and propaganda of the young Soviet state.

Soviet tourism in the 20-30s of the twentieth century, of course, was not a highly liquid branch of the national economy with a quick return on investment and contributed little to the balance of the national economy by redistributing national income. He was called to solve other tasks. The Soviet state pursued a policy of developing social tourism, which was designed for the mass consumer of tourist services. The propaganda component of tourism was dominant at that time, and organizational, methodological, and recreational issues receded into the background.

Numerous works by Soviet historians, such as V. Antonov–Saratovsky ^[1], L. M. Gurvich ^[2], P. V. Lutenskov ^[3], and modern ones are devoted to the history of the formation and development of mass tourism in the USSR in the late 1920s-30s. Among modern researchers, it is particularly worth highlighting the work of I. B. Orlov and E.V. Yurchikova "Mass tourism in Stalin's everyday life" ^[4]. They present in detail the process of development of the tourist movement in general and OPTE in particular, and there has also been a surge in regional research. The activities of regional tourist and excursion organizations of the period of the 1920s-30s can be studied only through careful work with the funds of regional archives. The materials presented in this article make it possible to involve the data of the State Socio-Political Archive of the Nizhny Novgorod region (hereinafter – GOP NO) into scientific circulation.

In the 1920s, all issues related to the organization of travel, tourist trips or excursions around the country were resolved in the public education bodies. So, back in 1919, excursion sections were created at the Department of the Unified Labor School of the People's Commissariat of Education, the main task of which was to organize excursions in schools. At the same time, courses for the training of guides were opened, at which lectures were given by prominent scientists of that period, for example, the director of the Hermitage S.N. Troynitsky ^{[5, p. 201]}.

In the early 1920s, the Institute of Methods of Extracurricular Work (IMVR) of the People's Commissariat of the RSFSR began its work in Moscow, among the activities of which an important place was occupied by the development of methods of long-distance excursions for high school students, students and teachers ^{[4, p. 38]}.

In the Nizhny Novgorod province, the Cultural and Educational Department at the Nizhgubprofsovet was responsible for this area of work. One of the first excursions, developed and conducted by this department, took place on July 23-24, 1922 on a steamer on the route Nizhny Novgorod – Pavlovo. The lecturer was P.G. Smitten.  The excursion was of a natural-historical nature, that is, its purpose was to familiarize tourists not only with the modern geological phenomena of the Nizhny Novgorod province, but also with the past of the Earth's crust. The number of tourists was 90 people. At the same time, most of them were workers or were part of the Youth Union ^{[6, L. 8]}.

Quite quickly, the central authorities of the country began to introduce ideology into the excursion and tourist movement, primarily aimed at promoting the tasks and achievements of the USSR. So, in May 1925, the Cultural and Educational Department of the Nizhgubprofsovet received instructions from the Central Committee on the organization of mass Union excursions, walks, which indicated that the purpose of these events should be:

"1) organization of healthy collective rest of workers;

2) the deployment of mass political and educational and trade union educational work" ^{[6, L. 2]}.

To implement the tasks set, already in June 1925, the Excursion Bureau at the Cultural and Educational Department of the Nizhny Novgorod Provincial Council of Trade Unions (KPO NGSPS) compiled an excursion plan, which provided for the inspection of the following enterprises on the territory of Nizhny Novgorod: "Sormovo: 1) Krasnoe Sormovo plant; 2) 26 Communards plant; Kanavino: 1) factory, former Felser; 2) textile factory "Krasny Oktyabr"; City: 1) Gosmelnitsa; 2) City Water Pump and Power Plant; 3) Radio Laboratory" ^{[7, L. 8]}.

The plan also provided for long-distance excursion routes to the political and industrial centers of the USSR for workers and employees. For example, excursions to Moscow were offered (a 4-day tour) on the following topics: "Industrial Moscow", "Revolutionary Moscow", "Cultural Moscow". It was possible to go to Leningrad on the following excursion topics: "Industrial Leningrad", "Leningrad – port", "Revolutionary Leningrad", "Cultural Leningrad" ^{[7, l. 13-14]}.

The main purpose of these excursions was to show what results the Soviet government achieved in restoring the country's industry in general, and the Nizhny Novgorod Region in particular.             But it should be noted that in 1925-1926 The tour desk conducted quite a large number of historical and literary excursions in Nizhny Novgorod. So, in 1925, the Tour Desk conducted historical and public excursions to the following sites:

"1) Kremlin; 2) Fair; 3) Volga Shipping Company" 4) Museum (historical and artistic)" ^{[7, L. 8]}.

 In 1926, 2 routes for literary and cultural excursions in Nizhny Novgorod were presented. "Route 1. 1) P.I. Melnikov (Pechersky), P.D. Boborykin. 2) N.A. Dobrolyubov. 3) The slope. 4) Ivan Rukavishnikov. 5) Shakhovsky Fortress Theater. 6) V.I. Dahl and M.L. Mikhailov. 7) The house where P.I. Melnikov was born (Pechersky). 8) B.A. Sadovsky. 9) The Circle of Writers in 1812

Route 2. 1) Ivanovich (Svedentsov). 2) The house where M. Gorky was born. 3) M. Gorky, the Wanderer (Petrov), Iv. Kasatkin, A. Belozerov. 4) People's House. 5) I.P. Kulibin. 6) Annenskiye N.F. and A.N. 7) Korolenko V.G. and M. Gorky" ^{[9, p. 3]}.

Even from such a brief overview, you can see how the nature of the excursion activity has changed, acquiring more and more features of ideological propaganda.

At the same time, it is worth noting that this phenomenon was ubiquitous, since the country's leadership considered "the excursion method the best weapon of political enlightenment and communist education of the broad masses" ^{[8, l. 13]}.

Here it is worth paying special attention to how long-distance excursions were organized (today we call them a tourist trip), given the fact that they were, in most cases, of a state-ideological nature. Let's consider this by the example of "Excursions to workers' Health repair shops in the Crimea and the Caucasus", developed in Nizhny Novgorod in 1925 ^{[8, l. 14-15]}.

The organization of a 16-day excursion to the Caucasus provided for the following points:

1. Passage – Railway (Moscow – Rostov – Baku - Tiflis) – 19 rubles 68 kopecks (50% discount was provided for trade union members, i.e. 9 rubles 84 kopecks).

2. The fee for excursions is 33 rubles, of which 12 rubles is the fee for motor transport (Fiat bus).

3. Accommodation in equipped rooms with full daily allowance. Meals: breakfast - 2 cups of sweet tea; ? pound of white bread and 2 eggs. Lunch consists of 2 courses with bread. Dinner – 1 hot dish with bread.

Thus, a 16-day excursion with motor transport along the Georgian Military Road with a round trip by Rail cost each tourist 51 rubles. 36 kopecks.

Each tourist, along with travel tickets and documents, was issued a prescribed form of an excursion ticket containing:

1) rules of conduct mandatory for tourists;

2) coupons for accommodation and meals at the designated places of stops;

3) a ticket for the right of way in a car, on boats, etc.

During this period, the State took special care of family workers who were members of the trade union. The regulatory documents emphasized that they are given special benefits for paying for vouchers, while "single members of trade unions pay 15% more on all routes and do not use installments. Singles who are not members of a trade union are not accepted on excursions" ^{[8, l. 20]}.

Nevertheless, a big obstacle in the development of long-distance excursions was their high cost. The organizers of the long-distance excursions were the Experimental and Demonstration Excursion Base and the Joint Tour Bureau of the People's Commissariat of the RSFSR. The latter institution was self-supporting. Therefore, there was a certain focus on the commercialization of tourism. And here we can talk about the existence of two opposing trends in the development of tourism.

On the one hand, on March 17, 1928, the charter of the Excursion State Joint Stock Company "Soviet Tourist" ("Sovtur") was approved ^[10]. The created agency, which became the legal successor of the United Tour Bureau, was a commercial enterprise and one of its main goals was to make a profit. Of course, Sovtur was also entrusted with the task of "cultural and political" servicing of tourists and tourists. Therefore, the routes being developed had to pass through places associated with revolutionary events and socialist construction ^{[11, p. 4]}. Sovtur was focused on voucher tourism, built on the principle of paid vouchers, the main emphasis was placed on comfort and recreation ^{[4, p. 44]}. The most economically advantageous was the provision of expensive individual tours of an entertainment nature, which, of course, the low-income segments of the population, who then made up the majority, could not afford to purchase.

 On the other hand, the Experimental and Demonstrative Excursion Base and the Joint Tour Bureau of the People's Commissariat of Education (since 1928, the GAO "Soviet Tourist"), in order to reduce the cost of vouchers, provided certain categories of citizens with both preferential railway coupons and the opportunity to stay at the end of a long-distance excursion for independent recreation with accommodation on preferential terms. For example, such bases were provided in the Crimea – in Yalta, Gurzuf, Alushta, in the Caucasus – in Gagra, the cost of living is 40 kopecks. per day (a room with a mattress was provided), as well as lunch for 50-60 kopecks. ^{[12, l. 4]}

Another example. In Nizhny Novgorod, the lecture and excursion base rented dormitories for nonresident tourists, whose share of the total number, by the way, was at least 60% ^{[12, L. 61]}. At the same time, the following rates were set for 4 categories of citizens: "1. from workers and employees – 30 kopecks/day; 2. from students – 15 kopecks/day; 3. from the poorest – 10 kopecks/day; 4. single - poor – free of charge" ^{[12, L. 78]}. It is obvious that these actions were in the nature of democratizing tourism, but they were clearly insufficient.

It is also necessary to take into account the fact that the excursion bases themselves experienced great difficulties with financing their activities. So, in the Nizhny Novgorod province Gubpolitprosvet in 1926-27 repeatedly appealed to the Gubprofsovet with a request to provide financial assistance to the Provincial Excursion base ^{[13, l. 48]}. But the governing bodies decided that "the service of the masses with lecture and excursion works should be put in the plane of possible self-sufficiency of the work of the lecture and excursion bureau" ^{[13, L. 80]}. At the same time, it was pointed out that only the best scientific, scientific-technical and pedagogical personnel (i.e. professors, associate professors, researchers, etc.) should work in the Tour Desk. Hack work, i.e. servicing tourists for the sake of saving money by incompetent persons or students who have poorly mastered the material, is not allowed ^{[13, L. 80]}. To attract qualified personnel, the following rates were introduced: with an average occupancy of the excursion group of 30 people. the cost of an hour-long lecture for the specialists involved was 3-5 rubles, the salary of regular guides ranged from 50 to 75 rubles per month ^{[14, p. 32]}.

The following statistics show how much excursion services were in demand. In 1926-27 , in the Nizhny Novgorod province , the Provincial Excursion Base conducted 2,186 excursions covering 51,994 people . The content was dominated by industrial (more than 25 thousand people visited) and social studies (more than 28 thousand people) excursions. The composition was dominated by students of schools, technical schools and universities (51% of the total number of tourists), followed by workers (18%) and employees (11%). The peasants (0.1%) were the least covered by the excursion business ^{[13, l. 61]}.

At the same time, there were even cases of complaints from the management of factories and factories about the excessive number of excursion groups. Thus, the management of the construction of Volga Pulp and Paper Mills named after Comrade. Dzerzhinsky's telegram to the Gubprofsovet dated 07/31/1929 indicated that the number of tourists to the factories reaches 300 people a day, which interferes with the normal operation of the enterprise ^{[15, l. 124]}.

Thus, it can be concluded that the tourist and excursion business in the Nizhny Novgorod province in the first decade of Soviet power developed in the general paradigm of the realities of that time. The demand for these services among the population was high. But attempts to commercialize this type of activity, to achieve the possibility of making a profit, unfortunately, have not been successful. The reason for this was the low incomes of the population (therefore, trade unions had to subsidize tourist trips), and the ideological orientation of this type of activity. The tourist and excursion sphere was one of the ways to form a loyal, ideologically well-educated Soviet person needed by the authorities. For this purpose, tourist and excursion routes are being developed, aimed primarily at showing the achievements of the Soviet government in the economic recovery after the Civil War and foreign intervention. The Soviet government also attached great importance to social tourism aimed at restoring and maintaining the health of workers. But due to objective reasons, the funds allocated to subsidize social tourism unions were not enough. Therefore, with the beginning of the "Stalinist modernization" of the country and the end of the NEP, the concept of the so-called "proletarian tourism", with its idea of organizing a voluntary society of amateur tourism, is becoming increasingly popular. There was no place for commercially oriented tourism in these new realities.

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