Influence of Alpine Clubs on Tourism in Switzerland and Georgia

Written by Aleksandre Davitashvili, Cedric Gehrer & Dennis Wild, a collaboration between students of the Tbilisi State University and the University of Zurich

Georgia
Georgia is located to the south of the Greater Caucasus Mountains, which was hidden behind the Iron Curtain for world tourism for almost a century until 1991, when the Soviet Union collapsed. Mountains cover 65% of the country's territory and it is not surprising that winter tourism plays a big role in Georgian tourism. Visitors to mountain ski resorts in Georgia between 2011 and 2018 increased by 491% (MRDC 2018). It is the merit of the "Mountain Resorts Development Company" (MRDC) which was established in 2013 and is a subordinated entity of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia. MRDC manages all the country's mountain ski resorts: Gudauri, Bakuriani, Mestia, Goderdzi, and is responsible for various aspects that this resort has to offer: all levels of ski slopes, winter hiking routes, hotels and guesthouses (MRDC 2018). But if you wonder what role Georgian alpine clubs play in the country's tourism development, unfortunately, it is insignificant. The reason behind this is that after the fall of the Soviet Union and the gained independenccy an ongoing civil war followed and the country's well-developed Soviet period alpine clubs were left without any finances and all the infrastructures, huts, and mountaineering archives were destroyed (Levan 2015).

Literature
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Gurtner, M. (2008). The Swiss Alpine Club SAC and its role in national mapping.
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Levan, G. (2015): Mountaineering [accessed 19 November 2022]: https://www.gfsis.org.ge/files/my-world/25/__9.pdf?__cf_chl_tk=35bIMjKeAo_R2T2u0Zx_8ZPuEDS..YlXJ0OePzOkM5g-1667393947-0-gaNycGzNCf0

MRDC (2018): Mountain resorts of Georgia [accessed 19 November 2022]: https://documentcloud.wondershare.com/clientShare/review/bpcFVoayn8Msp0rtjRcN4aH8d_t4C-5-0yJsa4iYKsIffVf5jAUvEI3SWqFbxWdYUwsoTvU25mNEXnbBVaJRew

Swiss Alpine Club (2022) [accessed 19 November 2022]: https://www.sac-cas.ch/de/der-sac/ueber-uns/