Taras Fomchenkov
for EcoToutism Expert 
The BUTLER Hospitality analytical company conducted their study and found out how many hotels offering reasonable hotel room rates this summer were in the four main resort cities of the Krasnodar Territory.
The company’s experts based their analysis on the data from the federal register of classified hotels ad accommodation facilities. BUTLER Hospitality informs that “the study did not include individual accommodation facilities in the Krasnodar Territory like private houses, flats, guest houses, apartments, etc., which have not undergone the official classification procedure but are offered to tourists by their owners”.
According to the study, tourists can stay at 671 hotels in Sochi today. Three-star hotels are most often offered for accommodating the tourists (313 hotels, or 47 percent), four-star hotels take second place (138 hotels, or 21 percent). There are 87 two-star accommodations for tourists (13 percent) in Sochi, one of the most popular Russian resort cities. In addition, there is an opportunity for vacationers and tourists to stay at no-star hotels (69 hotels, or 9 percent). But the number of one-star and five-star hotels is almost equal (5 percent each, 31 and 33 hotels, respectively).
Anapa was another city included in the study. Interestingly, the number of hotels that have undergone the classification procedure in this resort city is 671, the same as in Sochi. However, the largest number of hotels in this city are ‘no-star’ ones, making 48 percent of the total number (302 hotels). Three-star accommodation facilities (31 percent, or 195 hotels) take second place. Third place is taken by two-star hotels (9 percent, or 59 hotels). At the same time, one-star and five-star hotels are just 1 percent, or 8 hotels in each category.
Another city is Gelendzhik. In this city, as in Sochi, three-star hotels are most common, 104 hotels (or 42 percent) out of the total number of 246 hotels. ‘No-star’ hotels take the second place in terms of the total number (29 percent, or 73 hotels), and two-star hotels take the third place (13 percent, or 31 hotels). One-star and five-star accommodation facilities are almost equal again (4 percent of the total number, 10 and 9 hotels, respectively).
And finally, in Tuapse, three-star hotels and ‘no-star’ hotels are most common. Out of the total number of 122 hotels, three-star hotels make 32 percent, or 39 hotels, and ‘no-star’ hotels make 30 percent, or 35 ones. There is only one five-star hotel, and as for two-star hotels (19 percent, or 23 ones), they take the third place. By the way, it’s interesting that in some years, according to tour operators, the houses, apartments that are not included in the classification register may accommodate 40 to 45 percent of the tourists coming to the Krasnodar Territory.
The star rating of hotels in Russia today is a classifiable parameter that is determined by the presence or absence of regulated services and a number of other features related to the accommodation of tourists. Gennady Shatalov, founder of the Russian Event Awards, a national award in event tourism, gave his comments on the study to EcoTourism EXPERT and said that in general, it is quite possible to base the choice of a hotel on the number of its ‘stars’.
‘Of course, it happens that the number of hotel stars indicated on the hotel’s website does not always correspond to the classical understanding of what should be provided at a three-, four- or five-star hotel. This happens, but most hotels, especially in large cities, try to maintain the widely accepted established standards. This is especially true for four- and five-star hotels,’ the expert believes.
