Local tourism is gaining momentum in Moldova
The Covid-19 pandemic and then the war in Ukraine have kept many Moldovans in their homeland. Willing to travel, people gradually began to discover their country. Lately, the national heritage has been increasingly exploited by attracting local tourists, and this has brought with it the development of rural localities, say experts in the field.
One group of people chose to see several picturesque places in the country along the Dniester River by boat.
"We have some picturesque places that we should come and visit more often, they are beautiful places and we should show them to the whole world. Only on the Dniester can we experience this wonderful feeling.";
"And in the Republic of Moldova, there are sights worth visiting because our Moldova is the bottom of the Sarmatian Sea and if we look at the landscape that surrounds us really this is part of our landscapes, of the beauty of the country";
"I want to say that our country - the Republic of Moldova is much more beautiful and much more fantastic than other countries, that's why we have to get to know every little corner of heaven here";
"I think for the first time in the last 30 years I had such a good and interesting rest. I am amazed by nature, the green forests laid like a carpet all around. It's very beautiful."
"It would be good to have more often such opportunities to make use of the beauty of the nature of the Republic of Moldova, at the same time to do everything to multiply the beauty. And it is very important on these two banks of the Dniester that everyone understands that the Dniester unites us, but does not divide us. If each of us does a little, the country will reach the level we all want it to reach.";
Mihail Antonovich has been steering this ship for over 30 years. He says that despite multiple invitations to work abroad, he chose to stay at home. The hardest part was working during the pandemic.
"I was going, but with less people, I was allowed up to 50 percent, but in the pandemic two months I didn't work. It's hard to work, if before we used to go to Soroca, to Cosăuți, now we can only go to Camenca. The water level is good, but the Dniester is getting swollen. We work with tourism companies," says Mihail Antonovici.
Specialists say that lately there has been an increase in the number of local and foreign tourists choosing to visit Moldova's scenic spots.
"Local tourists have started to travel mostly from Friday evening after work until Sunday. Most of them take accommodation and a good meal first, because Moldovan cuisine is one of the 20 famous cuisines of Europe. A pool, a guesthouse on the banks of a river are much more in demand. Last year, when the war started, all the pensions were full, a lot of Moldovans. Many of them have discovered their country," says Irina Popa-Ladaniuc, president of the Association of Tour Guides.
Official data show that in 2022, some 200 000 Moldovans chose to spend their holidays in the country. At the same time, the Republic of Moldova was visited by more than 160 thousand foreign tourists.
