Challenges created by the pandemic in wine tourism and opportunities to overcome them in the region of Racha (პანდემიით შექმნილი გამოწვევები ღვინის ტურიზმში და მათი დაძლევის შესაძლებლობები რაჭის რეგიონში)

Abstract

Tourism has been one of the most important sectors of our country’s economy in recent years, but from the first day of the coronavirus pandemic it has serious challenges. It is therefore important to develop measures to respond to the economic threats posed by the pandemic. It is necessary to determine the factual situation which will help to develop rational recommendations. Based on a review of the special literature, the article discusses the challenges posed by the pandemic in the field of wine tourism and the measures to be taken to address them, based on the views of various experts in the field. According to the survey conducted by the author, the article discusses the state of wine tourism in the Racha region, which shows that by 2020, tourist visits to Racha have significantly decreased, compared to 2019. All respondents think that saving the wine tourism business during the pandemic is convenient by activating domestic tourism. Most of the respondents noted that their income has been reduced to a minimum. Most of the businessmen hope to maintain tourism activities mainly by diversifying wine sales. The report notes that by activating domestic tourism during the pandemic, it is possible to save both the tourism sector and the wine tourism business, in particular. . The state should take more effective steps to assist small wineries, establish long-term financing programs tailored to small wineries, the banking sector should assist small and medium wineries with low-interest loans, and subsidize and restructure existing loans. Small winery owners should start educational projects and to raise their awareness it will be effective to create a unified electronic platform where information as well as video reviews about wineries will be posted. This will be a good advertisement and will allow the wineries to attract customers and importing companies from different countries.