Tourist traffic to Bolgar doubles versus last year

 As compared with the first half of 2014, tourist traffic to the ancient city of Bolgar had grown by 51 percent, Tatarstan State Committee for Tourism chief Sergei Ivanov said at a press conference at Tatar-inform earlier in the day.

According to the committee, 154 thousand people have visited the reserve museum in the first six months of 2015.

This year, an influx of tourists is expected owing to the holding of the 16th world aquatics championship. Daily, several buses carrying athletes and foreign delegations travel to the ancient capital of Volga Bulgaria. The bus and river passenger service is regular.

A high-speed craft travels daily between Kazan and Bolgar, performing three trips a day Friday to Sunday.

Many come on their personal transport, including from neighbouring regions.

The tourist traffic has somewhat increased owing to the aquatics championship in Kazan.

Sergei Ivanov went on to say on 14-16 August the Bolgar reserve museum would host one of Russia’s largest historical reconstruction festivals, The Great Bolgar. It would have a positive influence on tourist traffic as well, he suggested.