More stringent environmental requirements for tourism activities on the shore of Lake Baikal make the need to redistribute the tourist flow from the most visited coastal areas of the Irkutsk region to areas with high recreational potential away from the Baikal coast. Recreational zoning of the Irkutsk region was carried out to identify areas that are promising for the tourism development. Recreational zoning includes three hierarchical levels. The first level is represented by groups of recreational areas, which are organized according to geographical location, natural and socio-economic factors that affect the tourism development. Recreational areas belong to the second hierarchical level. The third level includes administrative-territorial units of the Irkutsk region, which are grouped into recreational areas based on the similarity of tourist potential, forms of recreational use and prospects for recreational development. These prospects assigned took into account the climatic conditions, transport accessibility and the level of socio-economic development of administrative-territorial units of the Irkutsk region. Recreational centers are represented by urban districts of the Irkutsk region. Most of them are administrative centers of the same name administrative-territorial units, but they are not part of them. Recreational centers are characterized by a more favorable transport and geographical location, a higher level of infrastructure development, and a significant historical and cultural potential. The proposed zoning scheme for the recreational potential of the Irkutsk region reflects the spatial picture of the territorial distribution of the main components of tourist and recreational activities. This information better supports decision making in territorial planning and management of the tourist and recreational complex of the region in the direction of its sustainable development.

Abalakov Alexander Dmitrievich, Doctor of Sciences (Geography), Professor, Irkutsk State University, 1, K. Marx st., Irkutsk, 664003, Russian Federation, Lead Researcher V. B. Sochava Institute of Geography SB RAS, 1, Ulan-Batorskaya st., Irkutsk, 664033, Russian Federation, e-mail: abalakovirk@mail.ru 

Pankeeva Nataliya Sergeevna, Candidate of Sciences (Geography), Associate Professor, Irkutsk State University, 1, K. Marx st., Irkutsk, 664003, Russian Federation, e-mail: natalya_pankeeva@mail.ru

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