The number of tourists traveling to Lviv region grew by some 50% in 2017 compared with 2016, Head of Lviv Regional Administration Oleh Syniutka has said.

"Growth in tourism fee is about 25%, but I think that the offer of the private sector for accommodation in Lviv is not less than the hotel fund. Taking into account business in the shadows, I think that the growth in tourism in 2017 was not less than 50%. Foreign tourism has sagged, that is, the growth occurred mainly due to domestic tourism," Syniutka said during his meeting with journalists.

According to him, the key impetus for the development of tourism in Lviv region was the attraction of an anchor investor for the construction of a resort in Slavske (OKKO-Retail LLC).

"In Slavske there is an investment facility. The roads will be built at the expense of the state, the water supply to the border of the land parcels will be financed by the budget, the rest will be implemented using investment funds. The project estimate for five years, according to the master plan, exceeds EUR 1 billion. In fact, the investor is now focused on the development of the villages of Verkhnia and Nyzhnia Rozhanka, slightly moving the project from Mount Trostian ... Theoretically, in 2019 we should already reach the construction stage," he said.

He said that the design will take into account both the positive and negative experience of the construction of the Bukovel ski resort. In addition to the development of the ski resort, the focus will also be placed on the development of green tourism.

"We expect that the Verkhnia and Nyzhnia Rozhanka will become the basic mega-resort, and in Turka-Sambir we want to preserve authenticity in order to prevent the construction of mega-resorts there. According to the plan, tourists who come to the ski resort will be able within 100 km to get another experience - to see folk crafts, the authentic way of life. There is practically no large building, and we want to preserve this flair," Syniutka said, adding that the regional administration actively promotes this part of the Carpathians - the Turka area, Sambir, Stary Sambir - as a site for investment, but there are no investor willing to invest there now.

He said that the branch from M-06 highway was built in 2017 to join Slavske and Turka-Sambir.