LAUSR

Purpose This paper aims to profile the WHATT theme issue “Why is the Russian tourism and hospitality market becoming more diverse with new destinations?” with reference to the experiences of the theme editor and writing team. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses structured questions to enable the theme editor to reflect on the rationale for the theme issue question, the starting-point, the selection of the writing team and material and the editorial process. Findings This paper provides a framework to facilitate discussion between all stakeholders in Russia’s tourism and hospitality industry, identifies ways of improving competitiveness as a tourist destination and contributes to thinking about sustainable development. The outcomes of a broad-ranging collaboration yield fresh insights, a deeper understanding of the issues and an array of possible responses to the theme issue question. Practical implications The theme issue outcomes provide lines of enquiry for others to explore and reinforce the value of WHATT’s approach to collaborative working and writing. Originality/value The collaborative work reported in this theme issue offers a unified but contrarian response to the theme’s strategic question. Taken together, the collection of articles provides a detailed picture of the changes occurring in the Russian tourism and hospitality market.