Chernobyl’s exclusion zone in Ukraine has become extremely popular in recent times, following 2019 miniseries on HBO. The series directed by Johan Renck conveys the chronicle of the accident on the Soviet nuclear power station near Ukrainian city of Pripyat in April 1986 and the dramatic aftermath of tragedies it caused in nearby regions, extending to Europe.

The series is the main driver of the interest in the region, which is still being blocked from public access, unless supervised.

Previously Chernobyl was depicted in the cult film “Die Hard” with Bruce Willis. The deserted area became the set for the most dramatic scenes of the movie “A Good Day to Die Hard” (2013), which was the 5th instalment of the series and earned over 300 million in cinemas worldwide.

Tourists flock to Chernobyl

The flow of visitors to Chernobyl and Pripyat has grown significantly, which posed new challenges for the local tourism, Finance.ua reported. There weren’t enough guides!

Guests from the USA, New Zealand, European and Asian countries continue to show interest in visiting the “dead zone”.

According to the official statistics presented by the State Agency for Management of the Exclusion Zone, in summer 2019 the number of trained guides required to accompany tourists had to be increased by 30%.

110 guides are now authorised to conduct tours through the territory, compared to previous years: 78 in 2018 and 53 in 2017.

The number of tourists jumped tenfold in 5 years

Over the last 5 years the number of visitors to the Ukrainian zone of post-nuclear Apocalypses jumped by nearly 10 times.

Even if we look at 2018, twice as many people visited the zone. In the first 6 months of 2018, 20,609 people took tours to Chernobyl, while in 2019 already 40,060 tourists wanted to see the place where the dramatic events developed 33 years ago.

Local operators expect the interest to continue growing. As such, it’s important to make it safe for every visitor to the zone. A dosimeter is a “must-have”, but after the excursions, visitors pass through the control checkpoint testing the level of radiation.

To cater for the demand, there is a plan to offer courses at one of Ukrainian universities, where guides will receive special knowledge and skills required to work in the restricted zone of Chernobyl.

Recently we reported about a group of scientists who started a “social spirit enterprise” where crops grown in the exclusion zone are distilled into radiation-free vodka, with the view to contribute to rejuvenation of the area.

To cater for the demand, there is a plan to offer courses at one of Ukrainian universities, where guides will receive special knowledge and skills required to work in the restricted zone of Chernobyl.

Fake tours

The popularity of excursions to Chernobyl is so high, some fraudsters try to capitalize on the fame offering fake tours.

In June 2019 a Chinese operator was prosecuted for taking local tourists to Russia’s Chelyabinsk instead of Ukraine’s Chernobyl. The con artist was sentenced to 10 years of hard labour for fraud.

The fraudster was telling unsuspecting Chinese tourists that the city of Kopeisk in Chelyabinsk region was in fact Pripyat, showing the guests how the area was “rejuvenated” after the nuclear disaster.

The trick was discovered by a Chinese official who purchased a tour for his family and himself. The official has previously been to the real Chernobyl in 1980s and realized this wasn’t the actual place.

Previously we reported that 600 people in China were arrested for fake dating and 21 companies investigated. The scheme was possibly involving pay-per-letter (PPL) pseudo-dating system where people are hired to pose as “brides” for foreign men.

Ukraine is known as the centre of pay-per-letter fraud, which could be the most profound organized online dating scam of the 21 century. PPL pseudo-dating scam has been openly operating for over a decade and is still recruiting hundreds of new victims daily via multiple online portals.

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