It is important to understand how popularity is measured. Judging by traffic, no. Russian statistics show an increase in traffic over the past 7-8 years. The world has a similar story, and although the Theme Index and Museum Index: The Global Attractions Attendance Report says that on average, attendance at the 20 most popular museums in 2018 increased by only 0.1 percent. It is important to remember that only 5 museums out of this twenty went into negative territory, while the Louvre and the Natural History Museum (London) showed an increase of 25 and 17%.
Another thing is that the museum boom of the noughties and early tenths is gradually fading away. First of all, for natural reasons-the anthropogenic load in many museums has reached its maximum (this has also affected a number of Russian museums), and they simply cannot physically accommodate more people. Therefore, in the professional environment, more attention is now being paid not only to attracting visitors, but also to regulating their flows, comfort of stay, preservation of museum spaces, etc.
Plus, the number of museums has grown, new museum centers have appeared, and the number of visits has been distributed accordingly.
So, rather, we can say that the popularity of museums has reached a fairly high plateau and stabilized. However, given the growth rate of the tourism industry and the growing demand for cultural tourism, there will not be a drop in interest in museums in the near future.
Very well if it falls, it is impossible to wander in these crowds. I remember a time when the Hermitage was deserted on weekdays, I wish those times would come back.
It is important to understand how popularity is measured. Judging by traffic, no. Russian statistics show an increase in traffic over the past 7-8 years. The world has a similar story, and although the Theme Index and Museum Index: The Global Attractions Attendance Report says that on average, attendance at the 20 most popular museums in 2018 increased by only 0.1 percent. It is important to remember that only 5 museums out of this twenty went into negative territory, while the Louvre and the Natural History Museum (London) showed an increase of 25 and 17%.
Another thing is that the museum boom of the noughties and early tenths is gradually fading away. First of all, for natural reasons-the anthropogenic load in many museums has reached its maximum (this has also affected a number of Russian museums), and they simply cannot physically accommodate more people. Therefore, in the professional environment, more attention is now being paid not only to attracting visitors, but also to regulating their flows, comfort of stay, preservation of museum spaces, etc.
Plus, the number of museums has grown, new museum centers have appeared, and the number of visits has been distributed accordingly.
So, rather, we can say that the popularity of museums has reached a fairly high plateau and stabilized. However, given the growth rate of the tourism industry and the growing demand for cultural tourism, there will not be a drop in interest in museums in the near future.
Very well if it falls, it is impossible to wander in these crowds. I remember a time when the Hermitage was deserted on weekdays, I wish those times would come back.