Registration error: why children's camps are operating illegally
In Pereslavl-Zalessky, an unauthorized children's camp was discovered, which was located in a hotel. The prosecutor's office found out that he was not in the register of recreation and recreation organizations for children. The head was fined 500 thousand rubles. Izvestia investigated how such camps appear and whether they actually work illegally.
Which camp was sanctioned
The organizer of the unauthorized children's camp was fined 500 thousand rubles by the decree of the Pereslavl interdistrict prosecutor's office. It was established that in the summer of 2025, Moscow Travel LLC organized a vacation for schoolchildren at the Pereslavl-Zalessky hotel, but the camp was not included in the register of children's health organizations in the Yaroslavl region.
An administrative offense case was initiated under Article 14.65 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (on violation of legislation in the field of recreation and recreation for children), a fine was awarded, but the court decision has not yet entered into force.
Currently, you can find a Spa&Camp "children's tour" online that costs 80,655 rubles, which is organized by Travel LLC at the four-star Azimut Park Hotel in Pereslavl-Zalessky. This organization also conducts a similar tour at the Belaya Rus sanatorium in Tuapse.
Interestingly, although Travel LLC is a member of the register of tour operators, it is currently in the process of liquidation, according to the Rusprofile service.
The press service of the government of the Yaroslavl Region told Izvestia that, based on the results of monitoring proposals for the 2025 summer wellness campaign, five alleged unauthorized recreation organizations for children were identified at once. One of them is indeed a Spa&Camp from Travel LLC.
Another company that was engaged in unauthorized children's recreation is Openmind LLC. She has already been fined 250,000 rubles for a day camp in Yaroslavl.
The Oxford Camp was found at the Stadicub LLC company with a 24—hour stay - and he also worked in Pereslavl-Zalessky on the basis of the hotel. This organization, like Travel LLC, was fined 500 thousand rubles.
No decisions have been made on the fifth fact yet, but we are talking about the organization of recreation and recreation for children in the territory of Uglich by the self-employed. The materials of this case have been submitted to the court.
Interestingly, illegal camps have been identified in Pereslavl-Zalessky before. So, in January of this year, an attempt by LLC "Sportzania" to organize an unauthorized camp on the territory of the hotel during the winter holidays was stopped. The prosecutor's office reported that the head had already been fined 250 thousand rubles.
Why is it illegal
Georgy Mokhov, Vice-president of the Russian Union of Travel Industry (PCT), founder of the Persona Grata law agency, explains that the organization of children's camps is allowed only in registered facilities included in the special regional list of recreation and recreation organizations for children.
— The problem is that there are not enough such camps and there is nowhere to accommodate groups of children. Therefore, summer camps are organized on the basis of hotels, boarding houses or recreation centers that do not want and cannot be registered in the registry, and they disguise their offers as themed children's tours with animation, that is, they try to avoid signs of rest and recovery of children," Georgy Mokhov told Izvestia. — The regulatory authorities identify such proposals and fine the organizers.
Andrey Danilkov, Chairman of the Board of the Children's Camps Development Fund, emphasizes that the operators of such programs make a big mistake when they are called children's camps. At the same time, in principle, such shifts can work legally.
According to Andrey Danilkov, the law "On the basics of tourist activity" allows tour operators to form a group of children according to their program and send them on an excursion trip, settle them in a hotel, boarding house, rest home and conduct a program. At the same time, the law "On Education" also gives the right to gather children and conduct practical classes in nature or on the road. This is how sports shifts, summer schools, etc. are often arranged.
— This is the gray sector of children's recreation, as we call it. But there is also the black sector — these are just those organizers who just want to make money, assemble children's groups and absolutely do not register. Therefore, it is very important to understand exactly what the children's camp was fined for," says Andrei Danilkov.
Experts call the existence of gray and black sectors of children's recreation a big systemic problem that has not been solved for a long time. According to Andrey Danilkov, there is no more regulated field of activity in Russia than children's recreation.: these are "hundreds of regulatory documents in various fields."
— Companies could at one time be law-abiding organizers of children's recreation, included in all registers, but could not withstand this pressure. They either leave the sphere altogether, or they start to go into gray and black patterns," he said.
Valery Alekseev, head of the Investigation Bureau of the Popular Front, explains that such children's camps appear where there is demand. Summer shifts can often be referred to in disguise as both a summer school and an educational course. They include accommodation, meals, but there are no medical staff, and most importantly, they are not checked by Rospotrebnadzor and the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
— But an unequivocal ban would be wrong. Some such sites for many parents objectively turn out to be safer and better quality than camps that have been standing without repair for 20-30 years," the Izvestia interlocutor noted. — Obviously, the problem lies in the discrepancy between current requirements and reality. Temporary camps located at existing tourist sites (for example, in hotels) are difficult to integrate into the existing quality control system.
According to him, the situation has been going on for many years, but so far there is no solution to include such camps in the legal field.
How can such camps be dangerous?
Andrei Danilkov notes that the most dangerous are illegal children's camps from the black sector: they are organized by "temporary workers" who only need financial profit. Unfortunately, there are such examples.
— They are moving away from supervision and control, as well as from financial obligations. If law—abiding organizations, even those operating in the gray sector, officially spend all the money and pay taxes, then they often work in the black sector for cash," says Andrei Danilkov.
As for the gray sector, it all depends on the approach and knowledge of the organizers. For example, do they know what comprehensive safety includes when the child's psychological safety, physical safety, quality nutrition, and medical care are taken into account?
— It is necessary to understand very clearly what conditions your children are being taken to, who takes responsibility for their life and health, how the child's life and safety are arranged, — said Andrey Danilkov.
Lyubov Khrapylina, Professor of the Department of Labor and Social Policy at the Presidential Academy, emphasizes that it is not the venue that is important, but compliance with the requirements: availability of documents, inspections, staff access to work with children, a medical center and fire safety.
— Parents should request documents confirming the legality of the camp. And the organizers should remember that we are talking about the safety of children, not about formalities. Fines of 500,000 rubles are unlikely to stop anyone, but system control and responsibility must be unconditional, she is sure.
Lyubov Khrapylina believes that children and parents should be able to report problems at the camp, including anonymous information.
Svetlana Petrova, a member of the PCT Committee on children's recreation, notes that proposals like those from Travel LLC are acceptable. But it is important that they are called tours and follow the regulations for the organization of recreation. Another option is to convert the hotel into a children's camp only for the duration of the shift, excluding the stay of other adults during this time. This camp must be entered in the register. According to Svetlana Petrova, both options are being implemented in Russia.
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