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After years of financial struggle, protected areas in the Russian Federation have been encouraged to open up to ecotourism in order to become more financially self-sustainable. This article focuses on this transition and examines the challenges of policy-related geographical and social aspects of the development of ecotourism in the nature reserves. The article identifies four main risk factors in the development of ecotourism: environmental, social, managerial, and economic. It outlines stakeholder interests in tourism, the local population's involvement in environment-friendly developments, and the possibilities for ecotourism on the model territory of the Baikalskii Nature Biosphere zapovednik.