The next meeting of the Tourism Development Council under the regional governor’s office was held at the Imam Bukhari Complex in Samarkand. The event was attended by Regional Governor Adiz Boboev, members of the council, heads of relevant agencies and sectors, district governors, as well as entrepreneurs operating in the tourism sector.
At the meeting, the work being carried out to develop tourism in the region, promising projects, as well as existing problems and shortcomings were discussed in detail. As noted, in 2025, more than 3 million foreign and 5 million 300 thousand domestic tourists visited the region. This figure increased by 25 percent compared to 2024. The volume of tourism services exports reached 621.1 million US dollars.
In connection with the commissioning of the Imam Bukhari and Imam Maturidi complexes, it is planned to launch direct flights to Samarkand with airlines from Indonesia and Malaysia in order to further develop pilgrimage tourism. In addition, it is planned to hold the “Oriental Cuisine” international festival, the “Oriental Sweets” exhibition, paraglider and hot air balloon flights, auto-moto drift shows, as well as ethno games. A helicopter sightseeing service for tourists will also be launched in the city of Samarkand.
A number of major tourism projects are also being implemented in the districts. In particular, an ethno-village is planned in the territory of the “Sheroz Qal’a” archaeological monument in Bulung‘ur district; an eco-village and hot air balloon flight services in Uzunsoy neighborhood of Urgut district; and the construction of a botel and beach around the Kattakurgan reservoir. Modern recreation and health improvement facilities will be established in the Mehnatkash area of Nurobod district. A new extreme tourism route will be opened from Pangat village of Qo‘shrabot district to the Sentop tourism village in Navoi region. In the territory of the forestry area of Toyloq district, a tourism project aimed at recreation in nature will be implemented.
At the meeting, the “Samarkand Tourism Corporation” project was presented as a Samarkand experience. This project was developed based on the experience of China’s “Xi’an Tourism Group” and aims to unite entrepreneurs operating in the tourism sector in cooperation with the regional tourism department.
“Within the framework of this project, we aim to unite hotels, restaurants, and tourist transport enterprises in Samarkand into a single system and create a competitive product,” said Tolib Jahongirov, head of “Shahrezada Sam Star Tour Discover” company. “Under the ‘STC’ brand, author festivals, a logistics center, airline ticket services, inbound and outbound tourism, as well as domestic tourism tour packages will be offered.”
At the end of the meeting, Regional Governor Adiz Boboev, based on the proposals and opinions expressed, gave specific instructions to responsible officials on eliminating shortcomings in the tourism sector, improving service quality, eradicating the shadow economy, strengthening cooperation with entrepreneurs, and ensuring the timely and high-quality implementation of the designated projects.
