The key facts

  • A $500 million cluster on 1,000 hectares is planned in Bukhara district
  • A tourist center ($80–105 million) and a congress hall with Hilton and Holiday Inn hotels are under construction
  • The goal is to extend tourists' stay to 4–5 days and double the number of foreign visitors

A new cluster and the region's tourism concept

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev is holding a meeting on the comprehensive development of Bukhara region, at which the expansion of tourism services and the launch of new routes are being discussed. According to Spot.uz, by the end of the year the region is expected to receive 3.5 million foreign tourists, and the goal in the future is to double that number. The historical complexes — Bukhara's Old Town, Paikent, Varakhsha, Chorbakr, Vardanze and others — are planned to be connected within a unified tourism concept.

Facilities under construction and discrepancies in cost estimates

In the Gulchorbog mahalla, a tourist center is being built on a 50-hectare site with an exhibition hall, an amphitheater and several hotels. At the meeting its cost was estimated at $80 million, however on November 3, when the president visited both complexes under construction, the press service gave a different figure — $105 million. In the Jalol Ikromi mahalla, a $60 million congress hall is being built for international-level events, next to which two 7-story hotels of the Hilton and Holiday Inn brands will appear. The press service estimated the cost of the congress hall and the hotels at $136 million. Thus, judging by the two reports, the total cost of the facilities has grown compared with the initial figures.

A $500 million cluster and landscaping

The key news of the meeting is the plan to build another tourist cluster worth $500 millionon a 1,000-hectare site in Bukhara district. Its opening is expected to increase the average length of tourists' stay in the region to 4–5 days. In addition, 6 public squares are planned to be created in Bukhara and 8 central streets renovated using national and modern architectural solutions. For context: according to Spot.uz, the number of tourists in Uzbekistan over nine months has already exceeded 10 million.