Bermet Tursalieva takes hikers through the mountains of her native Kyrgyzstan and says that while the tourism business is looking up, what she really needs is for Central Asia's onerous border controls to lighten up a little."If we cooperate with tour operators in neighboring countries and strengthen regional integration, ethnotourism could develop even further. In that case, we could organize ethnic tours across Central Asia," she told RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service recently.Tursalieva might take heart from recent political initiatives by Central Asian leaders to ease frontier checks for tourists. But the region's powerful security services and deep-rooted authoritarian instincts have put the block on such moves in the past.Traveling The Silk RoadIn recent years, Central Asia has become a hotspot for Western tourists looking for a holiday off the beaten track. From ancient Silk Road architecture to stunning mountain trekking, the region has something for everyone.
Social media hashtags like #dadlore and #sidequest have become inundated with videos of young people camping in yurts and riding horses across the steppe while bespoke, all-inclusive tour guides cater to those looking for a more comfortable, curated experience.However, a major hitch remains for Western tourists in the form of difficulties traveling between countries once they arrive. Due to the high cost and long travel time for tourists, the appeal of visiting multiple countries on one trip is clear."People who come here usually want to visit two or three 'stations' at the same time," Kazakhstan tourism expert Yerkin Tikenov told RFE/RL. "Central Asia is located far from the world's major tourist centers, and it takes a long time to get to the region. It's logical that a tourist...wants to see a lot in a short period of time."
