Samarkand Develops Pilgrimage Tourism for Visitors from Malaysia and Indonesia

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — A meeting was held at the khokimiyat of Samarkand Region focused on attracting tourists from Malaysia and Indonesia under the “Umrah Plus” program and on developing pilgrimage tourism.

The event, conducted via videoconference on the Zoom platform, was attended by Khokim of Samarkand Region Adiz Boboyev, Uzbekistan’s ambassadors to Malaysia and Indonesia, tourism consultants, as well as representatives of airports and airlines.

Participants discussed the strong interest of pilgrims in Uzbekistan. Malaysia and Indonesia are home to around seven million followers of the Naqshbandi tariqa, many of whom wish to visit the country’s holy sites, including the mausoleum of Imam Bukhari, before performing Umrah.

Options were reviewed for organizing flights from Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta to Samarkand with a two-day stay, after which pilgrims could continue their journey to Umrah on flights operated by Uzbek airlines.

The meeting also addressed the development of the “Umrah Plus” program and related tour packages in cooperation with tourism companies, the expansion of transport routes, and the improvement of service quality.

Following the meeting, the Khokim of Samarkand Region instructed relevant officials to develop a roadmap to increase the flow of tourists from Malaysia and Indonesia, ensure continuous coordination with Uzbekistan’s embassies in these countries, and implement measures in line with the instructions of the head of state.