Sustainable Destination Management
Strategies in the OIC Member Countries
135
Strategic recommendation number one for enhancing tourism along the Silk Road is developing
and integrating the Silk Road brand (which has massive growth potential as a destination
brand) into national marketing strategies. Social media research for the Silk Road Project
highlights that the Silk Road is number-one in online discussions concerning travel routes
(approximately 30% of all discussions globally). However, very few Silk Road countries are
accelerating their marketing and promotional potential by linking their brand with the Silk
Road.486
Kazakh Tourism does not use the Silk Road brand in promotional materials, but they do
mention the Silk Road as one of the strongest of Kazakhstan’s touristic offerings.487
Previously, Uzbektourism (before being restructured as GosComTourism) used UNWTO’s Silk
Road logo in some promotional materials and banners (those which advertised events on the
Silk Road).488 Nowadays, awareness of the Silk Road as a travel brand has increased, and on the
front page of the 135zbekistan.travel governmental portal, “Welcome to Uzbekistan, the Heart
of the Great Silk Road,” is written.489 Silk Road heritage and culture play a significant role in
attracting tourists to Uzbekistan. 81% of international tourists surveyed in 2014 mentioned
that they were interested in this destination due to its historical connection to the Silk Road.
Respondents in the same survey said that among the countries associated with the Silk Road,
Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and China represented the top three destinations identified. 490
The DMOs of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan use Silk Road tours and the Silk Road
brand as a unique selling point in their promotional materials. It should also be noted that, in
the early 2000s, it was the owners of small family hotels in Samarkand and Bukhara who
actively used the Silk Road name in their promotion and everyday visibility. Now, everyone in
the tourism business in the area understands that the Silk Road brand brings business. Small
stakeholders such as small-sized hotels or big institutions like GosComTourismor international
hotel chains all understand the benefits the Silk Road brand brings and that it is valuable for
their businesses. 491
However, private businesses are using Silk Road as an umbrella for their products while still
not using the Silk Road concept in their promotional materials. This can be explained by the
fact that they are interested in developing their individual company names (brands). The
owner of a big DMO from Samarkand said in an interview that in his branding, they use the Silk
Road name organically, as it is a part of the company brand name, Silk Road Destination. This
DMO is interested in gathering tour operators from different Central Asian countries under its
brand, and they have worked this way over the last two years. For example, in France last year,
they were using one stand for several companies from varying countries under the Silk Road
Destinations brand.492
486 "Building a Stronger Silk Road: Strategic Recommendations for Enhancing Tourism with a Special Focus on Central Asia
Compiled by UNWTO in Collaboration with a Team of International Experts."
487 Interview with Deputy Chairman of the Board of Kazakh Tourism
488 Interview with Head of the Department of Scientific Research and Work with Educational Institutions of GosComTourism
489 "Welcome to Uzbekistan," Uzbekistan.travel, accessed October 13, 2019, .
490 "Uzbekistan Tourism Insight – Findings from the Uzbekistan International Visitor Economy Survey 2014 and National
Tourism Satellite Accounts," UNWTO, last modified 2015,
491 Interview with Director of Silk Road Destinations DMO
492 Ibid.