Tourism potential of Azerbaijan's North-West region strenghtening

The State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan is taking measures to increase the tourism potential of Shaki, Gakh, Zagatala and Balakan districts in the North-West region, Sabina Yadullayeva, director of the Shaki Destination Management Organization (DMO) under the Azerbaijan Tourism Board (ATB), told Report.

The activities of this organization cover four named districts. In addition, the Board has DMTs in Ganja, Guba, and Lankaran. They are working to reveal local tourism opportunities.

"We have prepared maps and brochures."

Yadullayeva says her organization has prepared tourist maps of both Shaki and the region in general. "We need to place these maps at bus and railway stations. We have not yet been able to do it due to the coronavirus pandemic. In addition, we have prepared a brochure of the region".

"Some landmarks are not included in the Google map."

"In addition to district centers, we are researching individual villages, helping to map hotels and restaurants in need of presentation and brochures, as well as presenting them to tour guides. We help them in this direction. Sometimes there is a lovely restaurant in the forest. But no one knows that. We help to include such places in Google Map," she says.

"We train mountain guides."

In addition, the Shaki Destination Management Organization arranges various training sessions for young people to develop tourism. "For example, this year, we have organized training for mountain guides," Yadullayeva says.

"We want to popularize mountain-hiking routes."

According to her, DMO is currently working on the Albanian route: "We are working with ATB and support them in marking destinations. We have also pinned the mountain-pedestrian trails. Our goal is to make them well-known. The locals use these areas because they know them, but outsiders have no idea about many of such places. We are also trying to make these areas more popular. We have organized info-tours to less-known places of Shaki, Gakh, Zagatala, and Balakan. There are waterfalls and castles in the forests, and people do not know those places."