In 2025, Central Asia recorded the world's highest result in terms of the growth of the tourism sector's contribution to the economy. This was reported in the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) report.
According to the report, last year the tourism sector's contribution to the Central Asian economy reached $20.1 billion. This accounts for 4.3% of the region's gross domestic product. In 2019, this figure was $15.8 billion.
In 2025 itself, the share of the tourism sector in the economy increased by 17.7%. This is higher than the growth rates of 8.7% in North-East Asia and 7.6% in South-East Asia.
According to WTTC data, in 2025 the spending of foreign tourists arriving in Central Asia increased by 26.4%. Investments in the tourism sector increased by 12.4%, and the number of people employed in the sector increased by 9.5%.
Currently, 1.7 million people work in the tourism sector in the region. This means that one out of every 17 jobs is in the tourism sector.
In 2025, tourists spent a total of $15.4 billion across Central Asia. Of this, $9.9 billion came from foreign tourists and $5.5 billion from domestic tourists.
The report notes that Central Asian residents most often chose Uzbekistan for foreign trips. Uzbekistan accounted for 25% of all trips made by the region's residents abroad.
Next were Kazakhstan (23%), Kyrgyzstan (18%), Russia (16%), and Turkey (6%).
Experts explain the growth of tourism in Central Asia by the increasing interest in historical cities, the development of mountain and ecological tourism, the expansion of air routes, and the easing of visa procedures.
According to forecasts, by 2026 the tourism sector's contribution to the Central Asian economy could reach $21.7 billion.
