Kyrgyzstan: Kyrgyzstan should develop its wintertime tourism industry

"Establishing a high-quality alpine skiing industry complex would mean building comfortable hotels and a network of roads in the mountains, which all cost additional than in the flatlands," said Mikhail Halitov, director of the NGO Mountain Cluster Association, an umbrella group of travel agencies specialising in alpine tourism.

Kyrgyz tourism has traditionally been a summertime matter restricted to the Lake Issyk-Kul area, which accounts for additional than half of the country's annual tourism business, a recent study found.

A lack of investment has kept the country from taking chance of its splendid mountainous landscape and other natural potential, specialists say.

Difficulties and high build-out expenses notwithstanding, winter tourism has great prospects in Kyrgyzstan, Halitov said.

"By presently today, one can say for certain that some would-be projects should pay off in nine to 10 years, which is pretty fast," he said. "But compared to summer tourism, winter tourism – specifically, downhill skiing – has lagged behind. It has so far developed on its own; various market mechanisms haven't worked [for us]."

He has called on the Council on Business Development and Investments to urge the Tourism Department to form a working group on the idea of creating a cluster of ski resorts, he added.

With good support, Kyrgyz winter tourism could catch up to summer tourism in terms of the number of visitors, tourist revenues and taxes paid, Deputy Culture, Data and Tourism Minister Maksat Chakiyev, who as well heads the Tourism Department, said.

"The problem is that the summer and winter tourism officials give their own side of the story," he said. "Both sides complain they're neglected."

The country has nine alpine skiing resorts, and the city of Karakol won international recognition as an alpine skiing centre.

"And we've developed a 'Visit Kyrgyzstan' programme that will promote winter tourism as a separate brand," Chakiyev said.
Government, business trying to co-operate

The government and the private sector are seeking to work together to improve tourism to the satisfaction of both sides.

This is why, at the Initial Eurasian Conference on Alpine Skiing Resorts, "New Trends in Winter Tourism Development" [held in Almaty, Kazakhstan], in early October, Kyrgyz business and government, respectively, sent Halitov and Chakiyev.

The forum as well attracted foreign tourism executives. For example, Geode of France and ILF Consulting Engineers of Austria participated in discussing the prospects of developing tourism in Kyrgyzstan, building modern ski resorts and making the resources put into ski resorts match internationally accepted standards.

"If the national applies international standards to mountain tourism, both domestic and foreign investors will start putting money into the industry," Halitov said. "The national plays a major part in this; much depends on it, and the business community has by presently voiced its ideas, so presently we'll wait and see."

Residents of the areas with ski resorts are interested in promoting winter tourism instead. Indeed, boosting alpine skiing would help even the region around Lake Issyk-Kul and its people – the centre of Kyrgyz tourism – to make economic gains, Karakol resident Esen Esenaliyev said.

"The active tourist season in summer lasts for only 60 days; a lot of [Issyk-Kul] locals have to make enough money during that period to support themselves year-round," he said. "Meanwhile, the winter tourist season lasts for 120 days. Rain can spoil a summer, but there's always plenty of snow for downhill skiers."
New trails would help

Installing new ski trails could attract foreign tourists, Almaty skiing enthusiast Andrei Govorov said.

"Almost each alpine skier dreams of trying out a new trail, so a lot of would be eager to go skiing in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan," he said. "They just need minimally decent conditions."

"There are a lot of ski resorts operating around the world; this market has grown and developed at a fast pace, becoming truly international," World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) Secretary-General Taleb Rifai told the Almaty conference on skiing. "The development and increase of tourism mean earning higher profits and improving the quality of life. Our task is to make sure its increase and development don't harm the environment. Let's apply these principles here in Central Asia."

The industry is bound to develop steadily, Chakiyev said.

"We won't be a second or third Switzerland," he said. "We in Kyrgyzstan have our own distinctive traits. There's no point in comparing us and Switzerland today. Give us some time, and we'll be in the same class [with Switzerland]."