Ministry: Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway to boost railway tourism
By Aygul Salmanova
Azerbaijan, a destination that has everything a visitor would want, enchants everybody by its treasures.
Traveling by rail, one of the best ways to discover the regions of the Land of Fire, is especially favorable for those who prefer sitting back and marveling breathtaking views while discovering the country.
Railway transport has been used in Azerbaijan for many years including the Soviet period, Vugar Shikhammadov, Head of the Information and Communications Department of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism told Azernews.
“By this transport means it is possible to visit almost all regions of Azerbaijan. This type of transport is used during domestic tourist trips, especially on holidays or during summer vacations,” he said.
He added that undoubtedly, for the development of tourism in the country, which is one of the priorities in the country’s Road Map policy as well, railway transport is as important as the other transport means.
Shikhammadov also noted that today, a sufficient number of people choose railway transport for traveling various regions of the country.
“When it comes to using railway transport in international scale, in our opinion, Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway may be used as a transport means among the three countries. After the railway is fully utilized, taking into consideration international experience, this issue will be considered by tourism experts and this railway will be used for tourism purposes as well,” he said.
The head of the department also noted that different people prefer different transport means depending on their preferences.
“Some tourists prefer to use their automobiles or airways to arrive their destination faster. Others prefer railways as most railways as they are carried out in the evening and at night, which is more convenient for tourists,” he said.
Situated on the Great Silk Road, at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, Azerbaijan blended the best from both cultures, forming its own unique culture.
Along with other sectors, the government of the country today on developing rail tourism, a favorite mode of many tourists worldwide. Experts are sure that after the opening of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars and Astara (Iran) - Astara (Azerbaijan) railways, Azerbaijan can develop the rail tourism on the Silk Road tourist route.
Recently, Azerbaijan Railways started to offer tourists visiting the country to take advantage of RailTravel, rendering tours to the beautiful regions.
Besides, Azerbaijan Railways is developing a design of railway lines to the Baku International Airport Heydar Aliyev, as well as to the Shahdag and Gabala tourist centers.
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