45 thousand foreigners have already been issued electronic tourist visas to visit Azerbaijan. Those who want to visit Azerbaijan can address a tourist company by phone, e-mail or the website of the company, provide necessary documents and pay the state duty of $20, and in 10 days they will receive a tourist visa on their e-mail.
The presentation of the Tour A Vent Tourist Agency took place in Moscow a few days ago. The extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador of Azerbaijan to Russia, Polad Bulbuloglu, stated that the company became a representative of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan in Russia: “Tourism is a very gratifying industry, because it is not only about the number of people, and not only about the amount of money spent or earned. After all, tourism makes it possible for people to communicate and then strengthens relations between countries,” Bulbuloglu is sure.
According to him, Azerbaijan pays special attention to the development of tourism: “2011 was declared as the Year of Tourism in our country. 2016 is the Year of Multiculturalism in Azerbaijan. We want to show the entire world that there is multiculturalism, it exists, and people live together, these cultures coexist. And against the background of the statements of some Western leaders about the fact that their policy of multiculturalism has failed, we want to show the world that it is not a failure. It exists both in Russia and in Azerbaijan, and in the former Soviet Union countries.”
The ambassador says that the state is now doing a lot for the development of tourism: “Very good roads have been built. Azerbaijan has 6 international airports which cover almost all the regions of the country. A large tourist ski complex ‘Shahdag; has been opened. It was built by foreign specialists. Qabala has a resort tourism cluster. There are a lot of hotels. Summer Qabala has its own beauty, winter Qabala has its own beauty, completely unique. Three flights per week are provided directly between Moscow and Qabala, and tickets are always sold out.”
At the same time Bulbuloglu stresses that now, when Turkey and Egypt are closed for Russian tourists, Azerbaijan does not build its happiness on someone else's grief: “Since 2011 we have conducted a very serious development of the tourism infrastructure. At first there was enthusiasm for luxurious five-star hotels, and the President drew attention to the fact that there must be affordable hotels. Hotels of different levels are being built today. Medical treatment has risen to a very high level, especially in Naftalan. The Caspian Sea is one of the warmest seas. And in August, the water warms up to 28-29 C. There are sandy beaches. It is about 200 km from Baku to Derbent. There is an opportunity to develop the infrastructure.”
