WASHINGTON, October 3. /Dunyo IA/.  At the initiative of the Embassy of Uzbekistan and with the support of the National PR Center under the Tourism Committee, an online meeting was held with representatives of the U.S. company “Airbnb”, reports Dunyo IA correspondent.

Meeting was attended by Head of Federal Affairs of “Airbnb” Akilah Powell, as well as Nayana Renu Kumar, who is responsible for international relations policy at the company.

During the meeting, dynamic development of Uzbekistan’s tourism sector and the growth in tourist arrivals were highlighted. In particular, around 12 million foreign tourists visited the country in 2025, while 7.8 million arrived in January–July 2026. At the same time, more than 13.4 million domestic trips were made in the first half of this year under the “Travel Around Uzbekistan!” program.

In this regard, the parties discussed opportunities for expanding the operations of the “Airbnb” platform in Uzbekistan, which assists travellers in finding and booking short-term lodging worldwide.

It was noted that Uzbekistan’s rich historical and cultural heritage, the tourism potential of the Great Silk Road, the historic cities of Samarkand, Bukhara, and Khiva, as well as mountain and rural territories, national cuisine, and handicrafts, could be more widely presented to a global audience through the “Airbnb” platform.

Representatives of “Airbnb” expressed keen interest in the tourism potential and market opportunities of Uzbekistan, highlighting the promising prospects of the country’s historic cities, cultural heritage and emerging tourism destinations.

Furthermore, the sides discussed the possibilities of utilizing the “Airbnb” online platform during international conferences, forums, sports competitions, exhibitions and other large-scale events held in Uzbekistan, when the surge in visitor numbers could generate additional demand for the hospitality infrastructure.

Parties discussed promising avenues of cooperation, including increasing the number of accommodation listings in Uzbekistan on the “Airbnb” platform, attracting local homeowners and entrepreneurs, promoting historic cities and new tourist regions to an international audience, expanding alternative accommodation options, ensuring service standards and tourist safety, developing responsible tourism, exchanging information, as well as addressing taxation and regulatory matters.

Representatives of “Airbnb” expressed their readiness to continue cooperation with the Uzbek side to explore opportunities for developing the platform in the market of Uzbekistan and promoting local tourism services among the global audience.

Uzbek side, in turn, expressed its readiness to leverage the international experience of “Airbnb”, facilitate the creation of the necessary conditions for expanding the company's activities in the country and jointly deliberate on relevant issues.