An Interview With Florian Sengstschmid, Azerbaijan Tourism Expert

I think it is our continuous efforts in building destination awareness over the past six years. We started our activity in 2018 and since then never stopped being active. We held a lot of road shows, not only in Delhi or Mumbai but throughout the country; in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, to increase the activation of the travel trade partners. I think the image of Azerbaijan as an easy-to-reach, easy-to-access, affordable destination, as a beautiful mix of Europe, in terms of architecture and history, blending into the East - I think that mix and such cultural linkages are what attract Indian travellers. We see that you can have a lot of these linkages, for example, speaking about our fire temples, Ateshgah, with beautiful in-scripts — I just had a conversation with a gentleman, and he said, yeah, I've been there. And there’s more. You have carpets, you have tea... we have a lot of these food and the culinary linkages. So it's also been a home away from home, the feeling of familiar things, you know, and it’s these that are bringing intercultural approaches.

You know, my generation – I don't want to call it the 'older generation' – but my generation in Azerbaijan, they have watched all the Bollywood movies. They can sing the most famous songs, they can dance along... you know what I mean? So, Indian culture is very much written in their DNA. Obviously, in a country where you start developing tourism, there is always this challenge of bringing tourists, travellers and locals together. But I think overall that it's working very well. I think Azerbaijanis now, after so many years, they're very used to seeing a lot of Indian travellers around the country and in the city, and so a lot of Indian restaurants have opened, and you also see the impact in the local business scene.

We have developed, for example, a slow food travel destination which is a cooperation between the Azerbaijan Tourism Board and Slow Foods, an Italy-based NGO looking after good, clean and fair food. We have enlisted several Azerbaijani produce into the international list and we encourage travellers to become co-producers, to visit the farms, the production and so on. So, this is one approach to highlight the culinary diversity and origins of Azerbaijan. Rosehip syrup, hazelnuts, tea, Caucasian black bee honey, buffalo mozzarella, all these are products you can not only consume but also engage with. Another approach is to showcase our beautiful landscapes. For example, we focus on hiking routes, butterfly watching, bird watching, and access to natural phenomena like burning mountains in the Yanar Dag visiting centre, mud volcanoes, and so on. We are now opening a visitor and experience centre in about 1-2 weeks creating accessibility, tourism flows, and tourism-immersive experiences within this natural setting. These are just a few highlights.

I think, for now, Indian travellers are very much attached to Baku, and from there, they explore through day visits. We think the next phase is to encourage travellers to go experience the other regions. And the one I think everyone must visit is the subtropical South, especially in April-May, when it’s very beautiful. Everything is moss-covered, from handicraft villages, waterfalls, and tea plantations... These micro-climates are very unexpected for Azerbaijan.

Every village in Azerbaijan is famous for its own produce. When you are a local in Azerbaijan, you buy potatoes only from Gadabay. You buy the apples from Quba, so each produce has its own linkage. And in the context of festivals, there are also a lot of other celebrations linked to small regions. For instance, there is the pomegranate festival, lavender festival, and apple festival. Basically, there are a lot of festivals happening all year round and it’s a nice local experience.

It is more of a mix, I would say. Everywhere in Azerbaijan, you would find the integration of cultural practices, dances, and singing instruments. You would find this as part of every local community.