Hilton, Holiday Inn to come in Azerbaijan

"There were 30 tourist companies Azerbaijan in 2001, and now the number increased ten times. I think Azerbaijan market should not have more than 300- 350 tourist companies as Azerbaijan market is not so wide. I mean tourist companies that send tourists and receive them. The market is open for the companies engaged in the domestic tourism and many companies can work there," The Culture and Tourism Minister Abulfaz Garayev was quoted by the APA as saying.

Abulfaz Garayev said he increased 5 year license duty from AZN500 to AZN5500 for state tourism companies to regulate tourism market.

Abulfaz Garayev also expressed his views on Azerbaijan citizens' problems with Schengen zone.

"I must confess Azerbaijanis encounter a number of problems when they want to visit Schengen zone. These also cause difficulties for our airlines. The tickets are returned back. Now we are negotiating with consulates and organizations to reach an agreement," the minister said.

Garayev said that during April, two large delegations from Germany and Austria will visit Azerbaijan to discuss tourism issues. Information tours will be organized for those delegations to increase number of tourists visiting Azerbaijan. He also said Azerbaijan is planning to host more than 1 million tourists this year.

"The major goal is to increase tourist tours' number to 3 million in the forthcoming 4-5 years implementing the State Programme for development of tourism. But it depends not only on us but also on regional economical and political processes," he stressed.

Abulfaz Garayev said talks are underway for bringing to Azerbaijan hotel brands like Hilton, Holiday Inn, Meridian.