Domestic travel sales platform to be established in Kazakhstan is the new initiative.
Get ready for a seamless online tour experience this summer! Kazakh Tourism, in collaboration with the business community, is gearing up to launch an innovative online platform for domestic tour bookings, as announced by its chairman, Erjan Erkinbaev, at a recent briefing, according to Total.kz.
"One of the main obstacles to domestic tour packages has been their accessibility, particularly the ease of online purchasing," Erkinbaev explained. "To tackle this issue, we've collaborated with businesses to create an online marketplace for domestic tour bookings. Think of it as a digital showroom, displaying the best tour operator deals, with a streamlined purchasing process through familiar and user-friendly services."
Kaspi, Forte, and Choco travel have shown keen interest and active support for this exciting project, which is slated for a mid-summer launch.
Erkinbaev also highlighted the need for regulations concerning guides. At present, guide work is autonomous, and the existing directory fails to provide details about the guide's background or competence.
He added that there have been instances of foreign individuals illegally providing guide services in the country. To rectify these issues, Kazakh Tourism intends to implement an online system where guides will be periodically required to verify their knowledge. Each guide will have a personal profile, showcasing essential information such as language skills, preparation level, and tourist reviews, among others, for ease of consumer choice. A unique QR code will allow for simple identification, leading directly to their profile.
Erkinbaev underscored the significance of uniform tourism service and hotel standards, subject to legal classification. Regrettably, the existing system permits hotels to self-assign any star rating, with classification rules remaining unchanged for 13 years and standards untouched for over 20 years, while in contemporary practice, they should be revised every three years. Last year, Kazakh Tourism conducted a study on global standards, and this year, they plan to implement a domestic quality mark for the tourism sector. This means labeling hotels, restaurants, recreation bases, and other businesses, assigning corresponding distinctions, which will significantly streamline the tourist decision-making process.
- Erjan Erkinbaev, chairman of Kazakh Tourism, emphasized the need for an online platform for domestic tour bookings to address the problem of online accessibility.
- Kaspi, Forte, and Choco travel companies have expressed interest and support for the upcoming online marketplace for tour bookings, which is planned for a mid-summer launch.
- Erkinbaev spoke about implementing an online system for guides, requiring them to verify their knowledge periodically and create personal profiles with essential information for easy consumer choice.
- He also addressed the issue of foreigners illegally offering guide services in Kazakhstan and highlighted the intention to rectify this by instituting an online system with unique QR codes leading directly to each guide's profile.
- Kazakh Tourism intends to label hotels, restaurants, recreation bases, and other businesses with a domestic quality mark, reviewing global standards and implementing the labeling system to streamline the tourist decision-making process.
