ICTWEEK Brings Global Visitors to Tashkent and Opens a New Door for Uzbekistan Tourism

Tashkent is leveraging its opportunity to host ICTWEEK Uzbekistan to broaden Uzbekistan’s international business travel. The event is expected to bring 25,000 attendees, 2,000 of them international, to Tashkent from September 22-25, 2026. While the focus is typically on the technology side of the event, logistics for accommodation and transport for international visitors and attendees as well as services for the expected increase in tourism will also be tested. Internationally, Uzbekistan is still a largely undiscovered destination. The success of this event for Uzbekistan’s tourism industry will hinge on bringing international visitors and helping them realize Tashkent is a worthwhile location for business meetings, events and other activities.gov.uz

ICTWEEK Uzbekistan tourism begins with a business trip

A technology conference may seem an unlikely starting point for a tourism story. Yet every overseas delegate must make the same decisions as another international visitor: how to enter the country, where to stay and how to move around after arrival.

ICTWEEK Uzbekistan 2026 brings those decisions together at scale. The Ministry of Digital Technologies says the programme includes more than 20 international forums and summits. Its 15,000-square-metre exhibition features technology businesses, while startups have dedicated space to meet investors. gov.uz

The ministry projects more than 25,000 visitors across four days and over 2,000 international guests. The larger figure includes the wider event audience; it is not a count of foreign travellers. That distinction matters when assessing what the gathering means for tourism.

For Tashkent, the opportunity is clear but still unmeasured. Delegates may use hotels, restaurants and local transport during their visit. Whether they stay longer, spend on leisure activities or return for another event requires evidence from the businesses serving them.

The journey to CAEx is part of the visitor experience

The conference takes place at Central Asian Expo Uzbekistan, or CAEx. To help attendees reach the venue, the Ministry of Digital Technologies arranged free shuttles from four city locations: Buyuk Ipak Yuli metro station, the Uzbekistan Hotel, IT Park Uzbekistan and the Southern Railway Station. gov.uz

That arrangement gives visitors several ways to connect with the exhibition. It also shows why local travel details matter to an international event. A guest unfamiliar with Tashkent needs more than an invitation and a hotel booking; they need a reliable way to reach each day’s meetings.

The official ICTWEEK visitor information says exhibition entry is free, but online registration and a digital access code are required. It lists opening hours as 09:00 to 17:00. Travellers attending on 25 September should confirm their return journey before leaving for CAEx, as it is the final day of the event. www.ictweek.uz

Why this event matters beyond the exhibition hall

ICTWEEK has taken place since 2004, according to the Ministry of Digital Technologies. Its stated purpose includes building Uzbekistan’s technology sector, developing IT exports and connecting local companies with international partners. gov.uz

That history gives the 2026 gathering a wider role. It is a recurring reason for people to travel to Tashkent for work. Each edition offers the city’s conference venues and hospitality businesses another chance to serve visitors from abroad.

It would be premature to call this a tourism windfall. The ministry’s attendance projections do not reveal how many room nights were booked, what visitors spent or whether delegates took trips elsewhere in Uzbekistan. Those are the figures needed to establish the event’s direct travel impact.

Uzbekistan enters the week with stronger visitor numbers

ICTWEEK arrives during a period of wider tourism growth. Uzbekistan’s National Statistics Committee reported that 9,102,729 foreign citizens visited for tourism purposes between January and August 2026. That was 21.1% more than in the same eight months of 2025. stat.uz

The official figures show how varied the country’s visitor markets are. The largest numbers came from neighbouring Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Russia and China also appeared among the leading source markets.

Sources: Uzbekistan’s National Statistics Committee and Tourism Committee. The indicators cover different periods and measure different activities; none is an ICTWEEK-specific result. stat.uz

Those national numbers give context to the conference, rather than proof of its effect. They show an industry receiving more visitors while expanding the services needed to accommodate them.

Air links and hotels shape the business travel opportunity

The Tourism Committee’s August update reported that Uzbekistan’s airports handled 8.15 million passengers in the first half of 2026, up 16% on the same period a year earlier. International flights carried 6.7 million passengers, a year-on-year rise of 15.4%. gov.uz

The committee also reported new international services to Tashkent from Shanghai, Seoul and Yerevan during 2026. Such links give international visitors more ways to reach the capital, though the published airport figures do not identify ICTWEEK delegates.

Accommodation capacity has grown too. The committee said 705 facilities, offering 22,296 beds, opened across Uzbekistan between January and July. The nationwide total reached 7,440 accommodation facilities with capacity for 202,600 guests. Those are national figures; they should not be read as Tashkent’s hotel capacity. gov.uz

For hotels, the questions after ICTWEEK are specific. Did foreign delegates stay throughout the four-day programme? Did some arrive early or depart later? Answers would show more about the event’s value than a visitor projection alone.

Can conference visitors discover more of Uzbekistan?

The event brings people to the capital for technology and investment. Tourism businesses have an opportunity to introduce those visitors to other parts of Uzbekistan, but there is no official evidence yet showing how many ICTWEEK delegates have booked an onward trip.

The wider sector has room to make that connection. The Tourism Committee reported US$3.8957 billion in tourism services exports from January to July 2026, up 56% year on year. It identifies better transport access, new tourism products, improved service and regional investment among its priorities. gov.uz

An extended stay could benefit guides, tour operators and businesses beyond Tashkent. For now, that remains a possible outcome, not a documented effect of ICTWEEK. Operators would need to provide bookings or other direct evidence before such a claim could be made.

The government has reported investment across the sector. The Tourism Committee said 97 tourism projects worth US$200.2 million were launched in the first half of 2026, creating 2,134 jobs. These are national tourism figures and cannot be attributed to the technology week. gov.uz

What international visitors should check

Overseas attendees should confirm their entry rules for their own nationality before travelling. Uzbekistan operates visa-free arrangements for some visitors and an electronic visa system for eligible nationalities. Rules vary, so travellers should use the Ministry of Foreign Affairs visa guidance rather than assume that another delegate’s requirements apply to them. gov.uz

For ICTWEEK itself, visitors need the event’s digital access code after registering online. They should also check the official programme and allow time to travel to CAEx.

Questions travellers may have

Is ICTWEEK open to visitors without a ticket?
Yes. The organiser says visitor entry is free, but advance online registration is required to obtain a digital access code. www.ictweek.uz

How can visitors reach CAEx from Tashkent?
Free event shuttles operate from the Buyuk Ipak Yuli metro area, Uzbekistan Hotel, IT Park Uzbekistan and Southern Railway Station. Visitors should check the current departure times before travelling. gov.uz

Do international visitors need a visa for Uzbekistan?
That depends on nationality and the purpose of travel. Check the Ministry of Foreign Affairs guidance and the official visa service before departure. gov.uz

A tourism opening that still needs to be measured

While the International Information Technology Expo (ICTWEEK) is happening in Uzbekistan this week, other international business travelers are also using Uzbekistan’s growing air routes and accommodation. Tashkent’s free exhibition shuttles already provide one mode of transport to assist business travelers to events. Other options, especially to get around once an event is finished, are lacking. From the information currently available, the main limitation on developing Uzbekistan’s conference and events industry is demand. Verified hotel bookings and extensions to business tourism trips would support the conference to have transformed a standard working visit to Uzbekistan. From the data collected to date, ICTWEEK’s main contribution to Uzbekistan’s tourism industry is providing an opportunity to host an international conference and the welcome provided to participants.