Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- This fall, four additional flights to the cities of Uzbekistan will be launched from St. Petersburg.

The winter schedule of Uzbekistan Airways will include flights from Tashkent, Urgench, Samarkand and Karshi to St. Petersburg.

The airline’s winter schedule will also include direct flights from Tashkent to Goa (India), Phuket (Thailand) and Nha Trang (Vietnam) with convenient connections for passengers from St. Petersburg.

"In the winter schedule, we plan to increase the frequency of flights. Now we have 23 flights a week, and with the start of the winter schedule there will be 27 flights. We will increase the frequency of flights to Tashkent, Urgench, Samarkand and Karshi. We are not planning new destinations from St. Petersburg yet, but flights to Goa, Phuket and Nha Trang will be opened from Tashkent, which is especially interesting for passengers from St. Petersburg, we have convenient connections," said Khushnud Artikov, director of the Uzbekistan Airways representative office in St. Petersburg.

He also noted that the interest of Russians in tourist trips to Uzbekistan is growing. Tashkent Airport is becoming a popular transport hub for traveling to Europe and Asia. The airline is working on its schedule, organizing convenient connections for residents of Russia.

Consul General of Uzbekistan in St. Petersburg Abdurakhmon Makhmudov added that Uzbekistan expects the flow of tourists from Russia to increase to 1 million people this year. At the end of last year, the country received about 714 thousand Russian tourists. By 2027, authorities expect that the flow of tourists will increase to 2 million people annually, TASS reports.

According to him, the demand for holidays in Russian cities is also growing among residents of Uzbekistan. Businesses and authorities of both countries are working to increase inbound tourism to the Russian Federation from Uzbekistan. Not only traditional tourism is growing, but also certain segments of targeted trips - medical tourism and business tourism. St. Petersburg remains one of the most popular destinations. Last year, 800 thousand trips were made from Uzbekistan to Russia.

Asiyat Khalvashi, director of aviation commerce at Pulkovo operator Northern Capital Gateway, added that over the five months of this year, passenger traffic of the national air carrier of Uzbekistan at St. Petersburg airport increased by 27% compared to the same period in 2023.