Several Azerbaijani villages included in Touristic Village concept

Following a presidential decree, the State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan has included several villages-Laza in Gusar, Griz in Guba, Ilisu and Sarıbash in Gakh, Duruja in Gabala, Ivanovka in Ismayilli, Bibiyani in Lerik, and Sim in Astara-into a tourism infrastructure project under the Touristic Village concept.

Elgun Javadov, a department head at the State Tourism Agency, told Report during a media tour to Sim village in Astara that the project aims to improve the visual appeal and overall development of villages to make them more attractive to tourists, thereby expanding tourism and related employment opportunities.

As part of the project, Sim village's tourism potential has been assessed, the village was added to the southern region's tourism routes and maps, and directional signs have been installed.

Javadov noted that over 2,000 tourists visit Sim village every month during the summer season in the last two years. He added that infrastructure improvements have positively impacted visitor numbers, which have significantly increased compared to 2017–2019, when about a thousand tourists visited annually.