Stinking rich: Kazakhstan to offer tourists luxury caviar baths

Stinking rich: Kazakhstan to offer tourists luxury caviar baths (RT, Oct 23, 2014):

The plan is to make Kenderli the “best” resort on the Caspian and “a perfect destination for domestic and international tourists, generating wealth for the region and wellbeing for our people.”

Former Soviet states, particularly Russia, as well as Turkey and the Middle East, are all viewed as potential sources of big tourist bucks.

But much like the rich tourists they hope to lure in, funds for the project have yet to materialize, though the Trade and Investment Ministry told Tengri News that Iranian investors, among others, have expressed interest.

If they do find willing wellsprings of green, their primary concern is to avoid the fate of Avaza – a Caspian resort which opened five years ago in neighboring Turkmenistan and was later panned as “the most ill-conceived resort ever built.”

Meanwhile, talk of caviar baths and Caspian tourism is all part of a larger government-led initiative to attract tourists to Kazakhstan.

In 2007, President Nursultan Nazarbayev launched the Aktau city project in order to develop tourism and attract investment. With plans to build an entirely new city north of Aktau with an eye for UAE style, the project was ultimately abandoned last year.

And earlier this year, Kazakhstan introduced a pilot project which will allow tourists from 10 states – Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Malaysia the Netherlands, the UAE, the UK, the USA and South Korea – to enter Kazakhstan for 15 days without needing a visa.

Meanwhile, talk of caviar baths and Caspian tourism is all part of a larger government-led initiative to attract tourists to Kazakhstan.

In 2007, President Nursultan Nazarbayev launched the Aktau city project in order to develop tourism and attract investment. With plans to build an entirely new city north of Aktau with an eye for UAE style, the project was ultimately abandoned last year.

And earlier this year, Kazakhstan introduced a pilot project which will allow tourists from 10 states – Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Malaysia the Netherlands, the UAE, the UK, the USA and South Korea – to enter Kazakhstan for 15 days without needing a visa.

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