Uzbekistan is working on one of the most ambitious digital tourism initiatives in the region, and if everything stays on schedule, foreign visitors will soon be able to plan, register, navigate, and explore the country through a single super-app. This National Tourism Platform, officially confirmed in a presidential decree dated 20 November, is scheduled to go live in July 2026. What makes it notable isn’t just its scope, but the fact that it tries to solve several long-standing visitor pain points at once—from connectivity to ticketing to personalized trip planning.

For destinations trying to modernize their tourism infrastructure, Uzbekistan is going surprisingly big and surprisingly fast.

A Single App for an Entire Travel Experience

The idea behind the new platform is simple: remove friction. Instead of juggling different websites, ticketing portals, transport apps, and paper forms, travelers will access a single interface that follows them from the border onward. The moment a foreign visitor arrives in the country, the app will already “know” their basic information, thanks to border integration—though the system will always ask for consent before using it for registration or trip services.

This alone puts Uzbekistan on a digital path that only a handful of destinations are seriously pursuing. Think less “national tourism website” and more “Estonia’s e-government meets Dubai’s smart destination strategy,” but adapted for travel.

Built-In eSIM Activation and Visitor Registration

For Alertify readers, the standout feature is the built-in eSIM connection. As soon as a traveler enters the country, the app will proactively offer an eSIM, making it possible to secure data before even leaving the airport. This is especially relevant in regions where roaming fees remain unpredictable and local SIM registration can involve waiting in queues or navigating language barriers.

Alongside connectivity, the platform will also let visitors register their temporary place of stay. In many countries, this is a bureaucratic chore, but Uzbekistan is turning it into a streamlined digital step. If done well, the entire arrival process—from connectivity to accommodation compliance—could be completed in minutes on a single screen.

This is the type of traveler-centric thinking we usually associate with countries experimenting with digital identities and smart-border concepts.

A Unified Booking System for Transport and Attractions

Beyond the administrative layer, the app aims to unify Uzbekistan’s tourism offerings. Travelers will be able to plan itineraries, choose the best mode of transport, compare schedules, and buy tickets for everything from buses and trains to cultural sites and entertainment venues. Museums, heritage sites, events, and leisure spots will all be part of the same digital ecosystem.

This echoes the ambitions of platforms like Japan’s nationwide transit tools or France’s integrated cultural ticketing networks, but with the twist that Uzbekistan is trying to centralize it from the start. Imagine having Trainline, GetYourGuide, a city pass, and your mobile operator all living inside the same app. That’s roughly the direction here.

The app will also include a digital guide with interactive maps, audio and video content, and even live broadcasts. So the experience goes beyond purchasing power—it’s about enhancing the journey once you’re already exploring the country.

AI-Powered Tourism by the End of 2026

By the end of 2026, the platform gets an even more advanced upgrade: an AI and big data analytics system. This layer will analyze traveler flows, categorize visitor types, understand preferences, and support dynamic pricing and resource allocation. It’s a level of sophistication more commonly seen in major airport hubs or smart cities rather than national tourism operations.

What’s especially notable is the integration with the country’s Safe City system. This suggests real-time insights into crowd levels, visitor distribution, and safety-related responses. With responsible data use, Uzbekistan could join destinations like Singapore or Dubai, where tourism strategy is directly informed by live city infrastructure.

Conclusion: Uzbekistan Joins a Global Race Towards Smarter Tourism

Uzbekistan’s upcoming National Tourism Platform is more than a digital upgrade—it’s a statement of intent. If delivered fully, the country positions itself alongside the most digitally progressive destinations. Estonia’s citizen services, Singapore’s Smart Nation system, and Dubai’s integrated city platforms have shown what’s possible when technology underpins visitor experience. Uzbekistan is aiming for a similar leap, but with a stronger focus on tourism from day one.

This fits global trends highlighted in reports by the UNWTO and OECD, where unified ticketing, AI-driven personalization, seamless connectivity, and digital identity are repeatedly cited as the next defining features of travel. Destinations that master them early will gain a tangible competitive edge.

The challenge, of course, will be execution. The ecosystem needs consistent Wi-Fi and mobile coverage, strong partnerships with local transport and cultural operators, a user-friendly design, and transparent data governance. But the ambition is clear, and the direction aligns with where the industry is heading.

For travelers, this could mean a country where everything simply works from the moment they land. For the travel tech sector, Uzbekistan becomes a very interesting case study in national-level digital innovation. If the rollout succeeds, we may soon list Uzbekistan among the best examples of smart tourism transformation—not just in Central Asia, but globally.