Central Asia’s online travel scene is booming, but the winners aren’t who you’d expect
Central Asia’s digital economy is moving fast. E-commerce volume hit $14.7 billion USD in 2024 (up 32% year over year), and AI adoption is climbing, with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan all ranking in the global top 15 for user growth. Our latest Online Travel Tracker: Seeking Central Asia outlines how governments are backing the shift with new AI laws and national strategies, and Kazakhstan is clearly leading the pack. It has a dedicated AI ministry, a $10 billion USD data center deal with NVIDIA and Firebird, and 2026 declared the Year of Digitalisation and AI.
When it comes to travel, the real action is happening inside fintech super apps rather than traditional booking sites. Kaspi Travel, a vertical inside Kaspi.kz, pulled in 538 billion KZT in gross merchandise value in 2025 and is the dominant channel in Kazakhstan. Over in Uzbekistan, payment players Click and Payme have launched their own embedded travel services, while Kyrgyzstan’s MBANK rebranded Bookit.kg into MTravel and rolled out the country’s first AI tour search assistant. Meanwhile, governments in all three countries are developing national tourism platforms of their own.
So where does that leave independent startups? Only 17 companies are listed in Kazakhstan’s online travel sector, and the picture is even thinner in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan. Is that a warning sign or a wide-open opportunity? Which startups are worth watching, and what are they doing differently from the big platforms? And how do you compete when the biggest players already own the payments layer? Download the full report to find out.
