By Martin Banks

New direct flights from Brussels to Azerbaijan will help “turbo boost” awareness of the former Soviet republic.

That is the hope of tourism bosses who have announced the new Belgium-Azerbaijan route.

The four-per-week flights from Zaventem to Baku, the Azerbaijan capital, will start on May 8 2027.

It will significantly cut the journey time for travellers to the landlocked country. At present, people travelling from Belgium usually have to go via Istanbul but the new route will cut journey time between the two capitals to under five hours.

The new service, operated by Azerbaijan Airlines, the national flag carrier, were announced by Florian Sengstschmid, CEO of the Azerbaijan Tourism Board, at a briefing for Brussels-based reporters.

There are plans for similar direct flights to Baku from other European cities, such as Athens and Zurich, possibly later this year.

He conceded that the country was still largely off the radar for many travellers from Europe, including Belgium, with many still unaware of its many attractions.

It is hoped the new routes, together with relatively easy access to travel visas for Europeans, will help address this.

The country has been successful in recent years in enabling major sporting events, such as Formula 1, to propel into the public consciousness.

The recent F1 race around the streets of Baku, described by some as even more thrilling than Monaco, was, in fact, the tenth anniversary of the city being placed on the F1 circuit.

The country’s tourism bosses are now keen to promote other aspects of Azerbaijani life and culture, such as its potential for winter sports and its fast-evolving wine industry and wine routes.

Sengstschmid, who is based in Baku and was on a short visit to Brussels, said the numbers travelling to Azerbaijan were small, estimated at 2,000 or so in the first eight months of this year.

“It is hard to track and be precise but, yes, the numbers are relatively small,” he said.

The aim of the new service is to promote travel and tourism in the country.

In the past year, the tourism sector accounted for about €3.5 billion of the Azer economy (5.4percent of its GDP) but the aim is for this to rise to €6bn by the year 2030, he told reporters.

He added, “The question is also about how people in Azerbaijan might be encouraged to travel more to Europe, including Belgium.”

Austrian-born Sengstschmid,who has headed the tourism operation in Baku since 2018, said events such as F1, which most recently attracted some 17,000 overseas visitors to the city, had done much to elevate awareness of the country in Westerners’ eyes but more was needed.

The aim, he said, was to bring the “same F1 value added” to other parts of the nation,many of which attract few Europeans.

The irony, he noted, is that Baku is “more European” than many might imagine, not least in its architecture.

“When you have a walk in Baku you get the feeling you could be in Paris,”he said.

Other connections include it having the largest Jewish settlement outside of Israel and the legacy left by German industrialisation of the country’s wine industry.

There are many other reasons to visit, he said, including the multiple languages, including English, spoken by many people and the large number of well known hotel brands in Baku.

At present, an estimated 70percent of European visits are business related, many connected to the country’s booming energy and pharma sectors.

Asked why Belgium had been chosen for the latest air connection, he said, “Europe has always been a priority and that remains the case.”

“There is an issue about awareness and visibility and,yes, we do have to dispel some ongoing misconceptions but I am confident these things can be overcome.”

A comparison, he argued, might be made with the Baltic states, also formerly part of the old Soviet empire.

Since they had won independence they had grown as tourist destinations and the same, he believes, can happen in Azerbaijan.

“You have to remember that this country was under Soviet rule for 70 years and you cannot ignore that fact. But, before that, Azerbaijan was an independent nation with its own culture and identity.” Sengstschmid, who was formely based in Moscow as a diplomat.

“We hope the new air bridge to Belgium and Europe will help show people here just how colourful a country it really is.”

“Trying to increase the tourism share in the GDP will be a challenge but is, I firmly believe, definitely possible in the coming years.”