Rocket launches in Kazakhstan are being pitched to Hong Kong travellers, as some Central Asian travel operators make their debut at the city’s flagship travel expo ahead of new direct flights to the region.
Six Kazakhstan-based operators set up booths under the theme “Visit Almaty” at the 40th International Travel Expo, the annual event running from June 11 to 14 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Despite the conflict in the Middle East affecting global tourism, the 2026 edition would feature more than 500 exhibitors, over 80 per cent of them from outside Hong Kong, as well as 68 exhibiting countries and regions including seven represented by official bodies, of which 60 per cent were from Asia, according to TKS Exhibition Services, the organiser of the expo.
The Kazakh exhibitors are targeting new markets on the back of shifting global travel patterns driven by higher airfares and geopolitical tensions.
One participant, Rocket Go Travel, is promoting five-day packages to view rocket launches at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, with prices starting at about €1,900 (HK$17,190), excluding airfares. Tourists can also opt to visit the cosmodrome without viewing a launch, which would be €600 cheaper.
“Hong Kong tourists are very generous,” chairman Vladimir Kalinin said. “We are probably the only travel agency that can offer such trips.”
