Hidden Gems of Central Asia Captivate Chinese Tourists

Under spotlight of BRI, region's travel boom further fueled by visa-free policy

It is as old and venerable as Rome, the eternal city, and Athens, the city of wisdom, yet Samarkand, the pearl of the Muslim world, draws only a fraction of the attention that those two capitals do.

Indeed, while most people know that Rome is in Italy and Athens is in Greece, few would have even heard of Samarkand, let alone know that it is in Uzbekistan.

That very anonymity, largely a result of being all but ignored by the world's travelers, may be what is helping fuel a surge of Chinese tourists to the countries of Central Asia, where they are discovering the marvels of Samarkand and other ancient and unheralded treasures.