Uzbekistan's stand named best at WTM London 2026

Uzbekistan's national stand won the Best Stand award for the Europe region at WTM London, the travel trade show held at ExCeL London from 3 to 5 November 2026. The judges then named it the overall winner of the show's stand awards. They praised a pleasant atmosphere for meetings and a design whose authenticity, in their words, "shone through". The stand was built from natural materials, including local wood, with large screens for video.

What the judges liked

WTM London is one of the largest travel trade shows in the world: tour operators, airlines and tourist boards meet there to agree on next year's trips. Stands are judged region by region. Spain and Morocco were highly commended alongside Uzbekistan in Europe, and other regional prizes went to Indonesia, Abu Dhabi and Egypt. According to UzDaily, eleven Uzbek companies shared the stand, including the national airline and nine travel companies, with routes through Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva, food, nature and adventure trips.

Where to see Uzbek woodwork for real

A stand in London can only hint at it. In Itchan Kala, Khiva, the Juma Mosque is a single dim hall on 212 carved wooden columns in 17 rows, with carved dates on doors and columns from 1316 to 1789. Khiva masters worked in gujum, a hard local elm, and rubbed it with oil instead of lacquer, and woodcarvers still teach apprentices in their workshops inside the old town. The whole craft, from Khiva doors to Kokand, is in our guide to Uzbek crafts in wood, metal and gold.

To meet the masters in person, our 5-day Crafts of Bukhara and Samarkand tour visits paper makers, woodcarvers, gold embroiderers, blacksmiths and potters. A trip built around Khiva woodcarving can be planned on request.