The Role of Smart Tourism in Enhancing Tourist Satisfaction in Uzbekistan
Abstract
The rapid growth of digital technologies such as IoT, AI, and mobile applications has transformed global tourism, with smart tourism emerging as a driver of service quality, competitiveness, and visitor satisfaction. In Uzbekistan, a strategically significant cultural destination in Central Asia, the adoption of smart tourism initiatives—including QR-coded heritage sites, e-visa systems, and digital guide applications—has begun, but integration remains fragmented and public awareness limited. Despite global advances, empirical research linking smart tourism, infrastructure, destinations, risk perception, adoption, and satisfaction in Uzbekistan is scarce, leaving uncertainty about how these factors interact in emerging markets. This study develops and tests an integrated framework examining the relationships between smart tourism, smart infrastructure, smart destinations, tourist travel risk perception, e-tourism adoption and experience, and tourist satisfaction. Based on survey data from 303 respondents, regression analyses confirm that smart tourism reduces perceived travel risk and significantly enhances smart destinations and infrastructure. Both smart destinations and infrastructure positively affect e-tourism adoption and experience, which in turn strongly predicts tourist satisfaction, explaining 58% of its variance. This research is among the first in Central Asia to empirically validate a multi-construct framework, demonstrating that adoption is the final pathway through which smart initiatives generate satisfaction and competitiveness. The findings provide theoretical contributions to smart tourism studies in emerging economies and practical recommendations for policymakers, emphasizing the need for investment in infrastructure, integrated digital services, and real-time information to strengthen Uzbekistan’s global tourism competitiveness.
References
J. M. Rozikov и F. M. Boymirzayev, «Artificial Intelligence Applications in International Tourism», Int. J. Artif. Intell., т. 2, вып. 2, сс. 68–77, 2025.
L. Kökény, Z. Birkner, и G. Michalkó, «Daring routine: examining the tourists’ risk perception attitudes through the characteristics of travel frequency and revisit frequency», Curr. Issues Tour., т. 3500, сс. 1–7, 2024, doi: 10.1080/13683500.2024.2440819.
Z. Osman и M. Yatam, «Enhancing the Intention to Use E-Tourism among Tourists in the Digital Era», Int. J. Acad. Res. Econ. Manag. Sci., т. 13, вып. 2, 2024, doi: 10.6007/ijarems/v13-i2/21323.
P. Suanpang и P. Pothipassa, «Integrating Generative AI and IoT for Sustainable Smart Tourism Destinations», Sustainability, т. 16, вып. 17, 2024, doi: 10.3390/su16177435.
P. J. Antony, R. Kannan, и A. Professor, «Revolutionizing the Tourism Industry through Artificial Intelligence: A Comprehensive Review of AI Integration, Impact on Customer Experience, Operational Efficiency, and Future Trends», Int. J. Multidimens. Res. Perspect., т. ISSN, вып. 1, сс. 2584–2613, 2024.
Z. Xiang, I. Tussyadiah, и D. Buhalis, «Smart destinations: foundations, analytics, and applications», J. Destin. Mark. Manag., т. 4, вып. 3, сс. 143–144, 2015, doi: 10.1016/j.jdmm.2015.04.001.
W. Wei, I. Önder, и M. Uysal, «Smart tourism destination (STD): developing and validating an impact scale using residents’ overall life satisfaction», Curr. Issues Tour., т. 27, вып. 17, сс. 2849–2872, 2024, doi: 10.1080/13683500.2023.2296587.
D. Buhalis и A. Amaranggana, «Smart Tourism Destinations Enhancing Tourism Experience Through Personalisation of Services», в Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2015, 2015, сс. 377–389. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-14343-9_28.
D. Gursoy, S. Luongo, V. Della Corte, и F. Sepe, «Smart tourism destinations: an overview of current research trends and a future research agenda», J. Hosp. Tour. Technol., т. 15, вып. 3, сс. 479–495, 2024, doi: 10.1108/JHTT-10-2023-0339.
H. Ochilova, «Smart Tourism in Uzbekistan: Problems and Development Prospects». 2023 г.
C. Koo, J. Park, J. N. Lee, и C. Lee, «Smart tourism of the future: dimensions of technological, social, and experience innovation», J. Travel Res., т. 55, вып. 6, сс. 727–742, 2016, doi: 10.1177/0047287516658498.
U. Gretzel, M. Sigala, Z. Xiang, и C. Koo, «Smart tourism: foundations and developments», Electron. Mark., т. 25, вып. 3, сс. 179–188, 2015, doi: 10.1007/s12525-015-0196-8.
Y. Li, C. Hu, C. Huang, и L. Duan, «The concept of smart tourism in the context of tourism information services», Tour. Manag., т. 58, сс. 293–300, 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.tourman.2016.03.014.
A. O. J. Kwok, «The next frontier of the Internet of Behaviors: data-driven nudging in smart tourism», J. Tour. Futur., т. 11, вып. 2, сс. 307–313, 2025, doi: 10.1108/JTF-11-2022-0288.
N. Mukhtorova и Z. Askarov, «The Rise of Smart Tourism and Its Transformative Potential for Uzbekistan», в Proceedings on Smart Tourism Development, 2024, сс. 72–78.
Copyright (c) 2025 Nasiba Mukhtorova
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
In submitting the manuscript to the Central Asian Journal of Innovations on Tourism Management and Finance, the authors certify that:
- They are authorized by their co-authors to enter into these arrangements.
- The work described has not been formally published before, except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, thesis, or overlay journal.
- That it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere,
- The publication has been approved by the author(s) and by responsible authorities – tacitly or explicitly – of the institutes where the work has been carried out.
- They secure the right to reproduce any material that has already been published or copyrighted elsewhere.
- They agree to the following license and copyright agreement.
License and Copyright Agreement
Authors who publish with Central Asian Journal of Innovations on Tourism Management and Finance agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the Central Asian Journal of Innovations on Tourism Management and Finance right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors can enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the Central Asian Journal of Innovations on Tourism Management and Finance published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or edit it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) before and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
