Azerbaijan’s tourism potential was presented at the Los Angeles Times Travel Show held on February 18-19, 2017. Attended by over 30,000 visitors, the Show is the largest travel event in the United States. Alarmed by Azerbaijan’s presentation at the Show, California’s Armenian lobby did its best, through various provocative and aggressive actions, to disrupt the work of the Azerbaijan booth. However the lobby once again miserably failed.

Sponsored and organized by the Consulate General of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles, the Azerbaijan booth, titled “Azerbaijan: Everlasting Heritage, Inspirational Harmony,” offered the attendees substantial information about Azerbaijan, its ancient history and culture, steady development as an independent nation as well as its rich tourism potential. Various video clips showcasing Azerbaijan’s natural beauties, landscapes, unique history, cultural diversity and architecture were demonstrated in the booth. Colorful national costumes of Azerbaijan demonstrated in the booth received much acclaim.

The Azerbaijan booth also presented Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region and informed the Show visitors about this historical part of the country. The banner ”Karabakh: Crown Jewel of Azerbaijan”, featured in the booth, attracted much attention of the Show visitors. Showcasing picturesque nature of Karabakh, the banner also features Karabakh’s history, its historical Azerbaijani monuments, such as the Shusha Walls, Govharagha Mosque, Ganjasar Albanian Monastery, as well as the Karabakh carpets, the Mugham music school, the Karabakh horses and cuisine. A booklet, which includes information on all these features of Karabakh, published by the Consulate General, was distributed in the booth. The brochure also highlights the current situation in Karabakh, which has been under illegal military occupation by Armenia since over 24 years. Referring to a travel warning by the U.S. State Department, the brochure cautions Americans to avoid any travel to this region.