Iran enjoys a boom in tourism
Published: 02:06 PM,Jun 14,2023 | EDITED : 06:06 PM,Jun 14,2023
The Iranian government is working to enhance its tourism programs to support a rebound of visitor inflows to levels prevailing in 2019, before the pandemic. These efforts are also targeted at citizens of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. We have seen many Omanis heading to Iran in recent years for various purposes, including medical treatment, trade, and pilgrimages. There is no entry visa for Omani citizens with Oman Air, Salam Air and some Iranian airlines promoting direct travel between the two countries. This is what I witnessed during my last trip to Iran via SalamAir.
The International World Tourism Organization indicates that Iran received over 4.1 million foreign tourists in 2022, which was 55% lower than the 2019 peak of 9.1 million tourists just before the outbreak of the pandemic. Local tourists are not accounted for in this tally, but are an important component of tourist movement inside the country. Foreign tourists are also impacted by an economic boycott waged by the US and a number of Western countries, but foreigners from the West typically use other airlines to travel to Iran.
Everyone knows that Iran is one of the active countries in the tourism sector as a result of its cultural, historical, archaeological heritage, natural geographical diversity and stunning scenery.
The presence of health institutions and hospitals has led to an increase in arrivals into Iran. Thanks to high-level health services, more than 1.2 million people travelled to Iran last year, according to Iranian officials. Today, this country has become a pioneer among Islamic countries in the field of medical tourism as a result of the rapid growth of its healthcare system, along with developments in the field of medical research and technology. The depreciation of its national currency has also made healthcare cheaper for foreign patients.
For its part, Iran is making concerted efforts to attract tourists to various destinations, whether from among its citizens or from abroad. Since the Iranian revolution in 1979, the majority of foreign visitors to Iran have been to the well-known shrines of the city of Mashhad or Qom and other parts, but there are large groups that began to come for tourism, entertainment, recreation and economic activities.
Tourism in Iran has mobilized a lot of internal and external investments in building huge five-star hotels and below, and has provided millions of job opportunities for its people. Around 2 million new jobs are expected to be created by 2025, up from 1.3 million a year ago.
The Iranian government issues one-week visas for citizens of 68 countries at airports, in addition to electronic visas and through Iranian embassies and consulates in a number of countries around the world. After the Covid-19 pandemic, Iran decided to boost the tourism sector by allowing more tourists to visit Iran, and there is a vision developed for the tourism sector to invest $32 billion in this vital sector with a goal to target 20 million tourists by 2025.
haiderdawood@hotmail.com
The International World Tourism Organization indicates that Iran received over 4.1 million foreign tourists in 2022, which was 55% lower than the 2019 peak of 9.1 million tourists just before the outbreak of the pandemic. Local tourists are not accounted for in this tally, but are an important component of tourist movement inside the country. Foreign tourists are also impacted by an economic boycott waged by the US and a number of Western countries, but foreigners from the West typically use other airlines to travel to Iran.
Everyone knows that Iran is one of the active countries in the tourism sector as a result of its cultural, historical, archaeological heritage, natural geographical diversity and stunning scenery.
The presence of health institutions and hospitals has led to an increase in arrivals into Iran. Thanks to high-level health services, more than 1.2 million people travelled to Iran last year, according to Iranian officials. Today, this country has become a pioneer among Islamic countries in the field of medical tourism as a result of the rapid growth of its healthcare system, along with developments in the field of medical research and technology. The depreciation of its national currency has also made healthcare cheaper for foreign patients.
For its part, Iran is making concerted efforts to attract tourists to various destinations, whether from among its citizens or from abroad. Since the Iranian revolution in 1979, the majority of foreign visitors to Iran have been to the well-known shrines of the city of Mashhad or Qom and other parts, but there are large groups that began to come for tourism, entertainment, recreation and economic activities.
Tourism in Iran has mobilized a lot of internal and external investments in building huge five-star hotels and below, and has provided millions of job opportunities for its people. Around 2 million new jobs are expected to be created by 2025, up from 1.3 million a year ago.
The Iranian government issues one-week visas for citizens of 68 countries at airports, in addition to electronic visas and through Iranian embassies and consulates in a number of countries around the world. After the Covid-19 pandemic, Iran decided to boost the tourism sector by allowing more tourists to visit Iran, and there is a vision developed for the tourism sector to invest $32 billion in this vital sector with a goal to target 20 million tourists by 2025.
haiderdawood@hotmail.com