TEHRAN — Iran seeks to remove visa requirements for Russian tourists, head of Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicraft Organization (CHTHO) Masoud Soltanifar told Sputnik.

Simplifying the entry of tourists to Iran and Russia is of great importance for the both countries, Soltanifar explained.
The foreign ministry and the government are both approved of the gradual removal of visa requirements, he said, adding, as the first step those who have political visas will be exempted from visa and as a final step all the Iranian and Russian nationals can travel between the two countries without needing visa.

Currently, visas on arrival are being issued at the Imam Khomeini airport in Tehran, and also at the airports of Mashhad, Shiraz, Tabriz and Isfahan provinces for 30 days and can be extended for 15 more days for Russian and nationals from 190 other countries, he highlighted.

Soltanifar further noted that 44 million Russian tourists travelled to different countries in 2014 and as a neighboring country Iran should be a destination for at least one to two million of these tourists.

Unfortunately, less than 50,000 Russian tourists travelled to Iran in 2015, he regretted.

Annually, 4 to 4.5 million Russian tourists visit Turkey, but as the two countries are now at the loggerheads for the past months Turkey has seen a sharp drop in visitors from Russia, Soltanifar added.

Owing to Iran’s diverse climate, Russian tourists can enjoy mild weather during winter by taking a 4 to 5-hour flights to Kish and Qeshm islands, Soltanifar suggested.

“In our recent trip to Russia,” he said, “Russians found Iran a suitable replacement for Russia and Egypt.”

He additionally mentioned the upcoming trip of the Federal Agency for Tourism of the Russian Federation to Iran to take part in Tehran’s International Tourism Exhibition.

Russia’s agreement with Iran simplifying visa requirements for tourists, businesspersons and other categories of travelers takes effect on February 6.

Meanwhile, Iranian Ambassador to Russia Mehdi Sanaei said in January that tourism was an important sphere for developing the cooperation between Russia and Iran since both states had “great tourist attraction potential.”

Tourists arriving in Iran from Russia will be subject to a simplified entry procedure in the near future, Sanaei said.

“Russian tourists in the coming days will get the privilege of a simplified entry procedure to our country,” he added.

MQ

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Eram Garden is a historic Persian garden in Shiraz, Fars province.