TEHRAN – Sardasht dam and its surrounding landscape hold enormous potential to become a popular tourism destination, the governor-general of West Azarbaijan province has said. 

"Due to its location as a border city, its pristine and mountainous nature, Sardasht has a high potential for tourism and agricultural development," Mohammad-Mehdi Shahriari said, CHTN reported. 

However, it is essential to attract more investors to Sardasht so that everyone can enjoy the beauty of this area and the hospitality of its people, he noted.

"Sardasht dam requires more investment in terms of tourism infrastructure to unlock its capacity as a top destination."

Developing accommodation facilities, such as hotels, apartment hotels, and eco-lodge units are amongst measures that should be considered for promoting tourism in the region, he mentioned.

Earlier in March, Deputy Energy Minister for Water and Wastewater Affairs Ghasem Taqizadeh Khamesi announced that 30 dams across Iran have been are planned to be turned into tourist destinations. 

A total budget of 1,300 billion rials (some $30 million at the official rate of 42,000 rials) has been allocated to develop the tourism infrastructure of the dams, the official said.

Water tourism of the dams is estimated to generate 3,000 direct jobs when fully operated, he added.

The official also noted that 182 national dams have been built in the country, most of them have the potential to be tourism destinations. 

Back in May 2019, the Ministry of Energy inked a memorandum of understanding with the Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Ministry to lay the ground for launching dam tourism.

Though much of Iran is composed of arid and semi-arid lands, the country has many rivers, waterfalls ponds, and wetlands offering scenic vistas to nature lovers and eco-travelers, backpackers, birdwatchers, and fishers.

Water tourism involves traveling to locations specifically to take part in water-based activities. Some people who do not wish to partake in water-related activities embark on water tourism trips so that they can visit tourist sites that sit close to bodies of water such as lakes, seas, or even dams. Water tourists are often independent travelers, although some travel firms do organize group trips.

ABU/AFM