TEHRAN – Iran has the potential to be one of the world’s most important tourism hubs if it is provided with the minimum number of resources that it needs, the Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Minister has said.

Among Islamic countries including Iran, tourism accounts for a large portion of their capacities, but for a variety of reasons, this huge potential has not been considered, Ezzatollah Zarghami said on Tuesday while visiting the 16th Tehran International Tourism Exhibition.

Considering that tourism plays an important role in economic, cultural, and social development today, Islamic countries must compensate for this historical backwardness by continuing to develop tourism, he added.

By removing obstacles and introducing the capabilities of Iran in the tourism field properly, the country could also combat Iranophobia, he mentioned.

A safe and beautiful country with four seasons, Iran is among the first few countries in the world with the best capabilities in the fields of cultural heritage, ecotourism, and other tourist attractions, he noted.

Iranianophobia, however, has been one of the enemies’ methods for years, and there have been attempts to halt tourism development in Iran, the minister explained.

Last August, Zarghami said that Iran has recorded about 2.9 million foreign tourist arrivals over the past 11 months.

The tourism minister said the rate of tourist arrivals, concerning coronavirus restrictions, is ahead of some international estimates.

“Designing an Iranophobia project and presenting a negative image of Iran in some media is one of the obstacles to attracting foreign tourists,” Zarghami said.

“We have many relative advantages and facilities that none of the countries in the region have.”

Long shunned by Western travelers, the Islamic Republic has steadily stepped-up efforts to use tourism, over the past couple of years, to help promote its international image battered by endless opposition mostly from the U.S.

Experts believe even before the pandemic, Iran’s tourism was already grappling with some challenges, on top of those Western “media propaganda” aimed at scaring potential travelers away from the Islamic Republic. They say Iran is still somehow “unknown” to many potential travelers due to such a “media war.”

Before the COVID pandemic, Iran's tourism had constantly been growing, reaching more than eight million visitors in the Iranian calendar year 1398 (started March 21, 2019). That surge, however, helped prejudices to become thick and thin.

However, Iran’s trump card is that the country benefits from a wide variety of travel destinations ranging from seacoasts and lush green woods to towering mountains and harsh deserts. As a wallet-friendly destination with hospitable people, Iran has long been a desired destination for nature lovers, birdwatchers, powder chasers, culture devotees, pilgrims, museum-goers, foodies, adventurers, and medical travelers, to name a few.

ABU/AM