TEHRAN – Eight tour operators and tourism experts from Armenia are visiting Iran attractions on a feminization tour, a tourism ministry official in charge of foreign tourism marketing said on Sunday.

“This group is set to pay visits to different parts of Tehran to be acquainted with the province’s tourism capacities in terms of historical and cultural attractions, sports, and culinary tourism,” Leyla Ajdari said.

UNESCO-designated Golestan Palace, Tochal ski resort as well as cultural-historical complexes of Niavaran and Sadabad are among the designations embedded in the 5-day itinerary of the Armenian travel insiders, the official said.

It is the tenth fam tour organized by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts since the beginning of the current [Iranian calendar] year, Ajdari said.

On July 30, Iran announced all remaining COVID travel restrictions, such as pre-departure test requirements, had been lifted for passengers entering the country.

The Islamic Republic welcomed 986,652 foreign nationals during the same period last year, and a 43 percent rise may indicate the country’s recovering from a previous travel slump caused by COVID restrictions.

Based on available data, Iran’s medical tourism revenues reached $1 billion during the past Iranian calendar year (which ended on March 20). People from the neighboring countries, including Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Oman, Bahrain, Armenia, and Tajikistan, constitute the lion’s share of medical tourists arriving in the country.

Earlier this month, Iranian travel expert Ebrahim Pourfaraj said the country would see a considerable increase in international visitors next autumn compared to previous seasons this year.

The former head of the Iranian Tour Operators Association said there will be a change in the number of foreign nationals visiting the country. “Although we didn’t have many [inbound] tours in the summer, the number of requests to travel to Iran in the fall is high.”

Pourfaraj even anticipated a further boost for foreign arrivals in the upcoming spring season next year. “There are problems in the path of foreign tourists, which we hope to be resolved in the near future.”

The Islamic Republic expects to reap a bonanza from its numerous tourist spots such as bazaars, museums, mosques, bridges, bathhouses, madrasas, mausoleums, churches, towers, and mansions, of which 26 are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

AFM