TEHRAN – Staying at eco-lodge units has been welcomed by many domestic and overseas vacationers visiting Iran’s Markazi province.

The province is home to 30 eco-lodge complexes, which provided accommodation for some 45000 overnight stays during the first half of the current Iranian year, the provincial tourism chief said. 

Considering the richness of the rural fabric in the province, holding cultural events such as harvest festivals can provide a basis for attracting tourists, Masud Farrokhi said.

The number of eco-lodges is on the rise in the province and currently, seven of them are under construction, the official added.

A total of 1004 international travelers visited the province during the six months, Farrokhi stated.

A reason behind the prosperity of eco-lodges is the increasing number of travelers who look for something different, such as spending a day in the tranquil countryside, picking fresh fruits, watching rice grow, fishing by the seaside, eating traditional dishes or even staying with locals. In contrast, traditional forms of transportation are typically booked through travel agencies. As tourists get older, more and more types of travel are welcomed by those looking for undiscovered destinations.

Iran has a lot to offer nature lovers who appreciate pristine, diverse natural resources. The World Tourism Organization is expected to award the title of "Best Tourism Villages" to many rural locations around the world, and the villages of Kharanaq, Barandaq, and Lark have been nominated.

The  World Tourism Organization sees rural tourism as a type of activity in which the visitor’s experience is related to a wide range of products generally linked to nature-based activities, agriculture, rural lifestyle, culture, angling, and sightseeing. Such tourism also possesses characteristics such as low population density, a landscape dominated by agriculture and forestry, as well as traditional social structure and lifestyle.

Markazi province is located between the mountain ranges of Alborz and Zagros and on the edge of the central desert of Iran. The weather conditions in the semi-arid province differ a lot according to the height of the land. Some of its agricultural products such as pomegranates and cantaloupe are exported to many countries of the world.

AFM