TEHRAN – Foreign tourists have spent some $32 billion in Iran over the past four years, said an official with the Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Organization.

A total of 19.9 million travelers visited the country during the mentioned period (March 2013 – March 2017), IRIB quoted CHTHO Deputy Director Morteza Rahmani-Movahhed as saying on April 23.

Transportation, accommodation, and even purchasing souvenirs are amongst parameters taken into account for calculating the sum, Rahmani-Movahhed added.

“Under a worldwide accepted definition, a tourist is referred to whoever stays over 24 hours in a foreign country without having a job or a business,” he said, Khabaronline reported. 

“According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization, a [typical] traveler to West Asia spends between $1,520 and $1,750, so that we used an average $1,650 to calculate the income,” the official explained.

The government has put in a great deal of effort to revive tourism and hospitality businesses since the incumbent President Hassan Rouhani assumed office in August 2013.

Back in January, CHTHO Director Zahra Ahmadipour emphasized on breathing fresh air into the sector in order to grasp boom in foreign arrivals and achieve sustainable growth.

Iran regards tourism a fountain of wealth, seeking to make the best use of positive atmosphere created in the wake of the JCPOA, a landmark nuclear deal signed between Iran and six world powers in January 2016.

The country has preserved its topmost global ranking in the “price competitiveness” category of the 2017 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index, which shows how costly it is to travel or invest in a country. The biennial report was released by the World Economic Forum earlier on April 5.

PHOTO: Tourists from Hong Kong visit the Gate of All Nations at the ancient Persian city of Persepolis in southern Iran, February 11, 2016. (AFP Photo/Behrouz Mehri)

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