TEHRAN - As one of the most sought-after destinations in Iran, Khorasan Razavi province saw the arrival of more than 11 million pilgrims and tourists in one month including spring holidays.

A provincial official in charge of pilgrimage affairs, during the press conference, provided a comprehensive overview of Nowruz travels covering more than a month of service.

“The total number of pilgrims' entries from March 5 till April 6 has been 11,127,735,” Hojjat al-Islam Hojjat Gonabadinejad noted, “with airports accounting for 351,068, railways for 616,358, public road transportation for 880,138 and private road transportation for 9,280,171 individuals.”

The provincial official further elaborated on the accommodation statistics of tourists, stating that the total capacity utilized everywhere in the province, including formal, temporary, and emergency accommodations, accounts for 38% of the total capacity of 700,000, with formal accommodations at 53%, temporary at 55%, and emergency at 21%.

Detailing the statistics Gonabadinejad outlined that the average duration of stay in the course of the spring holidays was three days.

He also stated: “Yesterday we had 172,992 entries to Mashhad, out of this number, 10,919 arrived via airports, 18,421 via railways, 31,980 via public road transportation, and 111,672 via personal vehicles on highways.”

Referring to market regulation and supervision as the two top priorities in the service to travelers, the official assured that the measures are in place to maximize the pilgrims’ satisfaction throughout their trip.

He also stated that in about a month, 90,566 inspections were carried out with 20,984 cases of legal actions taken, including warnings referred to judicial authorities and sealing to make sure the travelers are being catered deservedly.

Regarding the medical facilities, Gonabadinejad pinpointed that five medical universities in the province provided services during this period, conducting extensive work.

 “There is an unparalleled attraction in the holy shrine of Imam Reza (AS) where we witness the magnificent presence of people throughout the year,” the official stated in his concluding remarks, “especially during significant occasions such as Nowruz.”

Khorasan — meaning the “Land of the Sun” — is a historical region and realm comprising a vast territory now lying in northeastern Iran, southern Turkmenistan, and northern Afghanistan. The historical region extended along the north, from the Amu Darya (Oxus River) westward to the Caspian Sea and, along the south, from the fringes of the central Iranian deserts eastward to the mountains of central Afghanistan.

As mentioned by Britannica, the Khorasan region was part of the Achaemenian Empire of the 6th to 4th century BC and the Parthian Empire, which spanned from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century CE. Khorasan, as a result of its troubled history, is peopled by a great variety of ethnic groups.