Iran announces ambitious Tourism Plans

Iran puts international tourism at the very top of its national development agenda, and all tourism proposals coming from the Supreme Council of Tourism will be given priority at the office of the President - was the message stated by the country's First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref, who spoke at the World Tourism Day celebrations held on 29 September 2004, which coincided with the visit of the WTO Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli.

Within its national framework of tourism policies, the Parliament of Iran on Wednesday announced that all tourists coming to Iran will be granted a seven-day visa upon arrival at five major international airports. The Government also announced that all hotel pricing will be left in the hands of the private sector as part of its programme to forge more public and private sector partnership in the field of tourism.

As a result of the WTO-assisted Tourism Development Master Plan, Iran is embarking upon an ambitious 20-year tourism programme whereby it aims at capturing 1.5 per cent of the world's total tourist arrivals, receiving 20 million international tourists a year. In order to achieve this ambitious but also realistic target, the Government intends to increase its annual tourism budget by eight times starting from next year, and an anticipated amount of five billion US dollars will be invested by the Government in related restoration/preservation of historical monuments as well as in tourism infrastructure.

Mr. Frangialli stated that he was most impressed by the rapid changes in Iran over the past few years. These social and economic changes have provided a favourable climate for the further expansion of the tourism industry in Iran. He said in his farewell speech that with its double-digit growth in recent years and with its incredible wealth of cultural heritage, Iran will soon become one of the major tourism players in South Asia and will firmly establish itself as a competitive cultural tourism destination in the world.