Tehran, Iran, May 26
By Milad Fashtami - Trend:
The number of international flights to and from Iran has increased by 18.6 percent in the second Iranian calendar month (April 21 - May 20).
Totally 6,386 international flights landed in or took off from Iranian airports in the mentioned month, Iran's IRIB News Agency reported on May 26.
A total number of 36,761 flights also passed Iran's air space in the mentioned period, which 9.2 percent more than the same period previous year.
A rise in the number of international flights operated in Iran follow a boost in the number of tourists visiting the country.
In the first 45 days of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21 - May 5), the number of European tourists visiting Iran increased by 240 percent.
Masoud Soltanifar, Iran's Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO), said that Iran's share out of the world's total $1.25 trillion tourism industry is very little.
"It is while Iran is among world's top ten countries in terms of tourist attractions," he said.
He went on to note that Iran is the world's 17th country in terms of safety.
It is said that annually 4 million foreigners travel to Iran, but Soltanifar explained that only one million people spend money in Iran and can be considered as tourist.
"Iran needs to improve its infrastructure and transportation system to absorb more tourists," he added.
Iran's tourism industry is booming, with more foreign travelers visiting the country than ever before. So much so that Iran's President Hassan Rouhani is hoping to attract 10 million international tourists each year.
Darvish Amiri, an official with Iran's Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization, said on Feb. 21 that some four million foreign tourists traveled to Iran in 2013, IRIB reported.
He added that the figure was very small compared to a total 1.15 billion tourist traveling around the world in 2013.
The country currently attracts predominantly medical and religious tourists, although this is all expected to change as Iran develops new relationships with foreign nations.
Edited by C.N.