Iran looks to expand tourism with China
Iran is looking to expand tourism ties with China; Iran's vice president and chairman of the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organisation is visiting Beijing this week to discuss opportunities and policies in Iran's tourism industry.

Masoud Soltanifar, Iran's vice president and chairman of the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization, said Iran expects to deepen tourism cooperation with China and that Iran will welcome more visitors and investors from China during a May 18 meeting in Beijing dedicated to introducing policies and investment opportunities in Iran’s tourism industry.

According to Soltanifar, the country has abundant travel resources and is capable of providing its visitors with a variety of travel experiences.

He hoped that more Chinese visitors would come to Iran to enjoy its rich cultural heritage. Iran is a secure country in a relatively unsecure region and has a lot of natural and cultural sites which are worth visiting.

“Iran will become one of the top 10 hottest tourist destinations in 2016,”said Soltanifar. The number of foreign visitors has increased by 2.7% since the sanctions against Iran were lifted in January this year .

Therefore, Iran wants to attract more Chinese tourists and more Chinese investors for Iran’s tourism industry.

Iran has already established two tourism offices in Guangzhou and Shanghai. The purpose is to introduce Iran’s tourist attractions to Chinese tourists, and offer vacation packages. Vice President Soltanifar said that Iran is already trying to attract more visitors by simplifying visa application procedures and improving tourism facilities to cater to Chinese visitors.

Iran also welcomes Chinese investors for the country’s tourism facilities. “Iran needs to build at least 300 three-star and five-star hotels within the country to meet the demand of increasing foreign visitors,”said Soltanifar.

Currently, less than 50,000 Chinese tourists visit Iran every year. But with the relationship between China and Iran becoming closer, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Iran will likely grow in future.

Source: Xinhua