Minister urges ambassadors in neighboring countries to help attract tourists
Iran’s Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Reza Salehi-Amiri called on Iranian ambassadors in regional and neighboring nations to help draw more tourists into the country.
Addressing a regional conference on provincial diplomacy in northeastern city of Mashhad, Salehi-Amiri said that visitors from five important regions — Central Asia and the Caucasus, Turkey, Pakistan, the Persian Gulf area — are interested in coming to Iran.
Referring to the government’s plans for attracting more tourists, he said that the Parliament had already approved five incentive plans which were “unprecedented” and could lead to a major development in the country’s tourism. “As of this year, all investors have been able to build multipurpose accommodations throughout Iran,” the minister said referring to the incentive plans. He also added that the import of 200 essential goods used in hotels would be subject to zero tariffs and customs duties.
Iran has lagged behind neighboring countries in tourism. The country’s Seventh Economic Development Plan highlights growing the tourism sector in the next four years and the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts aims to attract 15 million tourists annually.
Iran received 6.2 million foreign tourists in 2023 and nearly 7.4 million in 2024. Arrivals dipped in June and July 2025 following a 12-day aggression by Israel and the US against Iran.
According to the latest figures from the United Nations World Tourism Organization, Iran was named one of the world’s top 20 tourist destinations.