Tourists visiting historic Boroujerdi Mansion in Kashan

Roughly 54,700 foreign tourists have visited Kashan as well as Aran and Bidgol in Isfahan province since March 2005, deputy head of Kashan Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department said.
On the sidelines of a meeting of Kashan Tourism Working Group, Mohammad Otouf Nassaj told IRNA that the majority of foreign travelers came from Germany, Britain, Ukraine and China.
Historical sites in Kashan, Aran and Bidgol also hosted senior political, cultural and economic figures including director of UNESCO’s World Heritage Center, Francesco Bandarin, deputy tourism minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, as well as a number of mediapersons.
According to the official, foreign arrivals showed a 60-percent rise during the period compared to the same period of the preceding year.
He added that foreign and domestic travelers were mostly enticed by Fin Garden, historic mansions, Kashan’s roofed bazaar as well as desert attractions of Aran and Bidgol.
Highlighting that foreign tourists stayed for an average two days in Kashan, Nassaj said the city’s welfare facilities fall short of meeting the demand.
More lodging and welfare amenities are required in Kashan, he stressed, adding in recent years, the department had pooled resources with Kashan Municipality to build accommodation units.
Pardisan Project, renovation of historic mansions to accommodate travelers as well as conversion of Maranjab Caravanserai in Aran and Bidgol are some of the schemes implemented in this line.
The official further noted that banking facilities would be granted to entrepreneurs interested in investing in Kashan tourism.
Kashan currently has five lodging units which fall short of accommodating travelers especially during the high season, forcing some to settle in public parks and schools.
Kashan boasts above 1,200 historical and religious venues. Sceneries in Qamsar, Niasar and Barzok attract a great number of tourists each year.

The current form of Ardestan Jame Mosque in Ardestan, Isfahan province, consisting of a four-ivan courtyard surrounded by arcades, represents successive work through several periods. The earliest elements suggest an original pre-Seljuk hypostyle mosque, into which early Seljuks inserted a dome chamber and adjacent ivan (dated 1158 and 1160 respectively). However, the arcades as they stand cannot be dated to the pre-Seljuk era, as they include domed and barrel vaults that display a wide variety in brickwork, height, and shape. The supporting piers also range in size and shape.
The ivans other than that of the sanctuary appear to be either a Safavid construction or reconstruction; an inscription in the northwest ivan specifies 1539 as the date of restoration.
The earliest stucco fragments, found in western corner of the courtyard, are believed to date to the end of the 10th century. The interior of the dome chamber and ivan are extensively covered in plaster. The ivan vault is uniquely decorated with a complex stucco design of interlacing arabesques. The mihrab exemplifies skilled stucco carving, and may represent Mogul restoration.
Substantial renovation took place in the second half of the 12th century.

A memorandum of understanding was signed between East Azarbaijan Cultural Heritage and Tourism Department and Technical/Vocational Department based on which 2,000 staff of local hospitality businesses will undergo training, IRNA reported.
Public Relations Office of the heritage department reported that the MoU had been signed in line with targets set by the Fourth Development Plan (2005-2010) for promoting tourism.
Those to be trained under the scheme comprise staff of accommodation units, restaurants as well as tour and travel agencies.
The MoU is expected to help identify and remove shortages in the sector through promotion of expertise and know-how.
Despite the fact that the northwestern province ranks fifth in terms of tourism potentials, it has always been suffering from a lack of basic infrastructure. Its only four- and five-star hotels are located in the capital city Tabriz.
Presently, over 3,000 pieces with regional and international significance are being kept in provincial museums.

Ali-Sadr Cave is the most famous tourism attraction of Hamedan province.

Hamedan Working Group for Cultural Heritage and Tourism convened for the first time at the provincial Governor General’s Office with tourism experts and managers in attendance, ILNA reported.
Speaking at the session, deputy governor general for development affairs, Seyyed Hassan Mousavi, emphasized the need for promoting provincial tourism and noted, “Hamedan has abundant cultural, historical and natural potentials. By developing tourism infrastructure, we can help local employment and advance economic development.“
He mentioned Gamasiab in Nahavand and Heydareh in Hamedan as regions which can turn into international tourism attractions through sufficient investment.
He noted that agriculture and tourism are pivotal axes of development in the province, which has not advanced much in industries.
Also, head of the provincial cultural heritage and tourism department referred to Ali-Sadr Cave as of the most beautiful water caves worldwide.
Farhad Farzaneh said, “Ali-Sadr Cave is the most famous tourism attraction of the province. Every year, the number of visitors to the fascinating water cave grows by about 15 percent.“
Farzaneh highlighted efforts to boost quality and quality of services rendered at the recreational site, predicting that the cave’s visitors would reach one million in four years.

Roudband Mausoleum in Dezful, Khuzestan province (Photo by Amin Nazari)

A tribal woman from Ardebil province

Manager of Iran Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization for tribal tourism stated that five sightseeing areas will be launched by the end of summer near tribal habitats.
Mohammad Namazi was quoted by ISNA as saying that the schemes would be implemented in provinces of Ardebil, West Azarbaijan, Isfahan, Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari and Fars.
According to the official, the sightseeing areas would be established in the best tribal zones of every province, using local facilities available.
Namazi cited primary estimates based on which 300 million rials is required for implementing every project. “The proposal has been endorsed and submitted to the department for fund allocation,“ he explained.
The official further unveiled that ICHTO is mulling a plan to set up several exemplary tribal tourism zones to provide tourists with an insight into tribal life.

On the edge of the old district of Yazd city in central Iran, there sits a beautiful traditional building named Hotel Daad.
In interview with ISNA, manager of the hotel, Mohammad Reza Daad, elaborated that the old building had been constructed in 1928 to be used as a garage. The building was recently renovated and converted into a hotel.
According to the manager, the building has a mud-straw fa�ade and its roof, yard and porticos are carpeted with traditionally-made bricks.
Daad added, “About 60 percent of the rooms were revived in the old building and 40 percent were newly constructed using traditional architecture.“
The guests can view the old quarters of Yazd from atop the hotel’s spacious roof with the capacity for 800 people. There is also an open-air restaurant on the roof.
The hotel is located at the heart of Yazd old texture, making it possible for guests to tour the area on foot, Daad expanded.
Pointing to the Internet reservation option, he said contracts had been signed with tour agencies and the hotel’s commercials were being aired on satellite TVs.
Daad Hotel is capable of accommodating 120 people in 57 rooms. It is equipped with swimming pool and sauna facility, car park, coffee shop, Internet cafŽ, as well as modern and traditional restaurants.

Equatorial Guinea, with a reputation for graft, poverty and repression, wants tourists and critics alike to visit the former Spanish colony in west Africa.
“Our doors are open to tourists. Critics must come and see us,“ Fisheries and Environment Minister Fortunato Ofa Mbo told Reuters in an interview at a conference in the Malagasy capital.
Ofa Mbo said that because of its new oil wealth, the country could curtail its logging industry and imports which, he said, peaked at around 700,000 cubic meters annually a few years ago. “We can now afford to protect our forests. We don’t need the timber money,“ he said.
The forests on the country’s islands and its mainland are home to numerous species of primates including gorillas as well as elephants and gigantic frogs--all potential tourist draws.
The government was diversifying the economy and promoting ecotourism with a $15 million trust fund being set up from oil revenues, he said.
Equatorial Guinea plans to set aside 500,000 hectares of timberland, raising its protected territory to 37 percent, the highest percentage of any African country.
“All forests belong to the government,“ he said--which probably makes it easier to enforce state protection, although critics argue it can also cloud the industry’s dealings.
Equatorial Guinea also has 400 kms (248 miles) of coast, much of it idyllic tropical beaches.
“We have huge tourist potential ... but we have had few tourists. This is because of a lack of infrastructure,“ he said.
He had no data on tourism but said infrastructure building increasing, with five hotels being built on the island of Bioko--home to the capital Malabo--including one by the Hilton chain.