Overall Description of The Sector:

Travel & tourism is nowadays an important part of countries’ economies around the world and has proven to have significant direct as well as indirect impacts on their economies. The tourism industry is one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing service sectors and a vital area for economic development and job creation in any country. With its diverse attractions ranging from ecological ones to cultural, historical and architectural sites, Iran benefits from high potentials in the tourism industry and has been listed among the top 20 countries with the highest number of tourist attractions. Iran enjoys an ancient history: It owns historical monuments and architectural remnants some of which date back to 2000 years ago; It also has unique cultural treasures, and is home to some 24 World Heritage sites. Around 9.1 million international tourists arrived in Iran in 2019. According to the World Travel & Tourism Council’s latest report, Iraq is constituted the largest proportion of inbound tourists for Iran in 2019.  

Investment opportunities:

• Expansion and upgrade of transportation infrastructure especially that of railway and air transportation

• Restoring historical sites and old buildings, and turning them into tourism facilities such as boutique hotels, shops, restaurants, etc.

• Building hotels and accommodation facilities

• Establishing restaurants that provide organic food or food that is suitable for those with certain diet requirements (diabetics, elderlies, vegans, etc.)

• Investing on ecotourism facilities and services

• Investing on health tourism and offering medical services to tourists

• Developing recreational and maintenance facilities of coastlinesEducating tour guides that are specialized on various tourism niches and types

• Improving the packaging and presentation of Iranian handicrafts and cultural heritage 

• Support start-ups that are active in the tourism sector

Iran Tourism Sector Guide

Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index 2017 edition