TEHRAN – The number of international travelers to Iran’s northeastern Khorasan Razavi province has nearly doubled in a ten-day period ending August 1 compared to the same period last year.

“Some 60,000 foreign travelers and pilgrims accommodated in hotels and other hospitality units during the first ten days of month Mordad which shows 93 percent of year-on-year growth,” Yousef Bidkhori, the provincial tourism chief, told IRNA.

Some 31,000 of foreign tourists stayed in hotels and guesthouses of province during the same period last year, the official added.

Khorasan Razavi attracted some 28.5 million travelers and pilgrims including some 1.7 million foreign nationals during the first 11 months of the past Iranian calendar year (started March 21, 2017), according to data compiled by the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization.  

Mashhad, the capital of Khorasan Razavi province, is deemed as the holiest city in Iran as it hosts the shrine of the eighth Shia Imam, Imam Reza (AS).

PHOTO: A view of the Ghasr International Hotel in Mashhad

AFM/MQ/MG