TEHRAN – Tehran’s ambassador to Madrid Hassan Qashqavi on Friday drew public attention to Iran’s tourism capacities in a meeting held on the sidelines of the 40th FITUR tourism trade fair, which will be running through January 26 at the Spanish capital.

Referring to a 50 percent growth in the number of Spanish tourists to Iran over the past year, Qashqavi said that Iran is among the top ten countries in terms of tourist attractions diversity.

The ambassador noted that promotion of the tourism industry is high on the Iranian government’s agenda, adding, given the capabilities of Spain in this sector, the issue can serve as one of the areas of cooperation between Tehran and Madrid.

The envoy pointed to the remarkable capacities of the two countries for widening cooperation in the fields of tourism, cultural heritage and handicrafts, voicing Iran's readiness for promoting collaboration in those spheres.

During the meeting, two Spanish tourists recounted their memories of visiting Iran. They hailed Iranians’ hospitality and the country’s high security despite the anti-Iran propaganda, Mehr reported on Saturday.

In December 2019, Spanish Charge d’Affaires to Tehran, Jose Luis Solano, said, “I believe that there are very good tourism relations between the two countries as we have many requests each year from Iranians for [obtaining] visas and traveling to Spain.”

Iran is a country that is highly important in terms of culture and it embraces all the necessary attractions for Spanish tourists who like to travel to the country, he added. “Every year we see an increase in the number of Spanish visitors to Iran, and this is constant growth.”

AFM/MG