TEHRAN - A total of seven natural properties scattered across Gilan province have recently been inscribed on the national heritage list.

The Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts, and Tourism announced the inscriptions on Monday in a letter to the governor-general of the northern province, CHTN reported.

Milash and Dodozan waterfalls, Falahat and Salar gardens, and Amir Bekandeh Wetland Forest were among the properties added to the prestigious list.

Gilan is well-known for its rich Iron Age cemeteries such as Marlik that have been excavated over the past century. It was once within the sphere of influence of the successive Achaemenian, Seleucid, Parthian, and Sassanid empires that ruled Iran until the 7th century CE. The subsequent Arab conquest of Iran led to the rise of many local dynasties, and Gilan acquired an independent status that continued until 1567.

Sophisticated Rasht, capital of Gilan province, has long been a weekend escape for residents of Tehran who are looking to sample the famous local cuisine and hoping for some pluvial action – it's the largest, and wettest town in the northern region. Gilan is divided into a coastal plain including the large delta of Sefid Rud and adjacent parts of the Alborz mountain range.

Having an opulent tourist circuit with 24 UNESCO World Heritage sites, of which the vast Hyrcanian Forest and Lut Desert are among the natural properties, Iran seeks to acquire a greater share of the global tourism industry by 2025.

ABU/AFM