TEHRAN - Mashhad, the capital of Iran’s northeastern Khorasan Razavi province and home to the shrine of Imam Reza (A.S.), has hosted more than 4.4 million visitors over a nine-day period that marked one of the largest religious gatherings of the year.

According to provincial officials, a total of 4,476,709 pilgrims and travelers arrived in the city between August 14 and August 22 (23–31 Mordad 1404 in the Iranian calendar). The influx coincides with the final days of the Islamic lunar month of Safar, a period of special spiritual significance for Shia Muslims worldwide.

Hojjatoleslam Ali Askari, deputy head of the Khorasan Razavi Pilgrimage Services Headquarters, reported that arrivals were facilitated through multiple transportation routes: over 102,800 by air, 158,500 by train, 189,200 by road transport companies, and nearly 3.67 million by private vehicles. Additionally, 357,330 pilgrims arrived on foot, continuing a centuries-old tradition of walking to Mashhad.

Accommodation facilities across the province have also been under considerable demand. Askari said the occupancy rate of official, temporary, and emergency lodging centers stood at 66 percent across Khorasan Razavi and 71 percent within Mashhad itself during the nine-day span. Meanwhile, local communities hosted an estimated 195,334 overnight stays in private homes through grassroots hospitality initiatives that provide free lodging for pilgrims.

Last week, Khorasan Razavi’s governor-general, Gholamhossein Mozaffari, who also heads the province’s pilgrimage services headquarters, said the city expected to host between 6.5 million and 7 million pilgrims during the final ten days of Safar.

He emphasized that both government bodies and local communities had mobilized resources to ensure “organized and high-quality services” for visitors, citing past years’ experience as a reliable foundation for managing the pilgrimage season.

“Hospitality has become a community tradition in Mashhad, with many residents opening their homes to pilgrims,” Mozaffari noted. “This participation is the cornerstone of travel management.”

The last ten days of Safar are of profound importance to Shia Muslims, coinciding with Arbaeen, which marks the 40th day after the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (A.S.) in the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE. While the primary focus of Arbaeen remains the pilgrimage to Karbala in Iraq, Mashhad--home to the shrine of Imam Reza (A.S.), the eighth Shia Imam--as long been an alternative and deeply meaningful destination.

The shrine, surrounded by hotels, guesthouses, and cultural centers, draws millions of domestic and international pilgrims each year, making Mashhad one of the world’s most visited religious cities. In recognition of its cultural significance, in 2020 the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts inscribed the tradition of pilgrimage to Imam Reza’s shrine on the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

AM