TEHRAN –Iranians made 6,339 overnight stays in the western province of Lorestan during the first ten days of the Persian New Year (Noruz) holidays, starting March 20, the provincial tourism chief has said. 

The data has been collected from various residential centers including hotels, eco-lodge units, guest houses, and tourist complexes, Seyyed Amin Qasemi announced on Thursday.

The accommodation centers across the province host tourists and travelers under strict health protocols in order to contain the outbreak of the coronavirus, the official added. 

Soaked in history and culture, Lorestan is one of the lesser-known travel destinations in Iran, which mainly acts as a gateway to the sweltering plains below in adjoining Khuzestan province. Lorestan is also a region of raw beauty that an avid nature lover could spend weeks exploring.

It was inhabited by Iranian Indo-European peoples, including the Medes, c. 1000 BC. Cimmerians and Scythians intermittently ruled the region from about 700 to 625 BC. The Luristan Bronzes noted for their eclectic array of Assyrian, Babylonian, and Iranian artistic motifs, date from this turbulent period.

Lorestan was incorporated into the growing Achaemenid Empire in about 540 BC and successively was part of the Seleucid, Parthian, and Sasanid dynasties.

ABU/AFM