This article originally appeared in Kurdistan 24.
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Region’s tourism sector will become an essential source of income for the region, and we expect to receive seven million tourists by 2025, a spokesperson for Kurdistan’s Board of Tourism said on Tuesday.
Kurdistan is a popular destination for thousands of Iraqis and other tourists from neighboring countries such as Iran and Turkey, especially during the summer season or special holidays.
Two women cool off at a spring in the Kurdistan Region.
The Region is known for being safe, having cooler temperatures, and plenty of tourist destinations among its rich natural landscape.
Most tourists visiting the semi-autonomous region come from central and southern provinces of Iraq. Others come from as far as Europe, Asia, and North America.
Tourists enjoy various activities in the Kurdistan Region.
According to Board of Tourism spokesperson Nadir Rosti, the Kurdistan Region plans to advertise its tourism sector “through the organization of conferences and seminars at home and abroad.”
Rosti noted the mid-2014 emergence of the so-called Islamic State, as well as other crises in the region, prevented the arrival of tourists.
However, with the extremist group now militarily defeated, the spokesperson said the tourism sector would “become an important source of income for the Kurdistan Region.”
“We plan to receive five million tourists annually, with the number rising to seven million in 2025,” he was quoted as saying by BasNews. “Tourism imports will reach two billion dollars annually.”
The Kurdistan Region is known for its safety and security amid a region engulfed in chaos.
During the five-day Eid al-Fitr celebration, the Kurdistan Region received over 127,000 tourists, mostly from provinces in central and southern Iraq.
Various activities, such as organizing important conferences, popular exhibitions, and hosting cinema festivals have contributed to the revitalization of Kurdistan’s tourism sector.
This article was originally published in Kurdistan 24.
