1. Denae Eagen
Dr. Anne Richards
PRWR 7900
11December 2011
Rural Tourism in Iran
As Irancontinues to urbanize rapidly, it also promotes domestic and international tourism,
often to rural areas. Indeed, international and Iranian travel agencies offer rural, nomadic, and
agricultural tours that are gaining a foothold in the tourism industry, and several international
travel agencies offer small group tours that focus on Iranian villages settled outside the major
cities. Cultivating sustainable tourism in nonurban settings requires a balance between progress
and preservation that will yield a positive experience for both indigenous peoples and tourists.
Typically, interactions between tourists and locals are the substance of rural tourism in
Iran, as around the world. Aref, F. and Gill define rural tourism as “any form of tourism that
showcases the rural life, art, culture, and heritage at rural locations, thereby benefiting the local
community economically and socially as well as enabling interaction between the tourists and
the locals for a more enriching tourism experience” (Aref, F., 2009).Tourists do not miss heritage
sites or museums by taking the rougher path; rather, prime tourist sites are included in the tours
although guides often take a different approach to the tour that blends the cultural past and living
present. For instance, tourists are guided through the daily lives of different local communities,
exploring bazaars in Tehran one evening and sleeping beneath tents next to a nomadic tribe the
next. Local artisansinvite tourists to witness handicraft and agricultural processes, from silk
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2. weaving to herb preparation.Rural tourism can provide a secondary source of funding for an area
losing profitability. Yet rural tourism is often underdeveloped and Iran has limited experience
managing rural tourism due to “insufficient infrastructure and preparation” (Aref, F., 2009). A
number of factors can strengthen the development of rural tourism including legitimate
community power, effective rural cooperatives, and diverse private investments.
Yet these potential sources of strength are restricted by the fact that, currently, rural
tourism is subject to the whim of the Iranian government in terms of both funding and stability.
The Iranian government, despite its generous commitment to developing tourism, acts as sole
arbiter on distribution of resources and investments without consulting the local population
(Aref, A., 2011).The lack of active participation or influence by local community members
hinders the success of rural tourism, and relying on the government alone for funding leaves
villages without recourse if they are not chosen as an investment or if projects funded are
inadequate.
In addition, political upheaval, although often removed from the remote locations of rural
tourisms, has a significant impact on international tourism overall. According to Mohammadi et
al, “The tourism industry of Iran was badly affected by political crises and war, such as the
Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1978 and the imposed Iran-Iraq war” (2010).Baum and O‟Gorman
second this impact, consulting Iran Touring and Tourism Organization data from 2001 that
showed “from immediately after the revolution the number of international tourists fell from
680,000 in 1978 to a low of 9,300 in 1990” (2010).By 1999, Iran claimed an increase in tourism
to “1.3 million international visitors and 32.5 million domestic tourists.” The number of
international visitors increased again to 1.6 million in 2004 (Baum, 2010). Yet that increase in
foreign tourists was likely diminished by a succession of negative media coverage following
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3. isolated incidents of kidnapping, harassment, and intimidation from 1999 to 2003(Baum, 2010).
Such precise numbers are difficult to locate for 2009, when Iran experienced waves of protests
amid allegations of fraudulent election results, protests which quickly evolved into cries for civil
rights reform deemed The Green Movement. The lack of firm data suggests a gap in research
regarding the effects of the 2009 electoral protests and its aftershockson rural tourism in Iran.
This article aims to explore the influences on rural tourism and how the Green Movement may
have affected both the locations and the perceptions of tourists.
The article will review the significant influences on rural tourism including benefits,
barriers, and the role of rural cooperatives and government investment, as well as aspects of rural
tourism such as tours, attractions, and accommodations for tourists.
Methods
Research on rural tourism in Iran consisted of internet searches using the Google search
engine, Google Scholar, Ebsco Host, and LexisNexis. All four resources allowed me to search by
keyword or keyword phrase and a date range. My searches began with tourism agency websites
offering rural tours in Iran and international government travel warnings, and then branched out
to blogs and articles on personal experiences of travel in rural Iran. Google Scholar and Ebsco
Host provided access to published theses and international conference proceedings on the Iranian
tourism industry. LexisNexis revealed detailed news releases of recent events and government
collaborations with international and domestic investors.
I searched for information under a variety of keywords including: tourism in Iran, travel in
Iran, Iran rural tourism, Iran sustainable tourism, Iran community tourism, Iran rural
cooperatives, Iran tourism development, poverty alleviation through tourism, Iran rural tour, Iran
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4. tour agency, and Iran nomadic tribes. To clarify the historical and recent context of rural tourism,
my research results were derived from five distinct periods, using the 2009 Iranian election
protests as a significant event marker:
Phase One: 10 years prior to the 2009 Iranian election protests on 6/13/2009
Phase Two: 24-12 months prior, 6/13/2007-6/13/2008
Phase Three: 11-6 months prior, 7/13/2008-11/13/2008
Phase Four: 6 months prior, 12/13/2008-6/12/2009
Phase Five: Iranian Election Protests and 6 months after, 6/13/2009-12/13/2009
Benefits of Rural Tourism
Among the many benefits of rural tourism are opportunities for employment and
alleviation of poverty. The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)“remains
firmly convinced that the sale of handcrafts to tourists can foster the continuity of local traditions
and contribute significantly to poverty alleviation, through its ability to create jobs, socio-
economic opportunities, and an enhanced quality of life in local communities” (2006, p.ix).In
addition to higher sales of handicrafts, a regular influx of tourists generates a need for skilled
labor as guides, and as service, transportation, and restaurant personnel. Steady employment
enriches the life of the villages; more inhabitants are able to stay in their local community and
are no longer forced to immigrate to find work.One major tool for rural tourism development are
rural cooperatives, “voluntary business associations formed by people of limited means through
a contributions of share capital that forms the basis of sharing out the profits that accrue from the
business” (Aref, A., 2011). The intent of rural cooperatives are to improve people‟s ability to
participate in community decisions and access to information, “training and markets and the
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5. other productivity resources for income generation such as land, technology, credit and
information” (Aref, A., 2011).
However, a study by Aref, A. questions the effectiveness of poverty alleviation through
rural cooperatives because the cooperatives rely too heavily on the government for funding and
decision-making (2011). Thus, local residents are disconnected from community goals and
unable to perceive the importance or benefits of rural cooperatives and cannot fully commit to
community projects. The study cited “lack of resources, lack of collaboration culture, lack of
cooperatives leaders‟ knowledge, depend[ence] of cooperatives to government” as important
barriers to poverty alleviation through rural cooperatives, and by rural extension tourism
development.This separation between government and people hinders cooperation and Aref, A.
argues that active participation by residents is necessary in order for them to act as stakeholders
in rural tourism and make progress in improving their social and economic position (2011).
Barriers to Tourism
There are significant barriers to rural tourism that inhibitresidents of villages and cities
from fully realizing the potential of tourism. Reflecting the difficulty of aligning the goals of
local residents and the government, community power remains a barrier to rural development.
Aref, F. defines community power as “the ability to create or resist change regarding community,
influence across a variety of domains or community contexts, ability to act to make or resist
changes that affect the community‟s environment, and autonomy in decision-making
(2011).Community power is particularly important in rural tourism where outside influences can
have a lasting positive or negative impact on a delicate environment. The ability to resist change
as a rural community may be as vital as the ability to enact change.
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6. Egbali et al describe three critical issues of rural tourism:
First, although visitors are attracted to rural areas by their distinctive regional social and
cultural heritage landscape qualities and perceived cleaner environment these very may
be threatened by the impacts of tourism and recreational activity. Second, training for
rural tourism provision is often not available or not taken up to assist improvement in the
quality and appropriateness of rural tourism products. Third rural tourism products can be
relatively isolated and in most cases will benefit from collaboration and networking in
promotion and marketing. (2010).
Community empowerment is vitally important for rural tourism to preserve the livelihood of its
residents while encouraging tourism. A balance between improvements and preservation of the
traditions, environment, and resources yields a constructive experience for both resident and
tourist. Aref, F. offers findings from a study on community power in Shiraz, a hub for rural
tourism in southern Iran, that illustrate the current weak status of community participation. The
“findings show that . . . there is an individual motivation for more collaboration in tourism
development, but there is a low level of converging vision between individuals and local
organizations towards tourism development” (Aref, F., 2011). The results of this study further
iterate the difficulty of rural development when residents are unable to influence government
decisions and unable to effectively preserve tourism attraction.
Additional barriers to rural tourism development include capacity and infrastructure.
Primarilythere is a lack of capacity to house and feed tourists, and existing facilities are not of
sufficient quality to encourage tourists to visit. Lack of acceptable transportation and roads are
obstacles for tourists wishing to visit rural locations (Aref, F., 2009). Because the perceived
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7. potential of a rural area as a tourist destination is a factor in attracting investors and government
support,the Iranian government has made significant efforts to foster international and domestic
tourism and investments in the last several years. With assistance from government departments
and private investors, select villages have been able to upgrade facilities, build new businesses,
and improve the appearance of villages with gardens and parks. Rural cooperatives between
neighboring provinces are a popular means of development for local areas in Iran, especiallyin
improving transportation networks and accessibility between villages and cities.
Rural Cooperatives and Government Investment
While the Iranian government is in certain ways supporting the growth of tourism in the
nation‟s rural areas, the progress is often inefficient and the sources of support can be fickle.
Government goals for tourism and development often fail to consider the needs of locals and
neglect to connect “rural cooperatives with the rural tourism in those cities in which tourism is in
a boom” (Aref, F., 2009). Iran‟s overarching tourism body, the Iran Cultural Heritage,
Handicrafts, and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO), is under government control, and its stability
is susceptible to the political unrest of the area (Baum, 2010). The necessity of blending cultural
traditions with Western presentations to entice investors creates delicate situations, which, if not
handled appropriately, can result in conflict between ICHHTO andIran‟s religious clerics. In
November 2008, deputy for investment affairs Mahdi Jahangiri was forced to resign after clerics
denounced ICHHTO for its presentation of a traditional religious ceremony at its annual
investment conference in which women moved rhythmically around a Qur‟an(BBC,
2008).Significant political events, such as the 2009 Iranian election protests, may also have had
ripple effects on the successes or hardships of rural tourism.
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8. Tours
International and Iranian tour agencies have diverse labels for rural tourism: ecotourism,
agricultural tourism, adventure tourism, nomadic tourism, and so on. Yet the available rural tour
packages follow similar destinations. Trips usually last 15–23 days and include groups of four or
more people. According to Mohammadi et al, the “peak seasons for domestic tourists are usually
during the NowRuz (Iranian New Year) period, spring, summer, and other public holidays.
International tourists visit the area throughout the year and their visits are mainly organized by
tour operators” (2010). Iranian regulations require that foreign visitors are accompanied by a
guide at all times (Peterson, 1998).
The following travel agencies offer rural tours in Iran:
Iran Traveling Lotus
Iran Gasht Tour
Wild Frontiers
Revealing Persia.
Rural tour groups commonly migrate between Tehran, Esfahan, and Shiraz, three major cities
aligned north to south through central Iran. These cities are home to multiple world heritage sites
including Meidan Emam in Esfahan and the Persian Garden and Persepolis near Shiraz
(UNESCO, 2011). Rural tourism hotspots are located in the areas surrounding each city.
Accommodations & Transportation
Rural villages still lack the capacity to accommodate tourists fully and so most tour
groups spend the nights in hotels in Tehran or Shiraz and travel during the daytime. The majority
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9. of rural tour groups spend at least two nights sleeping at a rural destination, often in tents
alongside a nomadic tribe. Tour guides arrange all major transportation for the tour groups,
alleviating the difficulty of arranging personal transportation between cities.
Handicrafts & Agriculture
According to the proceedings of the International Conference on Tourism and Handicraft (2006),
[Iran] has one of the richest, oldest and most diverse handcraft traditions in the world.
Skills have been passed on for generations, stretching way back into ancient Persian
history, with some artifacts having been found dating from the 5th Millennium B.C.
Ceramics, metallurgy, glass, wood, architecture, carpets, tapestries – in all these areas,
the artisans of Iran are justifiably world famous. (p. vii)
The experience of seeing traditional handicraft first-hand encourages tourists to purchase local
goods, stimulating the local economy and often provoking reflection about the local culture,
people, and history. Such basic interchanges of understanding and reciprocation are pivotal to
intercultural acceptance. Positive exchanges with local residents are meaningful for both parties.
Vendors gain skill in interacting with foreign or domestic tourists, increasing the chance that
future sales will also be successful. Tourists immerse themselves in the culture, art, and people
through the experience and have a story and a treasure with which to return home. Because the
handicraft may have lasting beauty and the power to inspire curiosity in those who see it back
home, the tourist has the opportunity to recount the tale of the handicraft‟s origin and acquisition.
Each rural tour package focuses on several aspects of agriculture and handicraft, including one or
more of the following experiences:
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10. Tehran carpets, glass & ceramics
Damavand medical herbs
Firouz Abad herb juice workshops
NourAbad mamasani local herbs
Kashan water rose processing
Lahijan tea plantation and cookies
Lagoon of Anzali fish and fruit market, caviar processing factory.
Nomadic Tribes
The Qashqai tribe is the nomadic group most prevalently featured in rural tours. “The Qashqai
compose a community of settled, semi-settled, and pastoral nomadic households who reside
mainly in the Fars region of southern Iran. They speak Qashqai Turki (Turkish). Most of them
also speak, at least, Persian (Farsi). They are Shia Muslims” (Qashqai.net, 2009).The Qashqai
tribe can be located in Zagros during the summers and further south along the Persian Gulf in the
winter. Tour groups frequently visit the remaining nomadic families in the iconic black goatskin
tents and glean a taste of the nomadic life by trying the foods and witnessing the carpet weaving
and livestock tending that makes up much of the Qashqai daily life. Today many Qashqai have
become settled or semi-settled in Shiraz and surrounding cities. In September 2009, Jini Reddy
of The Guardianexplored rural Iran with the Wild Frontiers tour agency. Reddy offers a
refreshingly positive reflection on her experiences in Iran, particularly her visit with both a
settled Qashqai family and a nomadic Qashqai family. Comparing the domiciles of the two
families, Reddy describes the settled home as “eclectic . . . rooms are lined with ruby red woolen
rugs weaved by the Qashqai, its two bathrooms have western loos and showers, while goats and
chickens live in a garden pen surrounded by a tangle of grapevines, apple and cherry trees”
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11. (2009). Alternatively, Reddy describes her visit to the black tents of the Qashqai, remarking on
the distinctive women “in their colourful headscarves, shirts and skirts over black leggings.
Shyly, they welcomed us into their goatskin tent for sweetened tea and almonds. We gave them a
box of sweets and sprawled on the woven rugs and cushions around a central fire pit” (Reddy,
2009).
Perceptions of Travel in Iran
Such positive and authentic views from travelers who have explored Iran are not
uncommon. An American student visited in 1998, saying, “I never felt threatened or unsafe from
people. It‟s one of the safest countries in the world, more than anywhere in the West” (Peterson).
However, global perceptions are tainted by political unrest and violence. The United States
continues toissue clear travel warnings to avoid entering Iran and Westerners may find it difficult
to obtain visas (U.S. Department of State). The negative perception regarding travel to Iran is
perhaps best seen on forums, where it is important to draw a distinction between general
perception and personal experience. Students seeking public opinions on whether or not it‟s safe
to travel to Iran at thestudentroom.com are met with an overwhelmingly negative response.
Other forums and websites give a milder, but equally deterring, caution for travelers to postpone
trips to Iran until the U.S. Department of State removes its travel warnings.
Non-Western international travelers may have an easier time obtaining visas.
Additionally, they may face less negative sentiment when deciding to travel to Iran. Despite
shaky relations with the United States and other Western countries, the Iranian government is
taking strides to ease mutual travel restrictions between China, South Korea, Lebanon, India,
Pakistan, and Egypt in order to promote tourism.
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12. Effects of 2009 Iranian Election Protests on Rural Tourism
For better or worse, perceptions of Iran have been irrevocably altered by the images and
passionate voices of the Green Movement.Videos of peaceful protests disintegrating into violent
riots after confrontations with police forces and Basij Militia are unquestionable proof of the will
of a people and the chaos created when there is a schism between a people and its government.
Maps of the early protests in June 2009 illustrate large gatherings, police intervention, and
violence. YouTube videos show protests in Shiraz, Esfahan, and Tehran, the primary hubs for
rural tourists. Foreign tourists in Iran at the time would have had difficulty avoiding the presence
of the election protests. The risk of violence was not isolated to people in the throng of
protesters. As evidenced in the death of Neda Adgha-Soltan, a by-stander whowas reportedly
shot while standing outside her car on the fringes of the protesters, there was no clear area of
safetyduring the protests (Chua-Eoan, 2009).
Yet outside of the main cities, where rural tourism predominantly occurs, tourists would
have been less affected by the election protests. Those tourists visiting the nomadic tribes,
historically ambivalent to Iranian politics, would have had little cause for concern. The most
significant impact for tourists comes from the perception of crisis and the fear of future clashes.
The fears are not entirely unfounded. Incidents of intimidation, harassment, and violence
continue to occur sporadically. On December 2, 2011, hundreds of protestors stormed the British
embassy in Tehran, further straining the pressures of foreign tourism (BBC).
Perhaps the most significant impact on rural tourism, however, is the uncertainty between
the Iranian people and the Iranian government. The disconnect between the visions and goals of
both parties echo through the reviews of tourism and the difficulty of developing rural areas. A
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13. lack of communication and willingness to delegate power is having a visible impact on the
success or failure of rural cooperatives and local tourism projects. Until such openness is
achieved, rural tourism in Iran will continue to face challenges and endure a slowed growth.
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14. Works Cited
Aref, A. (2011). Rural Cooperatives for Poverty Alleviation in Iran. Life Science Journal, 8.
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Aref, F. (2011, March). Community Power in Process of Tourism Development: A Case Study
of Shiraz, Iran. International Journal of Academic Research, 3. Retrieved from
http://www.ijar.lit.az/pdf/10/2011(10-195).pdf
Aref, F., & Gill S.S. (2009). Rural Tourism Development Through Rural Cooperatives. Nature
and Science. Retrieved from http://sciencepub.net/nature/ns0710/ns0710.pdf#page=71
Baum, T.G., & O‟Gorman, K.D. (2010) Iran or Persia: What‟s in a name, the decline and fall of
a tourism industry? Strathprints Institutional Repository. Retrieved from
http://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/8080/
BBC NEWS UK. (2011, December 2). Attack on UK embassy in Iran „had support of the state.‟
Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16010547
BBC Worldwide Monitoring. (2008, November 15). Iran Official Resigns After Cleric Outrage.
Fars News Agency. Retrieved from www.lexisnexis.com
Chua-Eoan, H. (2009, June 21). What the World Didn‟t See in Tehran. Retrieved from
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1906040,00.html
Egbali, N., & Nosrat, A.B., & Ali pour, S.k.S. (2010, September 16). Effects of Positive and
Negative Rural Tourism (Case Study: Rural Semnan Province). Journal of Geography
and Rural Planning, 4. Retrieved from
http://www.academicjournals.org/jgrp/PDF/pdf2011/Feb/Egbali%20et%20al.pdf
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15. Mohammadi, M. & Khalifah, Z., & Hosseini, H. (2010, November). Local People Perceptions
toward Social, Economic, and Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Kermansah (Iran).
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Peterson, S. (1998, June 29). For „Trip of a Lifetime,‟ American Try Sunny…Iran? Christian
Science Monitor, 90. Retrieved from www.EBSCOhost.com
Reddy, J. (2009, September 11). On the Road in Rural Iran. The Guardian. Retrieved from
www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2009/sep/12/iran-middleeast
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http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_5583.html
United nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. (2011). Islamic Republic of
Iran. Retrieved from http://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/ir
World Tourism Organization. (2006, May 15). Tourism and Handicrafts: A Report on the
International Conference on Tourism and Handicrafts. Retrieved from
http://pub.unwto.org/WebRoot/Store/Shops/Infoshop/47CE/AC16/DD6A/1894/A7FF/C0
A8/0164/C741/080303_tourism_handicrafts_tehran_excerpt.pdf
Xarene. (2009, June 24). 24 June 2009 Tehran Election Protests. Retrieved from
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&gl=us&ptab=2&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&
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