The number and figure of tourism in the Middle East in a recent decade/Iran’s stunning rise in 2019

According to IRNA General Directorate of Research and News Investigations, the tourism industry has always played an important role in economic development, growth of foreign exchange income and employment of young forces of a country, and after oil, it is considered the second money-making industry in the world.

In the meantime, the Middle East region with its ancient and rich history, due to its many cultural and natural potentials, has always had a strong attraction to attract tourists, and in the past decade, it has become a special destination for tourism and recreation. This has made tourism an important source of income and economic growth for the countries of this region.

The Middle East tourism industry in the years 2011 to 2018, although in some years as a result of political unrest and economic instability in the region, suffered occasional damage, but in general, it had taken a growing trend and reached its peak in 2019. reached, but with the spread of the Covid-19 virus all over the world and the countries involved in the corona pandemic, the tourism industry suffered the most and 2020 became the decline point of Middle East tourism in the past decade.

The lack of containment of the Corona virus, people’s worries about traveling, the cancellation of many flights, and the chaotic economic conditions are among the limiting factors for international tourism in 2020.

The growth of tourism is always evaluated in two dimensions, domestic or international, and in the dimension of international tourism, the sources and methods of data collection are different in different countries. In some countries, the data is supplemented by the number of non-nationals arriving at border checkpoints (airports, ports and land crossings), and in others, the data is obtained from tourist accommodation establishments and is related to tourists who have entered a country and They stay in a hotel for one night, so caution should be used when comparing countries in terms of the number of international tourists.

In the following report, the number of tourists entering the Middle East is analyzed with reference to the data of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) affiliated to the United Nations, and this data refers to the number of tourists entering different countries, not the number of people who travel; Therefore, in this research, a person who has made several trips to a country in a certain period, is counted as a newcomer each time.

In this article, the statistics of tourists entering 14 countries in the Middle East, including Iran, Bahrain, Egypt, the Zionist regime, Jordan, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon, have been analyzed and compared. .

In 2011, Turkey had the highest position in the Middle East tourism industry with the arrival of 34 million and 700 thousand tourists, followed by Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates respectively. In 2011, with the arrival of three million and 400 thousand foreign tourists, Iran had gained a not very favorable position after Syria and Jordan. This year, Bahrain with 800,000 tourists and Oman with one million tourists had the lowest position among the countries in the region.

This process faced dramatic changes in the next five years, i.e. 2015, and although Turkey was still the leader, the United Arab Emirates came very close to Saudi Arabia in terms of the number of tourist arrivals, and Iran also this year, welcoming five million and 200,000 tourists ranked fifth in the region after Turkey, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. With 400,000 incoming tourists, Yemen had the lowest position among its neighbors.

In 2019, which is considered the booming year of tourism in the Middle East, Turkey arrived with more than 51 million tourists, the United Arab Emirates with more than 25 million tourists, Saudi Arabia with 17.5 million tourists and Egypt with 13 million tourists. were still at the top, and Iran, as the fifth country in the region, experienced a stunning rise with the arrival of 9 million and 100 thousand tourists, and in the meantime, Lebanon was at the bottom of the table with 1 million and 900 thousand incoming tourists.

Iran
In 2019, under the influence of the increase in the dollar and other currencies, Iran became one of the cheapest countries for tourist trips, and this had a great impact on the desire of foreign tourists to travel to Iran. found, Iran’s tourism, like other countries, experienced the biggest fall.

Although the continuation of the process of sanctions and its increase during the Trump era greatly added to the tourism crisis in Iran, what was the saving grace for Iran’s tourism body was the widespread spread of the corona virus in the world and the formidable shadow of the corona virus apart from all economic crises. which brought with it, placed a heavy burden on the country’s tourism industry, which does not seem to be an easy task to get out from under its continuous pressure.

Currently, Iran is still suffering from the lack of regular planning, proper tourism infrastructure, land and air transportation, lack of sufficient training and investment crisis in this industry and has not yet been able to pull its tourism industry out from under the rubble of Corona.

Iran has a high capacity in cultural indicators and this shows the high capacity of the country in tourism attractions, but only attractions are not important, but infrastructures are much more important than other indicators, because statistics show that countries have been able to attract many tourists who in infrastructure, services and health provide a favorable situation.

Iran has a great trump card by winning the first place and being known as one of the cheapest destinations in the world, the continuation of this trend along with infrastructure development can play a big role in the growth of the country’s tourism industry. Besides these, trying to show the real face of safe Iran and reducing international tensions will also be another important stimulus for the development of tourism.

Turkey
Turkey is one of the top 10 tourist countries in the world, and in 2018, it took the sixth place, the best touristic countries. In 2018, Turkey received about 46 million foreign tourists with a growth of 6%.

Turkey has been able to attract more tourists than any other country in this region. The geographical extent, the diversity of history and the longevity of tourism have made Turkey a host for a wide range of attractive visitors in the past decade, however, in 2016, Turkey’s tourism industry suffered severe damage and the number of incoming tourists from 39 million and 500 thousand in In 2015, it reached 30 million and 300 thousand people in 2016.

In 2015, due to the political tension between Turkey and Russia due to the downing of a Russian fighter plane on the borders of Turkey and Russia by the Turkish Air Force, as well as the occurrence of several terrorist incidents in different cities of this country, the number of foreign tourists in Turkey decreased significantly. So that the arrival of 6 million Russian tourists to Turkey reached zero, and fewer tourists from other European countries and the Middle East also traveled to Turkey due to the fear of terrorist attacks. This trend continued in 2016 and with the occurrence of some terrorist attacks, the number of foreign tourists in Turkey decreased drastically this year. But after that, the restoration of Turkey’s relations with Russia and the adoption of effective measures in the fight against the forces of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (P.K.K.), ISIS and armed extremist groups made stability and security slowly return to the atmosphere of Turkish society. The atmosphere of fear from the horrific terrorist operations in the Turkish society, the travel trend of foreign tourists increased again since 2017.

United Arab Emirates
The infrastructure of the entertainment industry is one of the most important factors affecting the development of the tourism industry of any country, and the United Arab Emirates has made many efforts in this field and has been able to become the most successful country in attracting tourists among the Persian Gulf countries by developing these infrastructures and attracting millions of people every year. to draw towards itself for recreation and tourism and always maintain the upward trend of foreign tourist arrivals.

The city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is one of the multifaceted tourist destinations and has attractive options for every taste. Therefore, Dubai is not only a famous destination for shopping enthusiasts, but also has suitable options for those who have different tourist tastes and has created a suitable environment for tourists’ entertainment and recreation.

Saudi Arabia
The most important factor in the growth of tourism in Saudi Arabia is the arrival of religious pilgrims to this country, as every year millions of Muslims go to this country with the intention of performing Hajj and Umrah and attending Masjid al-Haram and Masjid al-Nabi.

Although Saudi Arabia has the largest continuous desert in the world and about 80% of the country is uninhabited, it is building new tourist destinations in its habitable parts, which can be seen as the creation of a resort city outside Riyadh called Neom and a new futuristic city in The northwest of this country, the first part of which will probably be completed by 2025, pointed out that it shows the country’s efforts to reduce dependence on oil, diversify the economy and leave the tourism market from religious and pilgrimage tourism in the two cities of Mecca and Medina. .

Egypt
Historical records indicate that Egypt was a tourist destination even in ancient times, and currently it is one of the most important countries with historical and cultural attractions in the world with different ethnicities and religions, and one of the most important tourist destinations in the Middle East, which has There is a lot of diversity in the historical, cultural and natural dimension. In addition to attracting cultural and recreational tourists, this country attracts many religious tourists.

Egypt has approved a reform program in order to “regulate the tourism market” in the country, the purpose of which was to restore the status of tourism as one of the main pillars of the economy and the main source of foreign exchange income of this country. This reform program in 2018 led to the prosperity of tourism in this country and had a positive impact on its various economic sectors.

last word
Although Iran is mentioned as one of the 10 attractive countries for travel and tourism, the question is whether the necessary infrastructure has grown accordingly and is ready to receive and host tourists who are eager to travel to Iran?

If we are going to have incoming tourists, can the tourist facilities bear such a burden or provide standard services to international tourists? All signs show that Iran’s tourism industry and its related industries, from transportation to hospitality and accommodation, need a deep review and scientific and logical planning for development.

Amir Hatfi, Vice President of the Trade Union of Air Travel, Tourism and Pilgrimage Offices of Tehran province, in an interview with IRNA researcher, says: “With all the measures that are taken and the slogans that are given, the tourism industry is still an economic priority in the country’s planning and decision-making system. No, there is still no decision to expand the attraction of foreign tourists, before the formation of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts, its organizational position in the Cabinet of Governments was almost ceremonial and the tourism industry was not considered, in my opinion, although three years from “The formation of this ministry is over, this view still exists.”

He believes that “Turkey was able to stop the development of the oil economy with the tourism industry.” Turkey earns twice as much as Iran’s oil income from tourism, Iran’s tourism industry can earn 5 times as much as Turkey’s tourism, Iran’s ancient attractions in the cities of Shiraz, Isfahan, Yazd, Kerman, and Kashan will blow the mind of tourists and once they travel and see these cities, they does not satisfy, but the main problem is the lack of tourism infrastructure to accept foreign tourism”.

Source:

Routledge Handbook on Tourism in the Middle East and North Africa. Edited by Dallen J. Timothy

https://knoema.com/atlas/

https://www.unwto.org/tourism-data