DESTINATION Iran Tours & Travel based in Iran specialises in offering customised tours to Iran as well as travel packages. Currently there are Iran highlights tours lasting seven nights and eight days, the Iran classical tour of 14 nights and 15 days, and the Iran in-depth tour of 14 nights and 15 days.
Rahman Mehraby works as a freelance national tour guide in Iran, and so far most of his visitors come from Europe and North America.
“The most remarkable impression tourists get in Iran is the hospitable locals in every area of Iran, especially when they go to remote areas. Tourists are almost always amazed by the rich cultural background, history and good food both from quality and quantity points of view,” he said.
Surprisingly, he does not get as many visitors as would be expected from the Middle East region.
“Iran deserves to be explored a lot more by the people in the region. This is a country where a great deal of the regional culture has started from. I’m talking about arts, architecture, science, know-how, etc. You just name it!”
Those countries that do supply a sprinkling of tourists come from Turkey, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and UAE.
Generally Mehraby takes individuals who would like to explore the country based on carefully planned itineraries such as those that he offers on his website.
“Most of my clients are people deeply interested in history, archeology, arts, etc. Personally, I don’t take leisure tours just for the sake of spending a couple of weeks in a slow way and carefree days. People go to my website, fill out a form or ask for customisation. When I understand what their specific needs are and tailor a tour for them, we finalise the tour itinerary and they book a tour with me - usually few months before visiting Iran,” he said.
Mehraby is currently writing a book about Iran. “I’m studying various books of Iranian cultural heritage so write a collection of articles explaining various aspects of Iran’s ancient background in different fields. Almost 80 per cent of the work is done and I’m looking for a foreign publisher who can release the book outside Iran and distribute it well so that tourists can read it before coming to Iran,” he said.