A cruise ship Iran has purchased from France will be launched into the Persian Gulf waters before the Qatar World Cup 2022, director general of Domestic Tourism Department of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism has announced.
“The cruise ship has the capacity to carry 1,700 passengers and 700 vehicles. The nine-story ship provides overnight stay for 520 passengers on each trip,” Mostafa Fatemi was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
Restaurants, gym and a cinema are among the facilities of the French vessel, he added.
The official noted that the ship is scheduled to travel along the coasts of Khuzestan, Bandar Abbas and Chabahar. We also plan to conduct international journeys with the ship, mainly to Qatar during the World Cup 2022. There will be cheaper trips for Iranians willing to visit Qatar for World Cup matches via marine transportation and international tourists will be attracted to Iran using the newly-purchased cruise ship.”
Preparations for Qatar World Cup 2022
Saeed Mohammad, secretary of the Supreme Council of Free Trade and Special Economic Zones of Iran, said the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Ministry plans to host around 100,000 tourists visiting the World Cup 2022.
To make preparations for the big event, Mohammad added, the ministries of Cultural Heritage; Roads and Urban Development; Sports and Youth Affairs; and Economic Affairs and Finance, in addition to the Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran have joined forces.
Iran has announced that it will waive visa fees for spectators of the 2022 World Cup finals to attract some of the football fans flocking to nearby Qatar. It has also been readying hotels and putting plans in place to boost flights.
“The Cabinet agreed to make visas free for the 2022 World Cup spectators who wish to visit Iran,” tweeted the spokesman of the Iranian government, Ali Bahadori-Jahromi. “This decision aims to encourage tourists to visit Iran during the World Cup and boost the tourism industry.”
Qatari Transport Minister Jassim bin Saif al-Sulaiti recently visited Iran's Kish island and signed six cooperation agreements.
Key among the agreements was a deal to increase flights between the countries, said Mohammad Mohammadi, the head of the Civil Aviation Organization of Iran.
“Iran's contribution to the World Cup will be in the areas of air and sea transport and accommodation of foreign and Iranian passengers,” Iran’s Roads Minister Rostam Qasemi said.
“We also plan to offer foreign fans and tourists during their stay in Iran the opportunity to visit the country's tourist gems.”
To encourage travel, Iran's Cultural Heritage Ministry had said earlier that visas could be waived for inbound visitors from Qatar during the two months of World Cup.
Visitors could apply for free single or multi-entry passes for 20 days during that period, the ministry said
Kish Island, with an area of 92 square kilometers and a population of 42,000, is located in Bandar Lengeh County of Hormozgan Province, off the southern coast of Iran in the Persian Gulf.
It has been declared the fourth tourist destination in Southwest Asia by the UNESCO Cultural Heritage List. Kish Island is among the most beautiful coral islands in the Persian Gulf.
The distance between Kish Island and Qatar is 270 km. Kish to Doha flight takes 40 minutes while the sea journey takes 5 to 6 hours.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is the 22nd running of the FIFA World Cup competition, contested by the national teams of the member associations of FIFA.
It is scheduled to take place in Qatar from Nov. 21 to Dec. 18 2022. This will be the first World Cup ever to be held in the Middle East and it will be the second World Cup held entirely in Asia after the 2002 tournament was held in South Korea and Japan.
Travel Packages Declared Scam
No airline has so far submitted a schedule for conducting flights to Qatar for the World Cup 2022, says Maqsoud Asadi-Samani, secretary of the Association of Iranian Airlines.
“The only local airline that currently operates flights to the neighboring country is IranAir, the country’s flag carrier airline. Therefore, advertisements about World Cup travel packages are scam,” he was quoted as saying by ILNA.
Noting that ticket sales would start as soon as the World Cup tours are launched, Asadi-Samani said, “The World Cup 2022 will kick off in November, which is low season and domestic flights are fewer. Therefore, local airlines will have the capacity to increase the number of Iran-Qatar flights. As we speak, we have the capacity to operate 35 flights per week to Qatar. Advance planning will help increase the number of flights.”
The official noted that an increase in the number of flights during the World Cup requires planning and coordination with the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism.
“Qatar World Cup will provide an opportunity for Iran to attract tourists,” he added.
Iran-Qatar Ties Growing
Iran and Qatar have been forging stronger economic ties ever since a number of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia abruptly severed diplomatic relations with Doha in June 2017 and imposed a blockade on the Persian Gulf country, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups.
The Qatari government has denied the allegation as baseless, blasting the blockade as unjustified and a violation of international law. Following the development, Iranian exporters have vied for the Qatari market in the absence of Doha's traditional Arab partners.
Qatar shares the world's largest natural gas field with Iran.
Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani will visit Iran, Germany, Britain and other European states starting this week on a trip expected to discuss efforts to revive Iran's 2015 nuclear deal and energy security in Europe, a source briefed on the visit said on Sunday.
The Emir, ruler of one of the world's top natural gas export countries, will visit Iran and then head on an "extensive visit to the EU and UK", said the source, requesting anonymity as the trip has yet to be officially announced.
A key focus of discussions is how to "bridge the gap" on the nuclear talks that have been on hold since March, as well as liquefied natural gas and energy security on the European leg of the trip, the source said in a statement to Reuters.
