Fewer Iranians traveled abroad during the summer compared to the same period of last year, director of the Association of Air Transport and Tourism Agencies of Iran said.
Mohammad Hassan Kermani added that the decline in the number of outgoing tourists suggests that people are economically challenged, as tour prices have remained unchanged, Mehr News Agency reported.
“Destinations like Dubai are not an economically-viable destination for most travelers due to the high rate of foreign exchange. This is while new, affordable destinations have not been promoted for tourists interested in traveling abroad,” he said.
The official noted that some travel agencies have chartered flights to destinations in Russia.
“These trips are in a pilot phase and the expansion of their services depends on their success,” he said.
“Markets such as Syria is also closed and tours to Egypt have not been launched yet as planned. Agencies are still looking for more destinations, but the drop in demands resulting from economic situation has made these efforts a matter of trial and error,” he said.
Kermani said standard destinations such as India remain popular among Iranians, but holiday spots such as the Maldives and Indonesia are out of most people’s budgets.
