Thirty-one unfinished hotel projects are set to receive the much-needed cash to ensure their completion. The state news agency IRNA says 5.8 trillion rials ($161 million) have been allocated to the projects from the National Development Fund. It quoted Masoud Soltanifar, head of the Iran Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization. There are 1,100 hotels and guesthouses in Iran, about 132 of which are four-and five-star establishments. In order to accommodate 20 million visitors a year by 2025, which is Iran’s stated goal, the country needs at least 400 quality hotels. In the past couple of months, two five-star hotels were inaugurated in Iran; Gootke Mall in Semnan and Espinas Palace Hotel in north Tehran, which is Iran’s largest and most expensive hotel.
