By Dan Schlossberg
ConsumerAffairs.com
July 6, 2007
Iran Tourism wont bother selling itself in the United States. Not anytime soon, anyway.
Since it maintains no official relations with the U.S. and regularly refers to it as "the Great Satan," Iran doesnt want the American tourist dollar.
On the other hand, it is apparently hungry for dinars, pesos, and zlotys.
An enormous country steeped in history and historical sites, Iran is making a worldwide push for tourism, opening offices in Germany, Canada, Kuwait, Dubai, and 16 other countries.
So says Mohamed Sherif Malek Zadah, tourism affairs assistant at the Cultural Heritage, Handmade, and Tourism Industries Foundation of Iran.
The first two offices will open in Oman and Thailand, he revealed.
The spokesman said Iran will participate in more than two dozen travel and tourism exhibitions and noted that his country would post a website promoting its tourist attractions.
As part of its tourism drive, Iran will also reinforce cultural cooperation between countries, including participation in an upcoming Cypriot cultural week.
Iran has not had diplomatic relations with the United States since Revolutionary Guards, acting with the blessing of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, stormed the American embassy in 1979 and held hostages there for 444 days.
In recent years, it has been accused by the U.S. of sponsoring terrorism around the world.
