Qatar Tourism (QT) confirmed this week that it has opened its first representative office in Tehran, the capital of Iran.

The office is QT’s 13th global opening and will, according to a statement issued by the tourism authority, be responsible for “various promotional activities, including tour operator partnerships, travel agent destination training, media visits and campaigns.”

There are four weekly direct flights from the Iranian cities of Tehran, Mashhad, Shiraz, and Isfahan to Doha. Also, Iranian citizens enjoy visa-free entry into Qatar.

Both countries follow Islamic calendars and so their holiday seasons are synced, thereby facilitating recreational travel between Qatar and Iran.

QT’s office in Iran is the latest addition to its international network of representative offices around the world, which currently span markets including Australia, India, China and the US too.

Qatar aims to attract six million international visitors annually by 2030. “Qatar Tourism’s choice in the location of its latest office opening is a testament to the decades-long cultural and trade ties between the two countries. Iran is one of 15 target markets identified by Qatar Tourism as a primary source for tourists looking to relax, rejuvenate and soak in some culture. Opening a representative office in Iran will help support Qatar Tourism’s strategic goals to increase the number of visitors to Qatar by threefold, increase spending by three to four times, and grow the GDP contribution of the tourism sector to 12 per cent by 2030,” said Berthold Trenkel, chief operating officer of Qatar Tourism.

Qatar recorded over 729,000 international visitors in the first half of this year, a 19 per cent increase compared to the whole of 2021.

qatartourism.com; visitqatar.qa