IT asked Genevieve Contey (a graduate student working on a special project for National Geographic Traveler) to report on two Iranian tourism initiatives. One might inspire you to search for that old lead vest of yours—the other, just a good camera:
Ever fantasize about being a UN weapons inspector? Get a little giddy over WMDs? Iranian President Ahmadinejad recently announced plans to organize a cottage tourism industry around the country's nuclear plants. Tehran's announcement for proposed 'nuclear tourism' came in the midst of forthcoming United Nations Security Council sanctions: The UN and the U.S. government allege that Iran intends to enrich uranium for a nuclear weapons program, a claim that Tehran fiercely denies. Ahmadinejad himself insists the enrichment program is for 'peaceful purposes' only. To support his claim, he's allowing tourists to visit nuclear facilities.
According to Al Jazeera, 'possible attractions for tourists would include the uranium conversion facility outside Isfahan, the uranium enrichment plant in Natanz or the Islamic republic's first nuclear plant being built in the southern city of Bushehr.' As of yet, no details have been released as to the nature of these visits (can we go inside?) or when these visits will be legalized, so don't scramble for your potassium iodide pills just yet.
The president has also offered an incentive to bolster the country's tourism industry in general. According to a November 1 Associated Press story, Iran's Tourism and Cultural Heritage Organization said it will pay Western travel agents $20 for every American or European tourist brought into the country.
Although it may seem like a lot, this $20 is a small price to pay—if it works—for improving public relations and getting Western, specifically American, tourists into the country. Because the United States and Iran have not shared diplomatic relations since the 1979 attack on the American Embassy in Tehran, the country hasn't been a significant tourist destination for Americans. The country's ban on alcohol and mandatory head covering for women haven't helped travelers' perceptions either.
While sterile labs, hazmat suits and weapons-grade centrifuges may not spark your wanderlust, you may want to try some of these options on for size: trekking along the Silk Road, windsurfing on the Caspian Sea, haggling for an exquisite Persian rug in Tehran's Grand Bazaar, or admiring the marvelous architecture of Isfahan, the ruins of the ancient city of Persepolis, or any of Iran's six other UNESCO World Heritage sites.
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