ECOTOURISM IN IRÁN ✏️ Naturaleza-Iran

IRÁN is a vast country with great natural beauty and a rich history. Due to its beautiful natural setting, it can offer a lively and interesting environment to the nature loving tourists. It has various natural attractions, such as temperate forests in the north with high humidity and rainfall (1,700mm), deserts and salt lakes in the central part of Iran, and high mountains (such as 5,604 meter high Mount Damavand), glaciers and coastal areas.

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Considered as one of the five countries in the world with the highest biodiversity, Iran is home to 519 different birds, 172 varying mammals, 199 various reptiles, 20 diverse amphibians, 173 assorted fish and 9,000 distinctive plant species. There are also 9 biosphere storages, 50 interior lakes, 548,000 km of coastal lines in the north and south, including the islands, 23 national parks, 35 wildlife refuge and 111 protected regions.



Popular ecotourism activities in Iran include mountain and desert treks, bird watching in coastal areas and wetlands, and diving. There are a number of natural parks and protected regions, such as, Golestan, Kavir, Lar, Khosh Yellagh, Bakhtegan and Bamoo, whichoffer ecotourism attractions.

The Bakhtegan Lake is a place that must be visited by tourists especially in winter when the migrating flamingoes and birds from Russia accommodate themselves there. Also, Iran boasts of Qeshm Geopark, which is the largest geopark in the Middle East.

Golestan Forest (National Park), Gorgan

As one of Iran's most attractive forest parks, Golestan Forest Park is situated between the cities of Gonbad Kavoos in the Golestan province and Bojnoord in the northern region of the Khorasan province.

The park possesses many different kinds of plants and animal species and a very pleasant natural environment.

It was the first area to be designated as a national reserve in Iran. The park, which has a unique situation in the mountain terrain, spans in the bunchgrass steppe.

Being in the eastern edge of the contiguous Caspian Forest, it provides the abundant wild life that one would expect to find in mountains, foothills & valleys with steppe and deciduous forest vegetation.

Kavir National Park is a protected ecological zone in northern Iran. It has an area of 4,000 square kilometers (about 1,500 square miles).


The park is located 120 kilometers south of Tehran, and it sits on the western end of one of Iran's two major deserts, the Dasht-e Kavir (Great Salt Desert).

Siahkuh (Black Mountain), a large, semi-circular rock outcropping, sits roughly in the park's center.

The park encompasses desert and steppe landscapes and it is also known as "Little Africa" for its safari like wildlife, including native goats, sheep, hyenas, wolves, gazelles, leopards, the rare Asiatic Cheetah, and the Persian Leopard.

Dizin ski resort

Dizin is a ski resort situated to the north of Tehran in the Alborz mountain range.


It is considered as the most important ski resort in Iran and the Middle East.

The long stretch of mountain ranges with peak altitudes of over 4,000m, and the other mountains of Alam Kuh (4,850m), and the volcanic peaks of Sabalan (4,811m) and Damavand (5,671m) provide the main attractions for foreign mountain climbers.

Rock Climbing

Among the many available locations for this activity, the Alam Kuh wall (over 650m) is very popular among foreign tourists and is situated at the altitude of 4,200m.

Rafting

Long rivers that stretch from the mountains to the fields offer the chance to kayak, canoe, and raft during midspring to mid-summer.


Scuba Diving

The limpid coastal water of the Persian Gulf, which is the result of the coral coasts and islands, offers excellent opportunities for professional and amateur scuba divers.

Trekking

The vast difference in the temperatures of the mountain ranges, deserts, vast fields, and low plains near the equator, make it possible to do trekking during all the seasons in Iran.



Desert Safari

Pure silence, absolute peace, contrasting brown and white salty land, and innumerable stars in the vivid desert sky are some of the remarkable characteristics of the Iranian deserts.



The deserts types consist of swampy, salty, clay, gravel, and running sands.


Taking a stroll within these vast spaces, watching the wonders of the moving sands, the burning and dry salt marshes, historical monuments, brick colored buildings of simple and harsh styles, shadows of scattered villages, as well as the old ancient inns and caravansaries are charming and worth visiting for every tourist.

For this purpose, Yazd Province is the best choice. The Yazd - Bafq route runs along the ancient Fahraj Mosque on the fringes of the desert, spread to the limits of Bafq. En route are the tamarisk forests, and the beautiful Ahan Shahr Park, extending over 20 hectares which appears at the end of this route.

The other route is Yazd - Khanaraq - Bayazeh which continues to Khoor and Biyabanek.

Along this route one can see domeshaped sandy hills, covered by desert bushes.

All through the route there are ancient and beautiful inns with arched windows and unique architecture, the most noteworthy of which is the military castle of Bayazeh which is placed beside the beautiful gardens of Khoor Biabanak village.

Another site to visit is the ancient olive tree which is over a thousand years old.

Yazd province boasts of many fantastic deserts, the most important ones being Ardakan Desert, Abar Kooh Desert, Daranjir Desert area.

The Caspian Coast

Caspian Sea, the largest landlocked lake in the world, is located in northern Iran. The Iranian Caspian coast including the three littoral provinces of Gilan, Golestan and Mazandaran, with their thick forests and large scale rice paddies present a striking contrast to the dry inner plateau of Iran.


A four-hour drive from Tehran, the Caspian is Iran's Riviera, with a narrow plain of paddy fields and orchards separating the sea from forested mountains where bears and leopards roam around ruined Mongol castles.

There are several roads connecting Tehran to the three provinces, all through breathtakingly beautiful scenery, across the mountains or alongside rivers such as the world renowned "Chalous Road" winding north across the rugged Alborz mountains to reach the Caspian Coast.

With their tropical climate in summer and mild winters, beautiful sandy beaches, scenic beauty and proximity to the capital the three provinces are very popular among Iranians as a holiday and weekend resort. Numerous holiday and residential complexes, private villas, leisure facilities and holiday homes dot the landscape.

Other Iranian National Parks and Natural Reserves:

Sisangan National Park, the Hara Forests near Qeshm Island in southern Iran, Kharturan National Park, Wildlife Refuge and Biosphere Reserve, Naybandan Wildlife Refuge, Bafq Protected Area, Dar-e Anjir Wildlife Refuge, Oshtoran Mountain Protected Area, Hamoon Wetlands, Tandooreh National Park, Hara Protected Area, Gano Protected Area, Lar Protected Area, Central Alborz Protected Area, Khojir and Sorkhe Hesar National Park, Bakhtegan National Park, Anzali Lagoon, Port Anzali of the Caspian Sea, Arasbaran Protected Area, Arjan Protected Area, Lake Urmia National Park, Miankaleh Protected Area, Touran Protected Area, Nazhvan Suburban Natural Park near Esfahan, and Bambo National Park near Shiraz.

FUENTE: www.tourismiran.ir

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Última Actualización: 14/12/2012 - 16:20