ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The Kurdistan Region’s Soran administration was home to over 30,000 tourists on the first two days of the Eid al-Adha, with authorities expecting the figure to push 100,000 by the end of Eid. 

“Over 30,000 tourists have visited the tourist attraction sites within the Soran administration, it is expected that the number will double in the third and fourth days of Eid,” General Director of Tourism in Soran Faisal Sadiq told The New Region on Sunday, adding that they expect the number to reach a combined 100,000 tourists in the four days of the Muslim holiday.

The numbers are subject to change on a daily basis and they are consistently increasing, Sadiq added. 

The Kurdistan Region has put intense emphasis on the tourism sector in recent years. 

In May, Prime Minister Masrour Barzani personally opened the third Middle East Tourism Exhibition (METEX) in Erbil, a major event aiming to promote tourism in the Kurdistan Region and attract investment in the sector, held with the participation of at least 120 tourist companies from across 20 countries.

Soran in particular, serves as one of the Kurdistan Region’s most attractive destinations to tourists, boasting resorts such as Bekhal and Gali Ali Beg, which feature breath-taking waterfalls and beautiful landscapes.

The resort pair, which have welcomed thousands of tourists in the days of Eid, are set to receive a makeover with a budget of 110 million euros by a number of Italian investors, in line with the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) aspirations to revitalize the Region’s travel sector. The redesigns are expected to drive the booming tourism sector even higher.  

The Region’s beautiful nature and moderate temperatures during the summertime and cozy, snow-capped wintery retreats during the colder seasons have become major attractions for tourists from all over Iraq and further afield.

The KRG aims to attract 20 million tourists per year by 2030.