Ibrahim Abdulmajeed, the head of the board’s media department, told Rudaw on Friday that over 200 thousand tourists, mostly from Iraq’s southern and central provinces, visited the Region’s four provinces three days before Eid and during the first three days of the Islamic feast.
The four-day Eid began on Wednesday.
Abdulmajeed added that they initially expected the number to reach 300 thousand in ten days but now they expect it to be much more than that. Some tourism officials have said the number could reach 400 thousand. Erbil province has the lion’s share.
About two million tourists have visited the Kurdistan Region in the first quarter of this year. Over six million tourists visited the Region last year, according to data provided by the board.
With its relatively more moderate temperature in comparison to the rest of the country, and the tremendous nature it has, the Kurdistan Region’s tourism has been a booming sector in recent years.
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) plans to attract 20 million tourists per year by 2030, Amal Jalal, the head of the board, told Rudaw on Thursday.
