Newroz celebration entices thousands from Iraq to visit Kurdistan Region

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Thousands of tourists from Iraq have flocked to the Kurdistan Region for Newroz celebration which marks the beginning of the spring, finding comfort in the Region’s stability and mesmerizing nature.

Tourists coming into the Region from central and southern Iraq often attribute the reasoning to the Region’s beautiful scenery and its security, as well as the hospitality of its people.

“There are foreigners, but they are very few, 95 percent to 95 [ercent are Iraqis, mostly from Baghdad,” Aram Siamand, a hotel owner in Erbil told Rudaw’s Payam Sarbast.

On Wednesday, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi announced Sunday March 20 and Monday March 21 to be official holidays in celebration of the Kurdish new year.

“There are many enjoyable resorts and fun places to hang out here,” Ekhlas Waseel from Baghdad, who arrived in Erbil with around 100 other tourists, told Rudaw on Friday. ”Erbil is very safe and stable.”

Since 2003, tens of thousands of Iraqis have sought refuge in the Kurdistan Region fleeing from the violence that has crippled the rest of the country. But thanks to the relative security in the Kurdistan Region, many Iraqis in recent years visited the mountainous region for holiday.

This is the first time that Noura Muhammad visits Erbil for Newroz celebration although she has been to the Kurdistan Region on numerous occasions.

“We constantly come to Erbil and visit Shaqlawa and the other resorts,” Muhammad who arrived in Erbil with her immediate family on Friday told Rudaw.

The hospitality sector is running at full capacity in Erbil and there are very few vacancies left in hotels to house the tourists.

“During Newroz, there won’t be any places left in Erbil because there are already a lot of reservations,” said Abubakr Hussein, another hotel owner in Erbil, adding that “this Newroz, Erbil will be filled with tourists and guests.”

However Nariman Fazil, head of media of the Erbil Tourism Directorate sounded confident that Erbil can accommodate as many as 40,000 tourists.  “Erbil can host more than 40,000 guests per night,” Fazil told Rudaw on Friday.

Over 450,000 tourists have visited the Kurdish capital of Erbil since the start of 2022, head of Erbil Tourism Directorate Ismail Minakhan told Rudaw on Thursday, with over 100,000 of those tourists arriving since the beginning of March.

“We’re expecting over 100 to 150 thousand more tourists to visit Erbil on the days of Newroz,” Minakhan added.

The provinces of Sulaimani and Duhok have received a great number of tourists as well, with Sulaimani recording 250,000 visitors and Duhok over 130,000 visitors in the past two months, according to the provinces’ tourism directorates. Both cities are expecting and preparing for tourists to arrive in massive bulks during the days of Newroz.

By Chenar Chalak