Germans top list of European tourists in Iran: official

Berlin, March 12, IRNA -- Germans led the list of European tourists in Iran last year, an Iranian tour operator told IRNA on Friday on the sidelines of Berlin's 44th ITB tourism fair.

Around 22,000 German tourists visited Iran last year, said the director of Rastin Tours Akbar Ghamkar, noting that among European tourists in Iran, Germans ranked first followed by Italians.

Ghamkhar urged the government to allocate more funds for advertising Iranian tourism.

Iran has reportedly opened 17 tourism information centers across the world, including Germany.

Some 18 Iranian tourism agencies are taking part in the five-day ITB fair which offers a complete overview of all products related to either holiday or business travel.

Meanwhile, more than 11,000 exhibitors from over 180 countries are attending the ITB, widely seen as the world's leading travel trade show.

The ITB exhibition is expected to host around 170,000 guests, among them 100,000 travel and tourism experts.

Business deals worth six billion euros are expected to be signed at the ITB which is to close its doors on Sunday.

More than 100 million people are directed or indirectly linked to the global tourism industry./end