Yazd on traveler’s radar after getting UNESCO status
TEHRAN – Tour operators working in Iran and even abroad have lauded the inclusion of Yazd on UNESCO World Heritage list, as a privilege that helps to put the historic city on traveler’s radar worldwide.
The UN cultural organization annually expands its list of heritage sites, and this year’s class of inductees, announced in July, offers both stimulation for travelers, with a rich and varied group of intriguing sites, and a reminder, especially with its remote and more vulnerable picks such as Yazd that developed an underground water system in the far past and still maintains its traditional Persian architecture and Zoroastrian temples.
Stretching between two deserts, the ancient city of Yazd in the central Iranian plateau has a fascinating history most notable for its reputation along the caravan routes as a silk weaving center.
“In terms of architecture, original temples, gardens and mosques, a lot of things [in Yazd] are traditional and intact,” said Annie Lucas, the vice president of Mir Corporation, which guides trips in Iran, the New York Times reported on Friday.
Ms. Lucas pointed out that Iran has recently resumed issuing travel visas to Americans, which were halted earlier this year, seemingly in response to President Trump’s travel ban. Mir’s 12-day trip to Tehran, Shiraz, Isfahan and Yazd starts at $5,995 a person.
According to the Washington-based Mir Corporation, a tour of Yazd includes visits to the Zoroastrian towers of silence and fire temple, the Dowlat-Abad Garden, the Friday Mosque and Alexander’s Prison.
The World Heritage program aims to identify and protect cultural and natural sites around the world that demonstrate “outstanding value to humanity,” according to UNESCO website.
