Iraq - Restoring peace in paradise

It’s a pity that fewer than half the leaders of the Arab League made it to the Summit in Baghdad in March, as they would have found a city transformed.

Masgouf in Baghdad

There as a guest of the Tourism Board of Iraq, I visited Baghdad for the third time in March. It was a different experience to my last visit, when American tanks still sat outside Iraqi ministries and I had to stay in a hotel surrounded by concrete barricades and armed guards. Now it was possible to stay in a small boutique hotel and openly walk along the Corniche to select the perfect fish for my Masgouf.

All the old Baghdad hotels, such as the Mansour, have been upgraded, whilst leading international companies, including Coral and Rotana, are advancing their plans to establish new 5* hotels.

With a renewed relationship between the Tourism Board and Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, there is a new optimism amongst officials, even though the annual number of Western tourists to Baghdad remains below 1,000, with the UK’s Hinterland Travel still leading the way. The more than a million Iranian visitors represent more than 90% of arrivals and they demonstrate that Iraq already has the infrastructure to accommodate many people, especially in the remarkable World Heritage sites, where UNESCO is helping to develop tourism management plans for Babylon and Najaf. Scotland’s Royal Botanic Garden is leading an international team to regenerate the Marshes, reputedly the Garden of Eden, which will in the future become once again a major tourism destination: ‘Paradise Restored’.

Yezidi village in Kurdistan

Meanwhile in the North, the Kurdistan Regional Government is managing to attract many Western visitors. Divan and Rotana have both recently opened world class 5* hotels in Erbil/Hewlêr, although if you want an authentic Kurdish experience, you’d opt for the enchanting Chwarchra Hotel with its famous restaurant just a short stroll from the 10,000 year old Citadel, the restoration of which is also being supported by UNESCO. Elsewhere in the city, the trendy Mamounia Sky Bar at the Noble Hotel is the kind of place you might find in Beirut; surely it won’t be long before Hg2 discovers this city too! Locally run The Other Iraq Tours remains the leading DMC in Kurdistan.

Sinjar/Shingal, the KRG-administered province in the northwest of Iraq is perhaps one of the most exciting prospects for tourism in Iraq. Key to the old Camel Road between Isfahan and Aleppo, it is now almost unknown, but it is stable and a mosaic of civilizations with Yezidi villages and archaeological sites in every corner. It is mountainous and extraordinarily beautiful.

The leaders of the Arab League need to visit Iraq soon – before it is overrun with tourists.

A version of this article also appeared in TTG MENA in May. Read here

Benjamin Carey
@DuniraStrategy