TEHRAN—Bastam Castle, located in north-central Semnan province, is a little-known destination for domestic and foreign tourists.
Around 37,000 tourists have visited the historic castle since the beginning of the current calendar year (March 20), IRNA reported on Saturday, citing Golam Shirzad, director of Bastam Castle National Base, as saying.
He said that most of the foreign tourists come from Austria, Sweden and Germany, adding that German and Austrian archaeologists have better knowledge about this historical monument, so experts and experts from both countries visit this historical monument every year.
Mr. Shirzad continued that in addition to Bastam Fort, tourists also visited other natural and historical sites around the castle, such as the Agchai River, Qassian Bridge, Khurs Mosque, Hazrat Abol Fazl’s (AS) Tekiyeh, and Baig Jawan Baths.
He pointed out that private investors have started building an ecotourism house in the village of Tyurs and a traditional restaurant in the village of Bastam, with the aim of encouraging tourists to stay longer in this historical place and providing them with the necessary amenities.
Shirzad added that 300 billion rials ($300,000) will be needed to build an eco-tourism home in the village of Tyurs and 500 billion rials ($500,000) to start a traditional restaurant in the village of Bastam.
He also noted that Omid Entrepreneurship Bank has allocated 40 billion rials ($40,000) for a traditional restaurant in the village of Bastam and 40 billion rials ($40,000) for an ecotourism residence in the village of Tyurs.
He said construction of a specialized archaeological museum at Bastam Castle, which began several years ago, is 75 percent physically advanced and will require a loan of 20 billion rials ($20,000) to complete.
Shirzad went on to say that private investors are developing the Bastam tourist campsite, adding that the site will include sanitary facilities, parking spaces, housing units, restaurants and various other facilities to serve tourists.
The Urartian inscriptions found in this castle are kept in the Tehran National Museum for study and use by researchers.
This historic building was included in the National Heritage List in 1975.
Bastam, a tourist destination near Shahrood, was recently added to the list of historical cities in Iran at the second conference on historical cities of Iran held in Yazd.
According to organizers, the conference brought together representatives from 43 cities to discuss strategies for preserving and promoting urban heritage.
Officials said at the event that Bastam is one of the 54 cities currently registered as historical cities in Iran.
This ancient city, located in north-central Iran near the Alborz Mountains, is known for the monuments clustered around the tomb of Bayezid al-Bastami, a poet and mystic who died in 874 AD.
The town has a mausoleum, a 12th-century minaret and mosque walls, a gate from 1313, and a 15th-century university. Nearby ruins include a mosque and stuccoed cloisters.
Much of Bastam’s historic architecture was built under the Mongol rulers Mahmud Ghazan (r. 1295-1304) and Oljaitu (r. 1304-1316), also known as Mohammad Khodabandeh.
KD