TEHRAN-The historical oasis city of Yazd is scheduled to host an astronomy tour on Saturday to mark the 5th registration anniversary of the city on the UNESCO World Heritage list, a local tourism chief has said.

The two-day tour will be held in the heart of the historical structure of the Iranian city and will be free for astronomy enthusiasts, Mehdi Mahajan explained on Friday.

Yazd's clear sky and desert environment make it an ideal destination for astronomical tourism, the official added.

Among the popular types of tourism, astronomical tourism has become more known and introduced in recent years, attracting both domestic and foreign tourists, he noted.

The economy of astronomical tourism can be very successful and attention and emphasis can be paid to its development as a way to grow and develop tourism in Yazd, he mentioned.

In July 2017, the historical structure of the city of Yazd was named a UNESCO World Heritage. Wedged between the northern Dasht-e Kavir and the southern Dasht-e Lut on a flat plain, the oasis city enjoys a very harmonious public-religious architecture that dates from different eras.

Yazd is usually referred to as a delightful place to stay, or a don't miss destination by almost all of its visitors. The city is full of mudbrick houses that are equipped with innovative badgirs (wind catchers), atmospheric alleyways, and many Islamic and Iranian monuments that shape its eye-catching city landscape.

It is a living testimony to the intelligent use of limited available resources in the desert for survival. Water is brought to the city by the qanat system. Each district of the city is built on a qanat and has a communal center.

Astronomical tourism represents a less-studied segment of sustainable tourism, where a dark night sky is an underlying resource, and this branch of tourism could lead to sustainable development in rural areas.

Illuminated only by the stars and having a clear sky, Iranian deserts are dream places for astronomy enthusiasts and sky lovers to experience dark night observatories.

The country is home to wide deserts in its central lands including UNESCO-tagged Lut Dessert as well as several historical caravanserais hosting astronomical tourists from ancient eras to the present.

ABU/MG

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Yazd to host astronomy tour to mark World Heritage registration anniversary - Tehran Times