Iraq Business News brings you the latest news on developments and opportunities in leisure and tourism industries in Iraq.
AKnews reports that the Iraqi Ministry for Tourism will begin renovating Kirkuk's historic citadel in early February. Deputy head of Kirkuk's archeology office told AKnews that the ministry has not announced the allocated budget for the project. She added this is the second time the citadel, located in the central Kirkuk, will be renovated. The […]
Hill International (NYSE:HIL), the global leader in managing construction risk, has announced that it has been awarded a contract by the Iraqi Ministry of Youth and Sports to provide project management services in connection with construction of the new Al Anbar Olympic Stadium in Al Anbar, Iraq. The two-year contract has an estimated value to […]
More than 40,000 tourists entered Iraqi Kurdistan Region for the New Year celebrations, roughly four times as many as the previous record, AKnews reports. The press secretary for the Kurdistan General Tourism Board, Nadr Rosti, told the news agency that in 2011 more than 10,000 tourists visited Kurdistan during the New Year. But in the […]
Basra Investment Commission (BIC) has granted seven licenses for a variety of projects in the fields of housing, trade, industry and tourism. The Head of the Commission, Khalaf al-Badran, said in a statement, that these projects will provide thousand of work opportunities and will improve social standards in the province. The total value of the […]
Iraq's second largest museum in Sulaimaniya is recovering stolen artifacts by paying smugglers to return the treasures, as CNN reports: (Source: CNN)
Construction has started on Best Western’s first two hotels in Iraq which will operate under the Best Western Premier brand in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, reports Hotelier Middle East. The 82-room Best Western Premier Erbil Airport will be the first to open in 2013, located near to the recently-opened Erbil International Airport. This […]
By Chris Bowers, British Consul General in Erbil. This article was originally published by Rudaw, and is re-published with permission by Iraq Business News. A great British poet, Samuel Coleridge, wrote in 1817 that art in its best form required a “willing suspension of disbelief”. What he meant by that is that most literature or […]
Karbala relies heavily on Iranian pilgrims to important religious sites in the area. But hotel owners are crying foul: they say Iranians are openly monopolizing tourism in Karbala and covertly buying up local properties, according to this article from Niqash. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views […]
This morning saw the launch of a major new guide to business in Iraq: Entitled "The New Iraq: 2012 Discovering Business", it was launched simultaneously in Dubai and at the "Iraq: Untapped Opportunities" conference in London. Published by Allurentis, in association with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the guide containes a wealth of case studies, […]
By Chris Bowers, British Consul General in Erbil. This article was originally published by Rudaw, and is re-published with permission by Iraq Business News. Like all the best ideas, the concept for a British Film Festival in Kurdistan Region came from a chat between two friends over a few drinks a few months ago. Those […]
Rudaw reports that a delegation from the Sheraton hotel chain recently visited Erbil to explore the possibility of building a hotel. Omed Kayfi, head of Kurdistan Region tourism department, told Rudaw, “so far ... Marriott, Hilton and Turkish Divan brands are building hotels in Erbil ... Sheraton has also visited the Kurdistan Region to assess […]
Hilton Worldwide is set to open its first hotel in Erbil, the flourishing capital city of Iraqi Kurdistan, under a management agreement with New York based real estate developer The Claremont Group. Comprising of 200 serviced apartments, DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Erbil is expected to open at the end of 2013. The new hotel will […]
