Qeshm is the gateway to Iran's Geotourism

Tourism in today's world as a clean industry and the third dynamic and developing economic phenomenon, developing after the oil and automotive industries, has attracted the attention of many countries. In the last decade, “geoparks” as geotourism targets are considered the main approach of development in many advanced countries and those that have limited resources or related industries. National and international introduction and registration of empowerment zones called “geoparks” are the new initiatives in the development of geotourism and important strategies for estimating goals such as sustainability and environmental protection, rehabilitation and economic stability of local communities (employment, income), creation of social welfare in rural areas and low population centers which are of low interest of industrial, mining and oil budgets. Qeshm is the largest island in Iran, located in the east of the Persian Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, and is the first registered geopark in Iran. Qeshm Geopark has 25 geosites or geological phenomena. In this article, we try to introduce Qeshm Geopark and point out the important issues in registering geoparks.