Ilam

Historic ilam province is located exactly on the west , next to the border of Iran and Iraq. Because of this during the war between Iran and Iraq, the Iraqi troops invaded Ilam and this part of Iran suffered too much because of the Iraqis invasion.
Ilam was bombed many times by the Iraqi air force and many people of Ilam migrated to other neighboring places or far lands and stayed there for years until ceasefire and they reoccupied their land. People of Ilam were brave enough to defend their mother land and during the war they pushed all of the Iraqi troops beyond the borders.

History of Ilam
 

Actually before emerging Aryans that migrated from lands near Cyberia to Iranians territory, more than 26 tribes were living in vast high and low lands that belonged to old territory which is today known as Iran.
Between all of those tribes Kurds or Gurds were one of the bravest and they made many problems for Aryans which united Persians and medians in vast lands of Fars province and pushed all of the old tribes to the borders of west of Iran from north to south.
Some of the people of Ilam which named themselves Ilamite, stayed there and defended their territory and through history preserved their language and culture and followed their own traditions and even today you can find the trace of those old fashion times in their culture and traditions.
Because of its long history dating back to prehistoric ages, you can find traces of old fashion stone reliefs in mountains of Ilam province.
 You can find traces of Nomads At least from more than 30 centuries ago , living in Ilam province and because in old times Elamites have many roots in ancient Mesopotamia you can find traces of many different cultures in the normal usual life of people of Ilam today.
People of Mesopotamia had good relations and exported many different goods to Ilam near Zagros mountains and instead people of Ilam exported many goods to people in west and even beyond Mesopotamia instead.
 We have two prominent mountain ranges in Iran. Alborz mountains are spread from west to north and Zagros mountains from north to south and they cover the central desert of Iran like thick walls in the form of tongs. This thick wall is against humid air masses flowing from Mediterranean Sea to east which cover vast lands of Iran to Afghanistan.Most of the Ilam province, especially in the north is located in the mountains area of the Zagros ranges.
This wall is against humid air masses and because of this parameter the lands of Ilam are more humid and green and there are vast forests of oak trees and some other greens which are famous all around the country even abroad.
Ilam is land of natural petroleum and natural gas reservoirs. As mentioned before there are natural Oil streams and bitumen flowing from shallow reservoirs of Oil wells.
In old times and around the Achaemenid dynasty local people gathered this hardened Oil as bitumen to use as an insulator for waterproofing baths and other water filled pools and reservoirs.
Today the national Oil ministry is the owner of these Oil and natural gas and gas reservoirs and they produce and extract billions of barrels of natural Oil and huge amounts of gas and export it to other countries as main export from Ilam.
Oil and gas is not the only product of Ilam and there are many mines and ores which fill the mountains of Ialm province.
Different kinds of ores are extracted and exported as raw material to other provinces and specially in Iraq and this province has the potential to be one to pivotal points in infra industries of Iran because of natural resources.
Tourism is one of the other potentials which has not progressed in the last 4 decades and it can be known as the main and key industry in this province.
Natural sceneries of Ilam are unique and can be known as a good investment for the future of this beautiful part of Iran.

Tourism in Ilam

Each year thousands of hikers’ rush to Ilam province to climb mountains of Zagros ranges and many adventure tourists try to stay in forests of Ilam to taste the weather and greens of the highlands and oak forests of Ilam province.
These oak forests are unique because they are genuine and remain of the last ice age near 11000 years’ age. They have picturesque sceneries and their landscape makes a memorable time to fill your mind forever.
As mentioned above, Ilam is full of natural sceneries and Ghalaghiran mountain is one of them. This natural picturesque is one of the peaks of Zagros mountains which resemble a castle. If you look at this peak you will find a very beautiful piece of rock that resembles a castle. In Persian language we use “Ghale” instead of castle and use word “Ghir” instead of bitumen, because in skirts of this mount there are many natural bitumen flowing from rocks down to the mountains like a river they called this complex in their old language as “Ghalaghiran” which means a castle that has many rivers of natural bitumen. This mount is a target for hikers who want to enjoy natural sceneries meanwhile they like to enjoy cool weathers of Zagros mountains in hot summers of Iran.
Some of the adventurers are looking to challenge themselves and they visit Ilam in cold freezing winters. These people enjoy climbing snow capped mountains and challenge themselves so the rush of Adrenaline fills their blood and makes them high in the natural landscapes of Zagros peaks in winter.
As everybody knows, Iran is a religious country and most of the people in this part of the world are Muslims.
The majority of people in Iran are “shia” and they believe in 12 successors of prophet Mohammad (peace upon him) and because first and second Imam and leathers of shia people are buried in Najaf and Karbala in Iraq, each year millions of religious tourists’ rush to Iraq to pilgrim and one of the gates to transfer from Iran to Iraq is located in Ilam or mehran city in the borders of Iraq.
mehran is a small city and because of pilgrims today has important emigration facilities and a huge amount of money is invested to support the huge number of tourists who intend to cross the borders of Iran and visit religious cities of Iraq as a pilgrimage in their life.
In addition to religious tourists there are many cultural tourists who like to visit old archaeological sites in Ilam and find the stone reliefs in mountains and this adds more wealth to the province and supports the flourishing future of the tourism industry in Ilam province.

Culture and customs of Ilam

Ilam is a melting pot of many different tribes, cultures, dialects, traditions, literature and because of this diversity you can find a cocktail of all factors emerging in this small part of Persian territory from thousands of years ago until today's history.
The majority of people living in Ilam are Kurdish people. Their language is Kurdish which is very close to the old Persian language.

How to arrange your itinerary?

Ilam is a remote and tranquil piece of land.its infrastructure has not progressed according to the needs of the growing tourism industry and because of this arranging travel for foreign tourists is a little tricky. Especially in accommodation ,you will have problems if you like to arrange your program on your own.
Actually you need a local genuine guide to escort you and arrange your needs. Most of the people in this province speak Kurdish language and even for local people of other parts of Iran understanding their dialect is hard. Beside lack of good infrastructure the natural lands have harsh climate in winter and the weather changes time by time.
It is absolutely better if you ask professionals to arrange your itinerary and make a proper program according to your own needs.
People of sanapersian are ready to arrange your itinerary according to your taste and needs. You can find us on our professional site and make a tailor made itinerary for you.You can also check our social media pages.  We never leave you before and during your visit and support you to have a memorable time visiting Iran and Ilam province.

Best time to travel to Ilam

The weather in Ilam province is diverse as the land and people are diverse from north to south. Amazingly, the weather in the north is harsh and cold in winter. Meanwhile you can see snow capped peaks of the Zagros mountains in the north of the province .In winter you can find moderate to warm weather in the south at the same time.
When the weather is hot in the south there will be a delicate and moderate cool weather in the summers of the north and you can escape from hot weather to cool weather and enjoy time in northern parts in summer. This diversity made a unique point of view in the tourism industry and can be considered as an exclusive potential in tourism in the future of Ilam province.
Ilam has a harsh climate in winter. But even in summer there are some places where the weather is too hot. The best time to visit Ilam is in spring and fall.

   (Sana Persian tour and travel service provider group)