Most countries can be difficult to get to
for some, due to the necessity of visas in
advance in order for some nationals to travel
to some countries.
Iran is no exception to this rule, but little
Kish Island is… well, so is Dominica…
Kish Island is a resort island in the Persian
Gulf, in Iran’s Hormozgān province, located
about 17 km off the mainland, and said to
be the third most popular tourist destination
in SW Asia, after Dubai and Sharm el-Sheikh.
In fact, Kish Island is barely a half-hour
plane ride north of Dubai International Airport
(DXB), via Kish Air.
Kish Island is widely known for being a consumer’s
paradise, and has a warm climate, with plenty
of activities on the beaches and in the shops,
but those aren’t the only reasons tourists
come, as it has something else up its sleeves.
For Brits, Americans and Canadians in particular,
getting into Iran is tough (our governments
don’t get along well).
Not only are there strict visa requirements,
but there are also requirements for a government-approved
tour guide, often with strict itineraries;
basically, going to Iran is not like going
to Germany (yeah, that’s kind of stating
the obvious).
This is not the case with Kish Island, to
get onto Kish Island, most tourists do not
need a visa, even Brits and Americans.
Most western tourists are generally interviewed,
photographed and fingerprinted, and female
arrivals will be given a shawl for them to
cover their hair for the time they spend on
the island, but the visa restrictions are
incredibly different from mainland Iran.
So, why does Iran do this?
Because Kish Island is a free trade zone.
Basically, a free trade zone is a special
exemption on duties that must be paid to the
country that the goods being shipped are in.
Under this definition, goods traveling through
Iran’s free trade and special economic zones
do not have to go through the same customs
rules as goods being shipped through mainland
Iran.
It’s sort of (but not completely) similar
to how international layovers work; traveling
from London to Dubai to Singapore, one doesn’t
have to go through Emirati customs upon entry
in Dubai International Airport.
Except you do still have to go through customs
to get onto… actually, it’s kind of more
like how Guam’s visa policy differs from
the rest of the US, and travelers going between
Guam and the mainland US still have to go
through customs, despite the America.
Basically, your people need visas and your
goods need taxes.
Also, your people need taxes and your goods
need visas, and your visas need taxes and
your people need goods.
Okay, I’m not sure how much of that is actually
true, but still.
Kish Island is basically just a duty-free
shopping center, but that has still attracted
plenty from around the world; the airport
was even designed to handle the Concorde.
In a sense, one of the appeals of Kish Island
could essentially be how it’s an easy way
to visit Iran, even if you can’t exactly
visit the mainland that easily.
It’s kind of like how one of Canada’s
biggest tourist attractions is its interesting
characteristic of not being America, despite
being hard to distinguish.
Thanks for watching!
I actually wrote this script up a few weeks
ago, but put it off, since I was worried it
wouldn’t be interesting, and then suddenly,
Iran was in the news, so I decided, ‘hey,
why not?’
Anyways, if you enjoyed it, please be sure
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