Village Tourism and Attraction of Foreign Tourists to Iran as the Policies of Sustainable Development

Regardless of population decline and the extent to which the villages and rural life in Iran have been associated with a negative outcome and backlashes from various causes including urban modernization, drought, injustice in economic development etc., villages are currently an attractive arena for nvestment as well as gates for sustainable development in this country. Three standpoints have been applied to analyse the relationship between tourism and rural development: 1. Tourism as the strategy for rural development; 2. Tourism as a policy for rebuilding rural settlements; and 3. Tourism as an instrument of sustainable development. It seems rural tourism has left positive and negative influence on the villages discussed in this article. The fast trend and speed of social changes affect rural development in countries across the world, including them Iran. This article strives to clarify the importance and status of rural tourism in Iran and to identify how and how much this kind of tourism can help and reinforce policies of sustainable development in Iran.