TEHRAN -- Shiraz launched its new “Mehr Shiraz” tourism program on Sunday, coinciding with World Tourism Day, beginning a 20-day program of cultural, literary and tourism events through October 17. 
The initiative is being developed by the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts of Fars Province, headed by Behzad Moridi, with participation from tourism associations, cultural organizations and civil-society groups. 
Provincial officials say the wider program encompasses more than 100 events and activities across Fars Province’s 37 counties, although the latest published schedules also identify a more specific calendar of 65 tourism events.  
The program is intended to establish autumn as another major tourism season for Shiraz, complementing the city’s well-known spring appeal. Its themes include cultural and historical tourism, literary tourism, gastronomy, health tourism, city tours and tourism investment.
Literary tourism is a central component. Programs linked to Hafez and Rumi (Jalal al-Din Muhammad Balkhi) include the “From Konya to Shiraz” theme, literary tours and events around the Tomb of Hafez (Hafezieh). 
The literary program is particularly significant because Shiraz is internationally associated with Hafez, whose poetry remains one of the city’s strongest cultural tourism assets.