Snow atop mountains in Kurdistan's Perzha resort attracts tourists escaping summer heat

As the summer heat rises, people from all parts of the Kurdistan Region are rushing toward the Perzha resort located in the Balkayati region where snow remains atop mountains all year long.

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – As the summer heat rises, people from all parts of the Kurdistan Region are rushing toward the Perzha resort located in the Balkayati region where snow remains atop mountains all year long.

The phenomenon is found at the Hasari Sakran Mountain in Soran district, where snow provides visitors a refreshing atmosphere as temperatures reach over 50 degrees Celsius across many parts of Kurdistan. At the Perzha resort, temperatures often remain cool at 20 degrees Celcius.

Children and adults alike enjoy the snowy mountains where they can ski and slide down the hills.

Children and adults alike enjoy the thrill of sliding down the mountain. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)
Children and adults alike enjoy the thrill of sliding down the mountain. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)
Despite the ice-cold water, tourists cross the river on foot to reach the snow-capped mountain top. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)
Despite the ice-cold water, tourists cross the river on foot to reach the snow-capped mountain top. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)

“This is our first time visiting and seeing snow during the summer,” tourist Masoud Rasoul told Kurdistan 24. “We don’t have such landscapes where we live in Taq-Taq, and don’t see snow.”

Hiwa Omer, a tourist from Erbil, said he enjoyed the snow and low temperatures during her first visit to the resort.

“If the transportation route is renovated, more people will be able to visit the landscape,” Omer suggested.

A family takes a selfie. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)
A family takes a selfie. (Photo: Kurdistan 24)

The melting snow has created an ice-cold river, but that does not stop people who still cross the body of water on foot to reach the site of the mountain where the snow is.

Tourists usually come down from the mountain two hours before sundown as temperatures decrease near below zero. However, some choose to spend the night camping at the foot of the hill.  

Over the years, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has developed many sectors, including its tourism division, especially in the winter where the mountains retain snow, attracting thousands of local and international tourists.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany

(Additional reporting by Tayfur Mohammed)