Nearly 300,000 tourists visited Kurdistan Region’s Balakayati area last year

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Balakayati is located in Choman district, an overwhelmingly rural district located north of Erbil on the Iranian border. Every year, local and foreign tourists travel to the area for its sprawling hills covered in snow.

Felaw Alpine Lake, with its unique scenery, is a tourist hotspot in the spring season.

The lake's reflection has made it a popular destination and the scenery has attracted tourists from all over Kurdistan. The number of tourists visiting Felaw Alpine Lake has increased annually.

Kurdistan 24 spoke to several tourists about their impressions of the lake-side town. 

“It's my first time here and the scenery is really spectacular. I will tell anyone who hasn't visited before, to come as soon as possible," Vahel Dewali, a tourist visiting the lake, told Kurdistan 24.

Darin Massoum, another tourist, noted that “Felaw alpine lake is known as the Switzerland of Kurdistan.”

Another tourist, Mohammed Haji, urged "everyone to visit the lake. It has a very unique climate. You can see snow, spring, and summer all at the same time."

"The place is very beautiful and picturesque. Everything is beautiful here. Only the roads need improvement to allow others to travel here and witness its beauty," Muna Shabiba, an Arab tourist from Baghdad, revealed to Kurdistan 24. 

Choman tourism figures show that nearly 300,000 tourists visited Balakayati last year, and most of them visited Felaw Alpine Lake.