Practical Application of the Tourism Climate Comfort Index (TCCI) for Mosul and Basrah Stations: A Comparative Study

Abstract

Tourism is a vital economic activity for a country, directly influenced by climate and its elements, as well as indirectly affecting a broad range of environmental resources that are essential for the tourism industry. This study aims to explore the impact of climate on tourism and tourist activity within the study stations. It assesses the tourism climate in certain regions of Iraq using an important criterion: the Tourism Climate Comfort Index (TCCI). This index was applied to each month of the year over a minor climatic cycle lasting 11 years to analyze the climate’s varying impact on tourism in Mosul and Basrah.

The study revealed notable variations in TCCI categories. For instance, the “hot-unacceptable” category was observed more frequently in Basrah, occurring over seven months, compared to four months in Mosul. The “acceptable, suitable, and very acceptable” categories were equally distributed between the study stations, averaging four months per station, though the months differed. The “cold-unacceptable” category was more prominent in Mosul, averaging four months, while in Basrah, it appeared only in January due to differing climatic conditions between the stations