Although the tour operator is still taking bookings to the country for autumn this year, it has called off planned tours until then. 

It comes after top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani was killed in a US airstrike on Friday (3 January). Iran retaliated on Wednesday (8 January) by launching missiles at military bases housing US soldiers in neighbouring Iraq.

"The situation as we see it is volatile and we would not want to put our clients in unnecessary volatile situations," said Michael Pullman, Wild Frontiers’ head of marketing.

"Iran is a country close to our hearts and we have been offering tours there for more than 10 years."

He said Wild Frontiers would be reviewing the situation as it unfolds.

’Travellers still want to go there’

Pullman said the cancellations have only affected a "few" people as the company had seen less demand for the destination in recent years.

"We were still sending a healthy number of travellers to Iran, and we wouldn’t write the country off in the long term," said Pullman.

"The Middle East has been here so many times before in the recent past, and has a very chequered history of turmoil, but travellers have still wanted to go there and so far, UK travellers have been resilient to that. They want to see for themselves. "

He described Trump’s threat to target cultural sites in Iranian as "disappointing", stressing the similar actions of terrorist groups such as of the so-called Islamic State.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is currently advising against all travel to Iran for British-Iranian dual nationals and all but essential travel to Iran for British nationals.

A G Adventures spokesperson said it has no travellers in Iran and the next scheduled trip in March was due to go ahead as scheduled.

"The safety of our travellers is our highest priority and G Adventures’ local team is monitoring the situation on an ongoing basis to determine if future itinerary changes or cancellations are necessary."

Anybody booked onto a G Adventures Iran trip before the end of June 2020 can cancel with a full refund.

Charlie Hopkinson, sales and business development director at Dragoman Overland, said the operator had cancelled all its early year Iran departures, with passengers offered alternatives trip.

"Iran is a no-go at the moment until we see how that situation plays out," Hopkinson told TTG. "We are looking at all our Iran trips at the moment."

However, Hopkinson said he didn’t expect the situation to impact Dragoman’s Silk Road tours. "Over the years we have been operating there, it hasn’t been affected by the Iraq-Iran war or Gulf wars. It’s business as usual along the Silk Road."