Iran > Iran Experience

Advantages: People, Food, History, Architecture
Disadvantages: Cars, Cars, Cars, Cars

I travelled to Iran with my Iranian wife and daughter with no concerns at all, it was a place I had heard so much about that I was desperate to see it with my own eyes. The Iranian community had been amazingly friendly and hospitable since I had married my wife especially as I had failed to pick up more than very basic Farsi!! Our 2 week holiday was the most amazing time I have spent in my life so far. We didn't go with a tour we stayed with my wifes ...
...visited many of the sights. Tehran - smoky, loud and continually moving. We walked most places as driving was a nightmare, the bazaars were a great treat and gold was well priced compared to the west (wife thoroughly enjoyed that part!!), Shah's palaces had to be seen to be believed the architecture and splendour, drinking tea in the mountains outside of Tehran was quite an experience especially as the temperature fell, and visiting the Commonwaelth ... Read review

Advantages: Well furnished, busy, popular, friendly
Disadvantages: No choice of food, getting tatty

ESTEGHLAL GRAND HOTEL Tehran, Iran This was my first visit to Tehran, Iran and I really had no idea what to expect from the country, the city or the hotel. What would it be like? Shabby, rundown, tatty? I knew that there were no large hotel chains still in Iran, so I was not expecting Hyatt or Sheraton standards! The first impression of the Esteghlal Grand hotel was not encouraging. For a start, how do you pronounce the name? Secondly, the eighteen ...
...remarkably Soviet, as if it had come from the Stalin school of architecture and design and could have been transplanted from some industrial city in southern Russia. There were one or two men stranding around at the entrance, I?m not sure if they were porters or security guards as they made no attempt to either take my baggage or ask for identification. I espied a sign to one side of the door, requesting that women entering the hotel respect the ... Read review

Advantages: beautiful city with many famous architectures from iran's 16th century
Disadvantages: In iran you should observe islamic laws

I was born in isfahan and lived there for 18 years, it's a city located in central iran. isfahan is an industrial city with many important industrial factories located around it for example iran's biggest steel making factory in iran named Fulade Mobarakeh. also isfahan is a city with many historical sites. for example Naghshe-Jahan-Squar is a unesco world heritage site build in the 16th century. A famous river , Zayanderud, crosses the city. Several ...
...bridges. The most beautiful time to visit isfahan is in spring and specifically april and may. The people of isfahan have a cool sense of humour and are known to be economically savvy. In isfahan minority christians and jews live alongside muslims. There are several churches in the city like the Vank church. Isfahan is also famous for it's handcrafts. ... Read review

Advantages: Fabulous people, fascinating things to see
Disadvantages: Headscarves, awful food, expensive visas

When you announce to friends, family and colleagues that you've just booked a holiday in Iran (an 'Axis of Evil Tour' as they might see it), their responses tend to be fairly predictable. They range from the geographically mistaken 'but isn't there a war there?'(nope, that's Iraq) or 'aren't they fighting with Israel?' (nope, that's Lebanon) to the most predictable of all responses - a look of bemusement and the question "What on earth would you ...
...you put aside the thoughts of mad mullahs and the bellicose but oddly attractive (in a Jose Mourinho despotic sort of way) prime minister Ahmedinajad. Try instead to think Persia - the world's first great empire and the land of carpets and fluffy kitties with squashed up faces. As there's so much I could say about this fabulous country I'm going to enforce some much needed discipline on my thoughts and restrict myself to an A to Z format. It's still ... Read review

Advantages: a lot but not now
Disadvantages: the city has been destroyed by earthquake

This a report of a trip a took several years ago when in Iran the power was in the hands of Scià Rheza Pavlevi. This a report of a trip to Bam, a small city that has been destroyed almost an year ago by an earthquake. Bam, that in Iran is called Arg-è-Bam, is located about 200 kilometres south of Kerman, and it is closed to the border with Afghanistan. The origins of Bam are dated back to the 3rd century but its current configuration goes back ...
...high walls that included 38 towers. During the years Bam was famous a transit and relief point for the travellers along what has been known as “the silk route”. Bam has been also a pilgrimage destination for Zoroastrian believers. In Bam was located the “Temple of Fire” one of the main temple of this religion. Then on the ruins of this temple ha been built a mosque called “Jame Mosque” and nearby this mosque there the tomb of a very famous local ... Read review