Should I travel to Iran? Do people really travel to Iran?
The short answer to all these questions is, DON'T waste your time to look for reasons to travel to Iran, Pack & Book & Go as fast as you can because you are already late! Or never go to Iran because travel to Iran will ruin your future travel experiences!
But lets explain the long answer for above questions:
Does it worth to Travel to Iran? Why Travel to Iran? Why visiting Iran?
Thousand years of civilisation, stability, authentic culture, industries and innovation, and Probably due to sanctions since the globalisation era, that allow little commercial exchange with other countries, especially in the West, Iran can boast its own products on a variety of manufacturing areas, from food to textiles to ceramics. adding to Iranian culture and traditions will give anyone who decides to visit Iran a great chance for a genuine local experience.
Iranians are really flexible and there are rarely social taboos like many ancient countries like India and China and at the same time Iranians are very proud of their cultures, traditions and their local life style and that is why they never miss the opportunity to illustrate what you might be seeing, eating, drinking, listening to, and so on and so forth. This will give anyone who decides to visit Iran a great chance for a genuine local experience.
This is also what allows you to better delve into the society and understand an ancient culture preserved with pride. Iran tourism is living its boom season, and all Iranians are taking part in showing off their country that for too long has remained isolated from the travel industry. Now that travel agencies are literally being created every day, you have a lot of Iran tours and packages to choose from. However, if these are too expensive or you are more into independent travel, locals will make you feel welcome and for sure will add to the value of your trip.
Is it safe in Iran? Is Iran a safe country to visit?
For traveller who interested in going to Iran without a guided tour, backpackers, Solo travellers — or just curious about what
the experience is actually like and want an answer to the question, ” Is
Iran Safe ?
The only requirement is that you leave any fears behind —
because they are unwarranted — and clear your mind of preconceptions,
because they will only be disproved. If you can do this, you’re the type
of traveler who would enjoy Iran. There are tons of European
travelers, so I think this applies more to Americans, Canadian and British than to anyone
else.
I never once felt remotely unsafe in any way. Iran is a very safe country and things like mugging, pick-pocketing and robbery are rare in Iran. You
won’t meet people any more polite, friendly and hospitable than Iranians. They even more friendly to Americans as they were so pleased that
we weren’t afraid of the Media's dark image and they want to show the real face of Iran and Iranian to the world specially Americans.
Is it safe for women to travel in Iran?
whether you are a woman or a man, or whether you arrive day or night time, Iran is very safe. A female traveller says about Iran, I travelled for two weeks with a friend of mine (woman, Iranian), and we moved from city to city and province to province by night buses, night trains, and taxis, and given the large number of women traveling solo, I can only gather this is a common practice. It’s without hesitation that I can say that Iran is the safest country in the tormented region.
Solo Travelling in Iran
I don’t really see any safety problems for solo travellers. Things like theft are rare, and Iranians are very Polite, Helpful and hospitable. In the major cities tourists are everywhere, so it’s not like you would stick out in any way as being alone. You can’t really rent a car, so you either have to use public transportation or hire a guide to drive you. Public transportation is very cheap, even domestic airfare.
Nature, Ecosystem and Climate in Iran
Iran is a large country with widely varying ecosystems from the ocean to the 5000+ meter mountains, deserts to rain forests, sunny beaches to the Ski resorts. You can see the 4 seasons at any time of the year in different regions in Iran. You can experience the Spring in January in South east of Iran and You may meet the Winter in August around Mount Damavand in North. You can skiing in south west in February and the next day within 3 hours driving you can swim in Persian Gulf and get tanned in the amazing beaches at south of Iran.
Iranian Culture
Iran or as it called Persia is one of the most multi-cultural country in the world and ranked by ethnic, cultural, linguistic, religious fractionalization level and diversity.
Some people don’t realize Iranians are not Arabs because Iran is placed in middle east and there are many Arab countries there and many people misunderstood Iran and Iraq which are two different countries. Although there are Arab people live in Iran like many many other groups who live in Iran including Persians, Kurds, Turks, Lors, Baluch, Arabs, Gilaks, Azeris and tens more big and small ethnic groups. Actually historically Iran is the country of minorities. There are even different groups of Nomads with totally different culture around the country.
Each province, each city and each village has their own different handicraft. You will certainly love and spend a lot on beautiful Iranian handwoven silk and wool fabric, amazing hand painted tiles, crazy delicious sweets, Persian carpets of all sizes, colors, and patterns, totally natural organic nuts, colorful pottery and the fabulous jewellery.
Iranian Hospitality
Iran is the country of warm hospitality and It is an essential feature of Iranian culture. And this degree of hospitality is not reserved for foreigners only, this is a very “between-Iranians” prerogative.
Iranian food
From pistachio to black tea, from saffron to kebab, from Mirza Ghasemi to Ghormeh Sabzi, the heavy presence of aromatic herbs makes Persian cuisine appetizing and addictive. While there are national dishes that you can find everywhere, there are others that are exclusive, or at least typical of a particular region. and definitly you can find western food and fast food everywhere if you are picky about food. Food ans restaurant are super clean and hygienic and it is really rare for anybody to get any food poisoning in Iran.
There are lots of choices for vegetarian and vegans and it si part of ancient Iranian food culture
If for food you consider also the single ingredients, Iran is famous for its saffron, much cheaper than in Europe in case you are thinking about some Persian gift shopping or the delicious Iranian pistachio.
Iranian/Persian History
From ancient Persia to modern Iran, from the Achaemenid Empire to the Sassanian era, from the Safavid period to the Qajar dynasty, to finally the Pahlavi family and the Islamic Revolution, Iranian history is as stormy as it gets. With so many Ancient sights, historical places and organised museums to visit in Iran, traveling all around the country you can soak in every period of and delve not into the nation’s tangled past but also the world History.
Oriental Persian architecture
Be it a mosque, a palace or a bazaar, Iranian buildings are finely decorated and glow with ornamental elegance. Pastel colors gracefully interact with bright hues, tapering minarets and seemingly ubiquitous domes outline the landscape, symbols and traditional calligraphy coexist in a charming interplay. Whether inside or outside a building, the sophisticated Persian architecture is always something tourists marvel at every time they visit Iran. Getting enchanted by mesmerizing decorations, fine carvings, and elaborate paintings is one of the best reasons why you should visit Iran.
Adventures in Iran
There are infinite adventures there. Skiing, Hiking, climbing and mountaineering are like daily life and hobby for Iranians since it is a country with amazing high mountains everywhere. There are many Volcanoes there to climb such as 5671m Damavand Volcano which is only one hour from Tehran the capital and it is the Highest mountain in Middle East.
You can Camp almost everywhere for free and it is super safe for camping even in the cities.
You can take horse-riding tours and travel for weeks through the country on horseback. Rafting in the wild rivers, swim in the lakes or just chill in the Persian Gulf amazing beaches.
Costs and Prices
Western misconceptions and preconceptions
Because so very little actual information about the Iran and its citizens is broadcast or written in the West, many people are still stuck in 1979 when revoloution happened. That was a unique time of upheaval, the beginning of the revolution. A revolution that most citizens had no idea would what lead to, they were simply eager to overthrow the king (shah), and everything changed before the rational people could really blink and grasp what was happening.
Does it worth to spend my holiday in Iran? Is it relaxing in Iran?
Yes you will enjoy a relaxed atmosphere. Contrary to common belief, Iranians are Happy Nation and anyone who decided to visit Iran has talked about the laid-back atmosphere. Contrary to many places, you can take pictures pretty much everywhere. Plans and schedules are very flexible and you don't need to run. Vital to complete the breezy and somehow devil-may-care scene is obviously the Iranian friendly attitude. You will always find people picnicking or camping in the nature, always be up for a chat, seldom if ever worried about timetables, surprisingly happy to be the subject of your next photo, and always willing to have you as guests in their house.
Is there a guide or tour company recommend or not recommend?
Yes!
It’s definitely cheaper to use an Iranian agency than an American/Canadian/European touring company and you will definitly get much better service with a local guide or company.
I would love to recommend .......... whom you can contact at .....
To obtain Visa ....
For Accomodation ....
For Transportation .....
If you ask a Iranian friend or guide or company to book all of your accomodation and domestic transportation you will save more than 200 percent of your budget because first of all they are really fair and after all they pay with their Iranian credit card and don't pay for commissions.
