Syria looks like a cool place to visit too.
Worldly, and well traveled are you? ;)
Yup. I was just there this past summer on the Mongol Rally. The economy is in a shit show right and the government wants to put you in prison. BUT otherwise its a very interesting place with amazing people. You feel like a celebrity because they rarely get foreigners and I never felt unsafe in public.
So first thing is they are slowly relaxing the rules for travelers. You can get a visa online now, no invites or letters needed, but it might help: https://e_visa.mfa.ir/en/ That will get you an invitation you must take to an embassy in person :/ We did ours in Ankara because rally but good luck otherwise. Visa Services Canada might be able to help you.
We only did 5 days because of the rally but some points for us.
Carpet shopping in Tabriz is neat. This is THE place for Persian rugs. Fun fact, as part of your visa there is an export limit on how many carpets you can take. I found that hilarious.
Tehran is very new city so dont expect much heritage but there is plenty of things to see and do.
Try to get to the north coast like Behshahr and Gorgan. The mountain ranges are very neat and full of wildlife.
Mashhad is a very spiritual city if you are into that but we didn't go.
Shiraz and Persepolis are major cultural hits but we also didnt make it that far south.
Buy the lonely planet book. Full of good shit.
You will probably need a guide as Canadians and Brits do. Aussies dont? Our guy was named Reza, Cool dude with tons of knowledge and good rates. info: http://explorelovelyiran.com/
[email protected]
Currency, Market is in a shit show right now so what you want to do is buy your currency with EURO (preferred) or USD on the black market. Our tour guide was able to get us 70,000 Rial to the USD vs the government rate of ~30,000!
Fuel (since we had a car) is DIRT DIRT cheap. like 15cents per litre. It felt almost wrong paying nothing for fuel. However there was fuel shortages across the country so we had to carry 2 extra in jerry cans. Didn't need it but was sure good peace of mind when you see people lining up for fuel. I also dont suggest bringing a car into the country as you need a Carnet de Passage == $$$.
Also a small note that booze is publicly illegal so dont expect to be getting wasted on the town. Citizens are allowed to brew so you may get lucky with home made wine.
Also the boarder into Ashgabat is a fucking nightmare (500$ in bribes and 6 hours to get through!) not that you care but it was eventful in our trip.
So to summarize my rant, all in I highly suggest visiting, very safe and some of the oldest human history on the planet. I would go back myself if the opportunity was right. Let me know if you need help.
Thanks for this post. Quite handy.
I have an Iranian friend, that is trying to put together an invitation letter. He lives in Calgary, his family back in Tehran He's apprised me on the no-booze, and that the Rial is getting slaughtered at the moment.
That said, the need for a tour guide 100% of the time, could make this too costly. I'm looking to spend a couple weeks snowboarding, North of Tehran, and then a week or so, chilling in Kish. I also have a good friend, that is still snowboarding professionally, and may join as well - dependent upon travel budget. Doesn't know my Iranian friend though. Complicates things I'm sure.
Per this VISA application guide, I have completed the first 8 steps. Now I am in the process of putting together the invitation letter (guide ugh?), and then sending to Pakistani Consulate in Washington. http://www.daftar.org/forms/visas/101.pdf which led me to the main Iranian visa page. https://e_visa.mfa.ir/en/
I consider myself to be fairly well travelled, and after having visited over 50 countries, Iran is still my favourite country to visit, by far. The only thing that's keeping me away at the moment are the strict visa rules for Canadian/British visitors - you need to be on a guided tour at all times, and I'd like to explore on my own for my third visit.
I'm not sure if your referral letter will be enough? You'll have to obtain a visa reference number to visit if you're a Canadian/US/British citizen, and these are only given following the approval of an itinerary from an official tour agency. Once you have a visa reference number, you'll send your passport to the Embassy of Pakistan (Iranian Interest Section) in Washington D.C. for the visa.
Shiraz is an absolute must-see, and it's probably my favourite city in the world. Tehran is impossible to avoid, but as mentioned earlier, it's a fairly young city by Iranian standards and there's not a ton of history there. Yazd is also a wonderful city to visit. Carry US dollars or Euros as they are easily exchangeable for Rials. The economy is really in the shitter in the moment - it was 11,500 Rials per US dollar during my first visit 7.5 years ago - it's over 100,000 per USD today, so make sure you spend your Rials before you leave the country.
There are many great documentaries about Iran out there - two of my favourites is are "Rageh in Iran" and "Taste of Iran". Rick Steves has a great episode on Iran, as does Anthony Bourdain when he visited there for an episode of Parts Unknown.
Appreciate this as well. The strict visa rules concern me. I want to adventure, and I'm planning on bringing my split-board.
Flights are booked. Jan 15-Feb 7
Feedback welcome.