Travellers' reviews about Iran

Everything fine

Favourite moments? When people came up to us to welcome us to their country, chatting to us in English and being so friendly. We travelled from Tehran to Shiraz by air, then drove back north through the countryside, visiting the main cities on the way.

All was great, Ms. Feriadooni was very knowledgeable in the history of the country & I had many, many good memories to mention.

Iran lived up to and exceeded our expectations.. Highlights Included Shiraz Tangerine flower garden and Persepolis.

We found the history and the people fascinating. Isfahan was especially beautiful, we also loved Kashan and the carpet merchant's houses which are gradually being renovated to their former glory.

We visited Teh'ran, Kashan, Esfahan, Yazd, Abyaneh, Shiraz, Rasht, Massouleh - and travelled overall 1600 miles by car, with a total of 80 miles walked in 14 days. We also travelled by plane from Shiraz to Rasht and we found that was very well organised felt very secure throughout the flight. Our guide was a superb driver and quite knowledgeable, he was very organised and prepared a basket of fruits and food we shared during longer drives between the main cities. He was very attentive so we do not miss anything, and provided us regularly with water and we all had a great time and became good friends. We wanted to see a couple of different sites that were not on the schedule - overall the agency/guide may be tempted to fit in the itinerary mostly museums and mosques, but we were interested to also see some smaller sites, like unusual pigeon towers in Esfahan and the fantastic view from the Fire Temple on the outskirts of the town. We were very happy to be allowed this flexibility - the drivers can find any such site using Google-maps and it was a doddle to get there. We ate really good food in some restaurants that we could not have found without local knowledge and overall we were very happy with the food. We also picked food up from small villages and tried the basil seed juice that is sold on the street and enjoyed it - fresh cakes and bread were amazing. For a vegetarian there would be rice and salads to eat, as the menus are mostly meat - even the stews are cooked with some meat - however, this is a small price to pay to see this amazing country. Accommodation was adequate, western standard, whilst public toilets may have a French style squatting loo, we had no problem with that. We thoroughly enjoyed our trip and felt welcomed and secure throughout. The agency we used, and in particular Fatemeh, Hesam and Mehdi, are in our hearts forever for providing us such a great holiday in Iran. We recommend this trip to anyone interested in this part of the world.

First of all I should say that we had to curtail our trip after only 4 days due to a family tragedy. On arrival we were met at the airport by Fatemeh and taken to a hostel to rest before our flight to Shiraz in the evening where we were met by our guide Hesam with 2 beautiful bouquets of flowers. Our first day in Shiraz was spent visiting the Arg - Karim Khan Zand in the morning. Relaxed and had lunch in a square near the Bazaar then wandered round the Bazaar. We spent the afternoon in the magnificent Bagh-e Eram gardens and in the evening visited the Tomb of the poet Hafez in the moonlight. Hesam provided us with a detailed history of the enlightened reign of Karim Khan and the restoration involved in the citadel, plus the importance of poetry in Iranian culture. The following day Hesam suggested we go to Persepolis rather than go on the final day en route to Yazd - a wise decision as it merited more than a couple of hours. Magnificent carvings and an impressive site, a fascinating history too. Lunch at a lovely off the road restaurant then on to Naqsh-e Rostam, 4 tombs from the Archaemenid Empire including that of Darius 11 and Darius the Great, all carved into the mountains. Also a Zoastrian shrine Kaba-e Zardosht. In the evening we dined at the Haft Khan restaurant, a sumptious complex with 5 stories we chose the basement with it's traditional Persian cuisine. We wanted a chance to meet Iranians so Hesam introduced us to a delightful couple who joined us for dinner, a very jolly evening. Drove to Yazd - wonderful journey through the mountains. After checking into our hotel we went to the Artisan Cafe, a rooftop cafe in the old part of Yazd and watched the sun go down. A spectacular view of the vernacular buildings and the Badgirs ( wind towers ). Later over dinner we had a phone call from the UK to say my husbands sister in New Zealand had been involved in a terrible accident and they weren't sure whether or not she would recover. The following day was Friday so little could be done until the following day. The problems for getting back and then to NZ were enormous not helped by sanctions ensuring we couldn't use our bank cards to book our flights. Fatemeh was absolutely marvellous as was Hasem and between them they managed to get us flights from Esfahan, saving us a 12 hr drive to Tehran and sorting out our cash problems.

One of the most welcoming people we ever met. Very interesting historical sites. Good confortable/clean hotels. Very easy to work with Evaneos site and very helpfull

We really liked Isfahan, Shiraz and Tehran, all locations were great!

The trip was for 6 nights where I visited Shiraz, Persepolis, Esfahan, Yazd and Kashan. The trip was organised by a local travel agency (Parisian) which helped me organise my stay and made sure I get what I want. I had a private guide and a private car with driver. The driver was very nice and I felt safe throughout the way. The agency were very accommodative, flexible and responsive, which made me feel safe and satisfied. My visit included, historical, cultural and religious sights which was my choice. I had a full program from day to night, it was exhausting but amazing. The weather was perfect. Hotels were in total OK, but it didn't matter much as I was only sleeping there. I recommend Iran to all as it is a great country with great food and very nice and honest people.