PLAN TRIP : IRAN - KOTA PARSI

 PLAN TRIP : IRAN - KOTA PARSI

 

 TRAVEL TO IRAN

 

 HOW TO GET TO TEHRAN FROM AIRPORT

The International airport of Tehran is almost 70 kilometers from the city center. These are the different ways to get to the city:

By taxi

The local price for a taxi is something between 10 and 15USD. If they see you are a tourist, they will definitely try to rip you off. I actually met a girl who paid 25USD.

Try to bargain and, if they tell you a higher price, look for another driver. Alternatively, if you go the departures terminal, you can find some taxis which are going back to the city empty and may be willing to offer you a cheaper price.

By Snapp

Snapp is the Iranian Uber and a cheaper way to get to the center of Tehran. Get an Iranian Cell SIM Card at the airport and order a taxi. The app is available for both iPhone and Android. 

By metro

There’s a metro connecting the airport with the city center. However, the journey is pretty long, around 1 hour and 30 minutes. A single ticket costs as little as 10,000IR (24¢).

 

Transportation – How to move around Tehran

By metro

The metro in Iran is extremely effective, as it runs very frequently, it’s super cheap and it goes absolutely everywhere, including all the touristic sites. Each metro ride costs 10,000IR (24¢).

Nevertheless, if you are planning to stay in Tehran for a few days, you should get a Metro Card, which is free of charge but you need to buy at least 5 trips. Here you can find the Tehran Metro Map. 

By taxi

You can get regular taxis, of course, but, if you want to avoid bargaining, get Snapp App, the Iranian Uber I mentioned previously. I took a 20 minutes taxi and just paid 100,000IR (2.40USD). 

By bus

There are several bus lines moving around the city but, to be very honest, I didn’t need to take any. With metro and taxi, you will be more than fine.

 

WHERE TO STAY

1.Budget Hostel (Top Choice) – Heritage Hostel 

2.Budget Hotel – Khayyam Hotel

3.A bit nicer – Hejab Hotel

4.

 

PLACE TO VISIT

1. THE GRAND BAZAR - Market Bazar

2. Tajrish Bazaar and Imamzadeh Saleh - Bazaar, Market, Shrine

 

 

 3. National Museum of Iran - Building, Museum, Park

4. Golestan Palace, Tehran - Bazaar, Museum

5. Tochal Sport and Recreational Complex - Ski Resort / DIZZIN Ski Resort

6. Baame Tehran - Tehran Roof

 

7. Taabiat Bridge

 VISA

 

 

More information for when you visit Tehran

Travel Insurance

Remember that most travel insurance companies don’t cover for travel in Tehran and the rest of Iran. Therefore, I recommend you read my tutorial: How to find the right travel insurance for Iran.

Get a SIM Card

To get a SIM Card, you should go to an IranCell branch and the easiest place would be at Emam Khomeni metro station, right in the city center. The shop is located in the station itself and, to buy a SIM Card, you will just need your passport.

You can also get your SIM Card at the airport but I am not sure how much does it cost.

Access blocked sites

Remember that many popular websites are blocked in Iran.

Read: How to get a VPN and access blocked sites in Iran

Exchanging money in Tehran

The rate at the airport was not that bad, so get some local currency there to survive the first few days. In the city, exchanging in the black market is quite popular and you will always have people approaching you with this purpose.

However, sometimes they tried to rip me off, so I prefer to go to an exchange office. At Emam Khomeni Metro Station, there are several offices just one or two blocks away, right here: 35.693607, 51.419224.

 

 

How to get to Tochal from Tehran City Centre (and vice versa)

Tochal: Tochal is a great day-trip from Tehran. It’s located at the Alborz mountain range and offers a great view of the city. From one of the scariest roller coaster that I’ve ridden to the best skiing paradise in Middle East, this attraction complex has it all. Station 7 is the main reason why people come to Tochal complex. It is also frequented by ski connoisseurs for the fluffy snow. Ski season is normally from early November to April or sometimes June. 

From the city centre of Tehran, there are three steps you need to do before reaching Station 7, which is the highest peak of Tochal mountain. 

Step one:

City Centre – Base of Tochal mountain

• The easiest way to get to the base of Tochal mountain is to use Snapp (Uber-equivalent in Tehran) to grab a ride straight to Tochal. Snapp is affordable and trustworthy. Here’s how you can activate the app.
• To be more frugal, you can grab a metro to Tajrish station. From Tajrish station, walk to Tajrish square and grab a Snapp to the base of Tochal mountain.

Step two:

Base of Tochal mountain – Place to ride the cabin car

• Once you are at the base of Tochal mountain, walk through the parking area and there will be a small shuttle bus which takes you to the cabin car (it’s called telecabin there). A one-way ticket costs 10,000 rials per person.
• You can also choose to walk. Depending on your fitness level, it will take around 30 minutes to 1 hour for you to reach the place to ride the cabin car. You can take a lot of beautiful photos of the city from high when you are walking.

Step three:

Place to ride the cabin car – Station 7

• Bear in mind that you need to buy a ticket before lining up! The ticket booth is an isolated small hut that is found next to the queuing area. Be sure to get a ticket before you queue again.
• Take a telecabin and tell the operator that you are going to Station 7. As it’s the highest point of Tochal mountain, it is really really snowy. If you love the snow, this will be a winter wonderland for you. A return ticket to Station 7 costs 380,000 rials per person.
• As the temperature can drop to -10 to -20 degree Celsius, opt out Station 7 if you don’t have enough winter gear. You can stop at Station 2 or 5, although they don’t offer as beautiful view as what Station 7 does. Return tickets are cheaper if you are going to Station 2 (150,000 rials) or Station 5 (270,000 rials).

Go to Tochal as early as possible. Generally, the opening hours are from 8am to 3pm (Tue – Sun). However, this highly depends on the time of the year and also the weather. They had an official website before but it’s not working anymore. If you absolutely have to know the opening hours of the telecabin, call + 9821-24875000 when you are in Iran. 

Avoid going on weekends (which is Friday and Saturday in Iran) to avoid hordes of tourists. Most of the tourists are Iranians themselves.