Attractions of Iran

Iran's capital is a huge, sprawling metropolis of some 15 million people and its main attractions are its numerous imperial palaces and museums. The Sa'd Abad Palace and Museum complex includes the White Palace, the former summer palace of the Pahlavi royal family, which highlights the opulent lifestyle of the Shah. Golestan Palace comprises several buildings and a beautiful garden and was constructed in the 19th century by the Qajar rulers. The National Museum of Iran houses a huge and impressive collection of historical artefacts from around the country with one building detailing ancient Persian history and another dealing with the Islamic period. The Carpet Museum contains over 100 exquisite Persian rugs while other museums of note include the National Jewellery Museum, the Glass and Ceramics Museum and the Islamic Museum.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Golestan Palace

The settlement of Kashan dates back to the 4th millennium BC and is reputedly the town from which the Three Wise Men started their journey to Bethlehem. Kashan is home to some of the finest traditional houses in Iran, created by wealthy merchants. Borujerdi House was built in the 1840s and consists of a four beautiful courtyards, delightful wall paintings and elegant stained glass windows. The Fin Garden is a classical Persian Garden while the Agha Bozorg Mosque and Madrassa are the finest Islamic structures in town.

Esfahan is Iran's pearl, one of the finest places in the Islamic world and one of the great destinations in world travel. Although it dates back to the beginning of the Islamic period, Esfahan reached its peak under Shah Abbas the Great when he moved his capital here at the beginning of the 17th century. Esfahan's most impressive site is the enormous and spectacular Royal Square or Meidan Eman, over 80,000 square metres and the second largest city square in the world. The square, built as a royal polo ground and once home to entertainers, preachers and Silk Road caravans, is bordered on each side by four monumental buildings. The Mosque of Sheikh Lotfollah is renowned for its beautiful dome and exquisite tile work. The Ali Qapu Palace was developed from an earlier Timurid palace and was used by the Shah to receive guests and foreign dignitaries. It is renowned for its superb plaster works and paintings and has a balcony overlooking the square. The magnificent Royal Mosque and the Portico of Qaysariyyeh complete the historical masterpieces. The Imperial Bazaar leads from the square to the north, a labyrinth of alleyways selling carpets, sweets and spices, tiles, jewellery and bright clothes. Other buildings of note include Vank Cathedral in the Armenian quarter of Jolfa, Chehel Sotun Palace also known as 40 Columns Palace due to the reflection of its 20 columns in waters of its fountain and the shaking minarets of Minar-e Jonban. The historic bridges of the Zayandeh River include Si o Se Pol (the Bridge of 33 Arches) and the Khaju Bridge.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Meidan Emam, Esfahan

Yazd is a desert city that was a major centre along the Silk Road and is the centre of Zoroastrianism, Iran's state religion before the arrival of Islam and a belief which predates Christianity. Over 10,000 believers still reside in the city today. Here the Towers of Silence on a hilltop was the traditional Zoroastrian burial ground, where bodies were left to be eaten by vultures. The Zoroastrian Fire Temple has a flame that has burned for over 1,500 years. Yazd is also renowned for its wind towers or badgirs which captured breezes and cooled living quarters below. The old town of Yazd is perfect for exploring on foot amidst the clay brick houses, ancient Islamic buildings and labyrinthine of narrow alleyways. Other notable attractions include the Jameh mosque with its twin 48 metre minarets, the Doulat Gardens and the Amir Chakhmaq mosque.

Araqu is a charming desert town set amidst the backdrop of the Zagros Mountains. Highlights here include the famous ice house, the 11th century Gonbad Ali Dome and a 4,000 year old cypress tree, an ideal spot to a tea break.

Shiraz is a very atmospheric and romantic city, whose history stretches back to ancient Persia when it was the centre of rule between the Achaemenid era in the 6th century BC and the Sassanian era in the 7th century AD. It is regarded as Iran's cultural centre with the most prestigious universities in the country. The exquisite tombs of the 14th century poets Hafez and Sa'di are set in beautiful gardens and are important places of pilgrimage for Iranians. Other attractions include the 19th century Nasir al-mulk mosque, the beautiful Eram Gardens, the Bazar-e Vakil bazaar and the Naranjestan palace and gardens.

Persepolis was founded by Darius I in 518 BC as the ceremonial capital of his vast empire and it was one of the most impressive constructions of the ancient world. Darius built the terrace, the Apadana (great audience hall), the Tachana (palace) and the monumental staircases while his son, Xerxes, added the harem and the Hall of 100 columns. Persepolis was the setting for the Norouz New Year celebrations when delegations from all parts of the empire would come and pay tribute to the 'King of Kings', recorded in bas-reliefs on the staircase leading up to the Apadana. In 330 BC Alexander the Great burned the city to the ground. Although a shadow of its former self, Persepolis is the best-preserved monument of the Old Persian Empire.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Persepolis

The cliff-face cave tombs at Naqsh-e-Rostam contain the bodies of several Achaemenid kings, including Darius I and his successors Xerxes, Artaxerxes and Darius II. The site also contains reliefs from the Sassanid era depicting battles that glorify the Sassanid kings.

Pasargadae was the first dynastic capital of the Achaemenid Empire, founded by Cyrus II the Great in the 6th century BC, preceding Persepolis of Darius I. The remains include the Mausoleum of Cyrus II, the fortified terrace of Tall-e Takht and a royal ensemble of gatehouse, audience hall, residential palace and gardens. Pasargadae was the capital of the first multicultural empire in western Asia where the cultural diversity of its different peoples were respected.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Pasargadae

The hydraulic system at Shushtar can be traced back to Darius the Great in the 5th century BC. It involved two main diversion canals on the river Kârun which supplied the town and the plain south of the city known as Mianâb (Paradise), enabling farming and the planting of orchards. The site includes the operation centre of the entire hydraulic system, the tower where the water level is measured, damns, bridges, basins and mills and some of it is still in use today.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Shushtar Historical Hydraulic System

Tchogha Zanbil contains the ruins of the holy city of the Kingdom of Elam, dating to 1,250 BC. The site is surrounded by three huge concentric walls and contains the largest and best preserved of all the ziggurats of Mesopotamia, today some 25 metres high. Thousands of unused bricks at the site indicate the city was unfinished before it was invaded by Ashurbanipal.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Tchogha Zanbil

The principle monument at Bisotun is a bas-relief of Darius I, The Great, constructed when he rose to the throne of the Persian Empire in 521 BC. The relief, 15 metres high and 25 metres long, depicts him holding a bow, as a sign of sovereignty, and treading on the chest of Gaumata, the Median Magus and pretender to the throne whose assassination led to Darius’s rise to power. Around this bas-relief are approximately 1,200 lines of inscriptions telling the story of the battles Darius waged in 521-520 BC against the governors who attempted to take apart the Empire founded by Cyrus. These are written in three languages - Elamite, Babylonian and Old Persian.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Bisotun

Hamedan's history dates back to the 8th century BC when it was known as Ecbatana. It was redesigned as a modern city in 1929 but has a number of historical attractions. These include the Mausoleum of Avicenna, a medieval philosopher, physicist and poet considered to be one of the founders of modern medicine and the tomb of the biblical Esther, the Jewish wife of Persian King Xerxes which was once an important Jewish pilgrimage site.

Soltaniyeh was made the capital of the Ilkhanid dynasty in 1304 by its ruler, Oljaytu. His mausoleum is an outstanding example of Persian architecture with one of the largest domes in the world (48 metres high and 25 metres in diameter). It is the earliest example of a double-shelled dome in Iran, is covered in turquoise blue faience and surrounded by eight minarets.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Soltaniyeh

Takht-e Soleyman (or Throne of Solomon) is an archaeological site containing the remains of the Azar Goshnab Zoroastrian Fire Temple dating from the Sassanian period in the 6th and 7th centuries and is the holiest shrine of Zoroastrianism.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Takht-e Soleyman

The Sheikh Safi al-din Khanegah and Shrine Ensemble in Ardabil is a Sufi spiritual retreat built between the 16th and 18th centuries. The site is a prime example of medieval Islamic architecture, with richly decorated interiors and a large collection of antiques.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Sheikh Safi al-din Khanegah and Shrine Ensemble in Ardabil

Tabriz was one of the most important cultural centres on the Silk Road and its bazaar complex is a reminder of this period and traditional commercial centres in Iran. Tabriz was the capital city of the Safavid kingdom from the 13th to the 16th centuries and remained an important commercial hub until the end of the 18th century.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Tabriz Historic Bazaar Complex

There are three Armenian monasteries in north-western Iran - St Thaddeus, St Stepanos and the Chapel of Dzordzor which date to the 7th century and have a high spiritual significance for the Armenian Church. These have been rebuilt several times over the past 1,400 years and today are the only vestiges of Armenian culture in this region.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Armenian Monastic Ensembles of Iran

Bam is situated in the deserts of south-eastern Iran. It dates back to the Achaemenid period (6th to 4th centuries BC) but reached its peak between the 7th and 11th centuries, as a crossroads on important trade routes and known for the production of silk and cotton garments. Its existence as an oasis was made possible by underground irrigation canals.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Bam and its Cultural Landscape

Mount Damavand is Iran's highest mountain at 5,671 metres, located northeast of Tehran overlooking the Caspian Sea. It has a classic volcano shape and provides a tough but non-technical trekking challenge. From the summit, the green slopes and valleys to the north and the barren deserts to the south ensure spectacular views.

The Persian Gardens, which are located throughout Iran, date to different periods from the 6th century BC onwards but reflect the same principles in their design. The gardens symbolise Eden and the four Zoroastrian elements of sky, earth, water and plants. They also feature buildings, pavilions and walls, as well as sophisticated irrigation systems and have influenced garden design as far as India and Spain.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: The Persian Garden

The 53 m high tomb built in 1006 AD for Qabus Ibn Voshmgir, Ziyarid ruler and literati, is the only remaining evidence of of the ancient city of Jorjan in north-east Iran. Jorjan was a centre of arts and science that was destroyed during the Mongols’ invasion in the 14th and 15th centuries. The tower is an excellent example of the Islamic architecture that influenced sacral building in Iran, Anatolia and Central Asia and illustrates the development of mathematics and science in the Muslim world at the turn of the first millennium AD.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Gonbad-e Q?bus

The Masjed-e Jamé, or ‘Friday mosque’, is located in the historic centre of Esfahan. Begun in 841 AD, it is the oldest preserved edifice of its type in Iran and a prototype for later mosque designs throughout Central Asia. The complex is the first Islamic building that adapted the four-courtyard layout of Sassanid palaces to Islamic religious architecture. Its double-shelled ribbed domes represent an architectural innovation that inspired builders throughout the region. The site also features remarkable decorative details representative of stylistic developments over more than a thousand years of Islamic art.

UNESCO World Heritage Site: Masjed-e J?mé of Isfahan