Iran’s cities range from the capital Tehran, home to over nine million people, to desert towns like Yazd and mountain villages like Abyaneh. Each page gives the city’s history, what it is known for and what to see.
Tehran: Iran’s CapitalTehran city guide: how a village near Rey became Iran’s capital in 1786, its north–south districts, main museums, and how to travel around t…MashhadMashhad, Iran’s second city: how Imam Reza’s tomb grew into a pilgrimage city, its role under Nader Shah, nearby Tus and Ferdowsi, and getti…IsfahanIsfahan guide: from Seljuk capital to Shah Abbas’s “half the world”, the square, the Zayandeh Rud bridges, Armenian New Julfa, crafts and ge…ShirazShiraz guide: Buyid and Zand capital, home of Hafez and Saadi, its gardens and Vakil buildings, the Syrah myth, and Shiraz as a base for Per…TabrizTabriz guide: Ilkhanid and early Safavid capital, its UNESCO bazaar, its role in the Constitutional Revolution, Azerbaijani culture, food an…YazdYazd guide: how a desert city kept cool with windcatchers and qanats, its Zoroastrian fire temple and towers of silence, old quarters and ge…KashanKashan guide: Tepe Sialk, the tile-makers who gave Persian the word kashi, Fin Garden and Amir Kabir, Qajar merchant houses, rosewater and g…KermanKerman guide: Sasanian origins, Seljuk rule, the 1794 Qajar siege, the bazaar and Ganjali Khan complex, carpets, and trips to the Lut desert…HamadanHamadan guide: ancient Ecbatana of the Medes, the tombs of Avicenna and Baba Taher, the Ganjnameh inscriptions, Esther and Mordecai, and tra…QomQom guide: the shrine of Fatima Masumeh, how Qom became the main centre of Shi’a learning, its role in modern politics, sohan sweets and vis…AhvazAhvaz guide: Khuzestan capital on the Karun, from Sasanian Hormizd-Ardashir to oil city, its famous bridges, heat, food and trips to Susa.RashtRasht guide: Gilan capital on the Caspian plain, silk-trade history, the Jangali republic, rain, UNESCO gastronomy, bazaar and trips to Masu…KermanshahKermanshah guide: western Iran's largest city on the road to Mesopotamia, its Qajar past, Kurdish culture, Taq-e Bostan and nearby Behistun.UrmiaUrmia guide: West Azerbaijan capital by Lake Urmia, its Assyrian churches and missionaries, the 1918 exodus, the shrinking lake and what to…ArdabilArdabil guide: the cold upland city where the Safavid dynasty began, the UNESCO Sheikh Safi shrine, the Ardabil Carpet, Sabalan and Sarein s…ZanjanZanjan guide: the Qajar bazaar town between Tehran and Tabriz, its knives and filigree, the Rakhtshuy-khaneh, the Saltmen and nearby Soltani…QazvinQazvin guide: the Safavid capital before Isfahan, its Chehel Sotoun, caravanserais and cisterns, famous baghlava, and trips to the Alamut va…SanandajSanandaj guide: the Ardalan capital of Iranian Kurdistan, its Dar ul-Ihsan Mosque and Qajar houses, Kurdish music and crafts, and trips to H…KhorramabadKhorramabad guide: Lorestan capital in the Zagros, its Falak-ol-Aflak fortress, UNESCO prehistoric caves, Lur culture, bronzes and waterfall…Bandar AbbasBandar Abbas guide: Iran's main port on the Strait of Hormuz, from Portuguese Gamrun to Shah Abbas, the Hindu temple, Bandari culture and fe…BushehrBushehr guide: Nader Shah's port and the British Residency, the coral-stone old town with shenashil balconies, Bushehri music, food and hist…ZahedanZahedan grew from a railway village called Duzdab into the capital of Sistan and Baluchestan, Iran's main Baluch and Sunni city near Pakista…BirjandBirjand, capital of South Khorasan: its hilltop castle, the UNESCO-listed Akbariyeh Garden, the Alam family, saffron and barberry fields.GorganGorgan, once Astarabad, is the capital of Golestan province: the old quarter, Qajar roots, forest parks, and the road to Gonbad-e Qabus.SariSari, capital of Mazandaran: Tabaristan's history, the clock tower square, Marashi tomb towers, rice and citrus, and trips to Badab-e Surt.SemnanSemnan sits where the Alborz meets the Dasht-e Kavir: an 11th-century minaret, the Qajar Arg gate, its own Semnani language and caravan past…ArakArak was founded as Soltanabad in the Qajar period: its planned bazaar, the Farahan region of Amir Kabir, Sarouk carpets and heavy industry.IlamIlam, capital of Ilam province on the Iraqi border: the valis of Posht-e Kuh, Vali Castle, Kurdish and Lak culture, and the Iran-Iraq War.YasujYasuj, capital of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad: a young town under Mount Dena, Lur tribal life, waterfalls and the Persian Gates of Alexander.Shahr-e KordShahr-e Kord, at about 2,070 m one of Iran's highest cities, is the capital of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari: nomad migrations, khans and snow.BojnurdBojnurd, capital of North Khorasan: Kurmanji Kurds settled by the Safavids, the Qajar Mofakham Mirror House, bakhshi music and Turkmen ties.KarajKaraj is Iran's fourth-largest city and capital of Alborz province: the Karaj river and dam, the Chalus road, a Safavid caravanserai and sub…Abadan and KhorramshahrAbadan and Khorramshahr in Khuzestan: the 1912 oil refinery, the 1951 crisis, the Cinema Rex fire, the 1980 siege and the 1982 liberation.Kish IslandKish Island in the Persian Gulf: medieval port of Qays, the 1970s royal resort, the free zone, the Greek Ship, Harireh ruins and the Kariz.Qeshm IslandQeshm, the largest island in the Persian Gulf: Hara mangroves, Stars Valley and Namakdan cave, Laft village, lenj boats and the 1622 Portugu…Hormuz IslandHormuz Island: the medieval trading kingdom, the Portuguese fort taken in 1622, the red ochre soil, Rainbow Valley and how to visit from Ban…MasulehMasuleh in Gilan: a stepped mountain village where roofs serve as streets, its iron-working past, Old Masuleh, local crafts and how to visit…AbyanehAbyaneh, the red village near Kashan: iron-rich clay houses, a mosque with an 1073 pulpit, floral headscarves, the local dialect and visitin…KandovanKandovan near Tabriz: homes carved into volcanic cones (karan) from Mount Sahand ash, how old the village may be, local honey and tips for a…BamBam in Kerman province: the date-palm oasis and its qanats, the Arg-e Bam citadel, the 2003 earthquake that killed over 26,000, and the rebu…Neyshabur (Nishapur)Neyshabur (Nishapur) in Khorasan: Sasanian foundation, Tahirid and Seljuk capital, the Mongol massacre of 1221, and the tombs of Khayyam and…Shush (Susa) TodayShush, the modern town beside ancient Susa in Khuzestan: the Tomb of Daniel, the French castle of 1897, visiting the Apadana and nearby Chog…
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