Iran - Andrew Burke [1]
Some travellers prefer not to visit Iran during Ramazan, the Muslim month of fasting, when many restaurants close between dawn and dusk, and tempers can be strained. However, most people (including us) think travelling during Ramazan isn’t as tough as reputation would have it: restaurants in hotels and bus terminals still operate and while buses might be less frequent, Ramazan is the least-crowded time on trains and planes.
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COSTS & MONEY
It’s not quite Zimbabwe, but inflation is running at about 25% in Iran, so expect just about every price in this book to rise – repeatedly – in the coming years (for details, Click here). Inflation or no inflation, Iran remains an eminently affordable place to travel and great value by Western standards.
Backpackers can get by on as little as IR150,000 to IR200,000 (US$16 to US$22) a day, even less if all luxuries are foregone. To do this, however, ‘surviving’ is the operative word; you need to stay in basic lodgings, such as a dorm or basic hotel, known as a mosaferkhaneh (Click here, from about IR50,000/US$5.50), eat the simplest food in local restaurants (preferably only twice a day) and take the cheapest, slowest transport.
If you’re not a complete ascetic you’ll be looking at about IR250,000 to IR400,000 (US$27 to US$43) a day. This will usually be enough for budget or simple midrange accommodation (with a bathroom), one good cooked meal a day, transport by Volvo buses (see the boxed text) or savari Click here, chartered taxis around town (and sometimes in the countryside) and visits to all the important tourist attractions.
For about IR400,000 to IR500,000 (US$43 to US$54) a day you could take a couple of internal flights, eat at restaurants serving ‘exotic’ Western fare, and lodge in midrange hotels with Western toilets and satellite TV.
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THE END OF DUAL-PRICING IN HOTELS?
As this book went to press, Iran was in the midst of a fight about the future of dual pricing in hotels – where foreigners pay significantly more for hotel rooms than Iranians do. Dual pricing has been in force for years, but in early 2008 the government tourism organisation ordered all hotels to use one rate for everyone. For full details, Click here.
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If you prefer upper midrange or top-end hotels you’ll be looking at somewhere more than IR700,000 (US$76) a day. Single and twin/double rooms cost virtually the same, so couples should expect to pay considerably less than double the figures quoted here.
Getting around Iran is cheap; comfortable buses work out at less than IR9200 (US$1) per 100km, while a bed on an overnight train starts at IR92,000 (US$10). Domestic flights are no longer as ridiculously cheap as they were, but you can still fly from Tehran to Esfahan, for example, for only IR245,000 (US$27).
In 2004 the government ended dual-pricing at museums and historical sites, so admission fees won’t hurt too much either – between about IR1500 and IR6000 for most places.
Remember that travellers cheques and credit cards don’t work in Iran, so bring all the money you’ll need in cash (Click here).
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HOW MUCH?
Meal in a cheap restaurant IR20,000
One hour online IR10,000
Short taxi ride IR6000-10,000
Average museum ticket IR4000
Two-pack of toilet paper IR700
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READING UP
Travellers have been writing about Iran for millennia so there are plenty of evocative travelogues worth hunting down. And while English-language fiction is scarce, Iran has been the subject of dozens of political and historical books in recent years. For books by Iranian writers, Click here.
Most of these books are not available or are banned in Iran, but bringing them or any other book into the country shouldn’t be a problem. Notable exceptions are Not Without My Daughter, which is despised by most Iranians, or anything by Salman Rushdie. For more