Yalda Night Yalda is the traditional Iranian celebration of the winter solstice – the longest night of the year. Observed widely throughout Iran’s history stretching back into pre-Zoroastrian times, Yalda Night evolved into a treasured festival bringing the family together and continues to be practiced by Iranians around the world. The ritual symbolizes the rebirth of light following the darkest night, and mythologically speaking, represents a critical moment in the eternal battle of Ahuramazada (light/ virtue/ existence) over Ahriman (dark/ evil/ nonexistence). On this cosmically important night, family members gather together in the home of the family elder (typically grandparents, parents, or great aunts and uncles) to share sweets, red fruits (including pomegranate, watermelon, and persimmon), and a mix of candied and roasted nuts. Sometimes, Persian herbed rice with fish is steamed for dinner. In the old days, fruits were set on a korsi – a low table with a heating source underneath – and the family would huddle under a thick blanket to munch on treats and tell stories. The use of the korsi diminished as modern heating systems became common in Iranian homes, but the feeling of togetherness survives in various forms. Some choose to eschew the traditional ceremony and instead gather with close friends for a music-fueled dance party. Whatever the feast, the one ever-present element is the cherished poetry of Hafez, the 14th-century Iranian poet, and mystic, whose words, even 700 years later, are still revered as a kind of oracle by all generations. Similar to fortune-telling with a side of mysticism, each family member puts their hand on the edge of the book, closes their eyes as they make a wish, and opens up a random page. Every family has a dedicated reader, who interprets the selected poem to suit the details of the wisher’s life. It
Yalda Night Yalda is the traditional Iranian celebration of the winter solstice – the longest night of the year. Observed widely throughout Iran’s history stretching back into pre-Zoroastrian times, Yalda Night evolved into a treasured festival bringing the family together and continues to be practiced by Iranians around the world. The ritual symbolizes the rebirth
Sven Hedin’s footsteps in Iran Central Desert The video is about a long desert trekking in Dasht-e Kavir desert and is made from different Adventure Iran desert trekking tours from 2011 to 2019. Unfortunately, we haven’t got much footage from our trips and the video was made from what we could get from these memorable trips. But in our Adventure Iran’s photo gallery section you will find a lot of high quality pictures taken from similar tours that we have done in the years. Sven Hedin is a Swedish geographer, topographer, explorer and travel writer who traveled to Iran in 1886 and 1890 and he passed this part of the desert with camels and camel mans so in the hour of his work we named one of our expedition trekking trips after him. The region is Khor and Biabanak which is located in the heart of Iran Central Desert, 400 km east of Isfahan. We designed a trek mostly travelable by camels that passes a number of oases and villages inside of the desert.You can see the remains of the date farms and some agricultural regions in the desert with some sheep and cows on the farms and of course some camels which are the main highlights of the desert. The trail is designed to pass different terrain types like flat desert, soft desert and sand dunes, Salt Lake and mountains. Spring and autumn are the best seasons to take this trek. March and April in spring are perfect as you have more daylight in the desert. In October and November, you have better temperature but the daylight is a couple of hours shorter than spring. You can start your journey from Yazd or Isfahan which are the most popular cities for travelers who visit Iran Classical Routes.
Sven Hedin’s footsteps in Iran Central Desert The video is about a long desert trekking in Dasht-e Kavir desert and is made from different Adventure Iran desert trekking tours from 2011 to 2019. Unfortunately, we haven’t got much footage from our trips and the video was made from what we could get from these memorable
Best time for Cycling in Iran (A Cycling Guide for Traveling in Iran by Bicycle) When is the best time to travel to Iran for a cycling holiday? You can cycle all year round as every corner of the country has something to offer, depending on the season and the region, and it is a great advantage. This means there is not a high season, low season, or off-season for cyclists like in many other countries. To answer this question, we need to explain a little more about Iran to find out when is the best time for cycling in Iran. Iran is a vast country with a lot of high mountains, deserts, rivers, many national parks, and natural protected areas. It has a varied climate with two seas, the Caspian Sea in the north and the Persian Gulf in the south, and has different ecosystems. It means when we have winter in the north, people are skiing in the Alborz mountains, north of Tehran, whereas other people in the south are swimming in the Persian Gulf. Moreover, when people in the southern part of Iran, or around the desert, are experiencing a very hot temperature between 50-60 centigrade in summer, other people in the north enjoy a pleasant temperature of 20-25 centigrade in the Alborz mountains. These varieties make ideal conditions for cycling tours in Iran, so depending on your time of travel and your interests, you can cycle all year round. Iran is not yet a well-known cycling destination among cyclists because of the lack of information for travelers and marketing for cycling tours. There aren’t any cycling maps or specific official trails for cycling either. Adventure Iran is a pioneer company that has started serious official research concerning the potential cycling routes of Iran. We
Best time for Cycling in Iran (A Cycling Guide for Traveling in Iran by Bicycle) When is the best time to travel to Iran for a cycling holiday? You can cycle all year round as every corner of the country has something to offer, depending on the season and the region, and it
Mountain Biking in the Persian Gulf The video is about an Iranian Off the Beaten Track cycling route in the southern part of the country from Bandar Abbas to Shiraz that passes through the coastal road of the Persian Gulf. The trip started from Tehran with a night train towards Bandar Abbas Sea port. Our crew carried the mountain bikes with the jeep and then joined the group in Bandar Abbas. They started the cycling trip from there towards the west of the Persian Gulf through the coastal road. They passed a couple of sea ports like Kong and Siraaf sea port and visited a number of unknown villages with locals that have not seen many tourists in their life, which is an experience that cannot be found in many places. The fish market of each town and the colorful sea foods of each one, Visiting the ship making factory and the lifestyle of the people who live on the coast and Passing Higer canyon on the way to Shiraz are some other exceptional experiences in the trip. Qaleh Dokhtar and Ardashir palace of the Firuzabad were also visited, which are the UNESCO sites on the way to Shiraz. The tour was done in January which is in the middle of winter in Iran but in the south near the Persian Gulf, temperatures are perfect for traveling and cycling. Hope you enjoy the video and if you like it subscribe to our channel to see more of the beauty of our country. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v48AUp-x2Fc Photo Gallery
Mountain Biking in the Persian Gulf The video is about an Iranian Off the Beaten Track cycling route in the southern part of the country from Bandar Abbas to Shiraz that passes through the coastal road of the Persian Gulf. The trip started from Tehran with a night train towards Bandar Abbas Sea port. Our
Tehran Metro Guide Map The Tehran Metro is a fastest transportation system in Tehran, the capital of Iran. It is the largest metro system in the Middle East. It consists of six operational metro lines (and an additional commuter rail line), with construction under way on four lines including northwestern extension of line 4, south extension line 6, north and east extension line 7 and Line 10. The Tehran Metro carries more than 3 million passengers a day. In 2018, 820 million trips were made on Tehran Metro. As of 2020, the total system was 253.7 kilometers (157.6 mi) long, 186 kilometers (116 mi) of which is metro-grade rail. It is planned to have a length of 430 kilometers (270 mi) with eleven lines once all construction is complete by 2040. On all days of the week, the Metro service runs from 04:30 to 22:00. The line uses standard gauge and is mostly underground. Ticket price is 3,500 Iranian Toman for each journey (about US$0.05), regardless of the distance traveled, but using prepaid tickets costs much less. On all Tehran metro trains the first and half of the second carriages from each end are reserved for women. Women can still ride other cars. For good quality PDF file of the map please click Tehran Metro Map.
Tehran Metro Guide Map The Tehran Metro is a fastest transportation system in Tehran, the capital of Iran. It is the largest metro system in the Middle East. It consists of six operational metro lines (and an additional commuter rail line), with construction under way on four lines including northwestern extension of line 4,
Ski in Iran Iran is a mountainous country with great ski resorts. Skiing in Iran is a special winter sport with its own fans. Many tourists annually travel to Iran for skiing in its high peaks. In the north of the capital city of Tehran, there is the Tochal ski piste located on the high mountain of Tochal at 3964m altitude. In the north of Tehran province in the Central Alborz Mountains, there are three other main Iran Ski areas that were opened before Iran's revolution. Dizin is one of these ski resorts. It is 80 km away from Tehran capital in heart of the Alborz Mountains. Dizin is Iran's biggest and main ski piste. Dizin’s weather condition offers the longest period for skiing, normally starting in mid-December and ending in late March. There are two other fantastic ski resorts near Dizin in the Alborz Ski Region in the north of Tehran, called Darband Sar and Shemshak. It is only 60 km from Tehran downtown to Shemshak and Darbandsar Ski pistes and the driving time takes about 2 hours through mountainous roads at high altitudes. The resort has a reputation for powdery snow, high altitude (one of the world's 40 highest ski centers), and north-facing slopes. Average snowfall is 1.5 meters (5 feet) at the base but doubles on the upper slopes. Shemshak village could be the best place to have access to those three ski areas. It embraces a hotel, lodge, and private houses. Depending on your interest and level of skiing, you can choose any one of them for skiing during your trip. The altitude of the village is around 2700 m above sea level. These ski resorts are above the village and you have to reach them on foot. Under the skiing tour tab of Adventure Iran’s
Ski in Iran Iran is a mountainous country with great ski resorts. Skiing in Iran is a special winter sport with its own fans. Many tourists annually travel to Iran for skiing in its high peaks. In the north of the capital city of Tehran, there is the Tochal ski piste located on the high
Trekking from Alamut towards the Caspian Sea The video is a slideshow of Adventure Iran’s trekking tours from the Valley of Alamut to the Caspian Sea. As we had not much good footage for this clip we made it with our tour photos which we had from different tours performed in the years with the purpose of showing the beauty of this rout. This trail is one of the most famous trekking routes in Iran which is located in the west Alborz mountains. Lonely Planet also mentioned this route as Iran’s top travel experiences. The starting point of this trail is around the Alamut Castle in the valley of Alamut which is in Qazvin province. And you will finish the trail in Yuj which is in Mazandaran province in the southern part of the Caspian Sea. Geographically, Alamut valley is in the southern part of Alborz mountain and Yuj is on the north side of Alborz. So you should cross the mountain ridge line of Alborz to reach the Caspian Side. The climate of the southern side of Alborz is different from the north side. The season starts from April and finishes in October or sometimes November depending on the weather. In early spring you will face snow in the heights of the mountains and summer is mainly green and in fall the landscape is mostly yellow and brown. In the winter the entire area will be full of snow and the road is blocked from south to north. So the beauty of the landscape and the scenery is changing season by season and that’s why you will see different pictures of nature in the video or in our tour photos on our website (which you can see here). Hope you enjoy the video and if you like it
Trekking from Alamut towards the Caspian Sea The video is a slideshow of Adventure Iran’s trekking tours from the Valley of Alamut to the Caspian Sea. As we had not much good footage for this clip we made it with our tour photos which we had from different tours performed in the years with the
Cycling from Shiraz to Tehran 1st Trip The video is about an unforgettable long trip with a Swiss cyclist group who had dreams of traveling to Iran for many years. They were fit and with a good health condition were ready to tackle this tour. The journey started from Shiraz which is near the south of the country. The purpose of the trip was to cycle from Shiraz towards Tehran through Iran mountains and deserts. They passed through southern parts of Zagros mountains mostly from Dena Mountains in Zagros as well as Central Alborz Mountains. In addition, they passed through a couple of national parks and protected areas like Lar and Dena and crossed the Maranjab desert which is a part of Dasht-e Kavir. This means experiencing a different variety of climates from high mountains to flat deserts was the point of this cycling trip in Iran. Alongside mountain biking that occurred throughout the journey, they visited nearly all UNESCO sites in the main urban destinations of Iran. Traveling to Shiraz, Esfahan, Kashan and Tehran was on the list of this adventure tour. It was about 16 days of cycling and they have a couple of rest days in between. We had about 20 to 25 degrees temperature in the hottest locations which were the daytimes in the desert up to the coldest place which was in the heights of the Alborz Mountains. The best season for this trip is April, May, October and November. Hope you enjoy the video and if you like it subscribe to our channel to see more of the beauty of our country. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImuIDqSnUZo
Cycling from Shiraz to Tehran 1st Trip The video is about an unforgettable long trip with a Swiss cyclist group who had dreams of traveling to Iran for many years. They were fit and with a good health condition were ready to tackle this tour. The journey started from Shiraz which is near the
Shemshak Ski Resort Shemshak is a village and a ski resort located in Alborz Ski Region, 65 Km away from Tehran city in the northeast. The piste is in the Central Alborz Mountains and is one of the three largest in Iran. Shemshak was a small and unknown village, lost in the mountains, before the beginning of the 20th century. Soon after discovering coal deposits in the region, Shemshak’s importance grew so much that a road was built to connect it to Tehran. After a few years, at the end of the mining operations, the village became a leisure resort for wealthy people due to the heavy snowfall in winter and the beautiful mountains surrounding it. In 1958, the Shemshak ski resort was built, offering Tehran’s upper class a place to learn and practice this trendy sport from Europe. Today, Shemshak is a well-known venue for people to visit for relaxation and to enjoy its invigorating weather. Even though the resort has not expanded since its opening, it is still one of the largest in Iran. The proximity of Shemshak to other ski resorts such as Darbandsar and Dizin makes it the Ski Capital of Iran! The ski resort's base elevation is about 2,550 meters with the top elevation being about 3,050 meters. There is a hotel, some restaurants, as well as ski, snowboard, and sleigh rentals available in the vicinity. Moreover, there are electric lights, including LED lamps along the piste allowing better visibility for night skiing. The ski season in northern Tehran changes year by year, but generally, the best time for skiing in Shemshak is early December to late March. Darbandsar and Shemshak Skiing are two of the easy ski tours we offer. Shemshak winter weather and climate change time lapse https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tl-KLG7tqc&t=18s
Shemshak Ski Resort Shemshak is a village and a ski resort located in Alborz Ski Region, 65 Km away from Tehran city in the northeast. The piste is in the Central Alborz Mountains and is one of the three largest in Iran. Shemshak was a small and unknown village, lost in the mountains, before the
Cycling in Abyaneh & Maranjab Desert Iran has a lot of region in the deserts for cycling and in some part of the desert you can see the icons of the ancient Silk road like caravanserais and historical castles and forts. On this trip we have chosen a desert region in the south of Tehran province which is in the north side of Esfahan province. Maranjab desert is the name of a region in the north west of Dasht-e Kavir desert and Abyaneh is a historical famous village located in the west of it. May is the end of season for desert activity and cycling as well. So the group reached the desert on the edge of the hot season but fortunately the weather was a bit breezy and it was not difficult for our cyclist to endure. They started this trip from Esfahan and passed a couple of mountain regions to reach Abyaneh village. The village is located in the mountains with cool temperatures in spring and sometimes snow in the winter but it is very close to the desert which has such a different temperature. They slept a night in the village and the next day continued cycling toward the Maranjab desert. They passed through different landscapes and terrains on their way to there. The tour started via a paved road from Abyaneh which was an amazing road without any cars or vehicles passing and then crossed gravel roads when they entered the desert and then dirt and sand roads in the middle of the desert. In some parts they passed the sand dune hills and in one region crossed the edge of the flat desert area which was a part of the Salt Lake of the desert. At the end of the day they reached
Cycling in Abyaneh & Maranjab Desert Iran has a lot of region in the deserts for cycling and in some part of the desert you can see the icons of the ancient Silk road like caravanserais and historical castles and forts. On this trip we have chosen a desert region in the south of Tehran
