Islamic Republic of Iran
Area: 1,648,195 sq km
Population: 70,472,846
Population density: 42 per sq km
Capital: Tehran
Area: 1,648,195 sq km
Population: 70,472,846
Population density: 42 per sq km
Capital: Tehran
Iran country information
Passport & visa | Getting there | Cycling & maps | Cost of living | Accommodation | Food | Bike shops | Climate | Distances
Passport & Visa
| Passport Required? | |
|---|---|
| British | Yes |
| Australian | Yes |
| Canadian | Yes |
| USA | Yes |
| Other EU | Yes |
| Visa Required? | |
| British | Yes |
| Australian | Yes |
| Canadian | Yes |
| USA | Yes |
| Other EU | Yes |
Passports
Passport valid for six months
beyond stay required by all nationals referred
to in the chart above.
Passport Note
Nationals of Israel or holders
of passports containing a visa for Israel (either
valid or expired) will be refused entry under
all circumstances. Women judged to be dressed
immodestly will be refused entry.
Visas (check for latest info on online applications in the visa application section below!)
Required
by all nationals referred to in the chart above
except:
(a) transit passengers continuing their journey
within 12 hours provided holding valid onward
or return documentation and not leaving the airport.
Transit passengers continuing their journey within
48 hours (under the above conditions) can obtain
a transit visa on arrival against a fee of US$40,
or within 72 hours for US$30.
Note: nationals of Austria, Belgium,
Bulgaria, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany,
Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands,
Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia,
Spain and Sweden may obtain a visa for touristic
purposes only for a stay of seven days on arrival
at the following airports: Isfahan, Mashad, Shiraz,
Tabriz and Tehran (IKA and THR). A visa fee is
applied.
Note: Nationals not referred
to in the chart above are advised to contact the
embassy to check visa requirements.
Visa Restrictions:
The government of Iran refuses admission and transit to nationals of Israel; and might not accept other passports containing Israeli stamps or visas.
Visa Note
Women over
nine years old should wear a headscarf in their
visa application photo in accordance with Islamic
custom.
Types of Visa and Cost
Tourist/Business/Pilgrimage:
£61 (single-entry); £68 (double-entry). Business
(multiple-entry): £79 (three months); £90
(six months); £90 (one year). Transit:
£61. The above prices are for UK nationals; fees
vary according to nationality of applicant.
Validity
Tourist,
Business and Pilgrimage visas
are issued for stays of up to one month and are
valid for three months from date of authorisation.
Transit visas are valid for five days.
Applications for renewal or extension should be
made to the Iranian Embassy. Extensions are easily
obtainable inside Iran.
Applications to:
Consulate (or consular section at embassy) or online:
You can now apply for a visa online and can ask to pick it up at any of the 106(!) listed consulates or embassies.
This will dramatically reduce the waiting time. Surf to http://evisa.mfa.gov.ir:7780/mfa/
Working Days Required
A minimum
of two weeks, depending on the embassy. A pilgrimage
visa may also take two weeks to process. Online visa can be arranged in a few days. The ministry will notify you when and where your visa is ready. You then have to go to the embassy and they will normally process it in a day.
Getting there
Getting There by Air
The national airline is Iran
Air (IR) (website:
www.iranair.com
).
Approximate Flight Times
From London
to Tehran is 6 hours.
Main Airports
Tehran (THR) (Mehrabad)
(website:
http://mehrabad.airport.ir
) is 5km (3 miles) west of the city. To/from
the airport: Airline buses are available
to the city (journey time - 45 minutes). Taxis
are also available to the city centre (journey
time - 30 minutes). Facilities: Bank,
post office, restaurants and snack bar, duty-free
shop, gift shops, tourist information and first
aid/vaccination facilities.
Departure Tax
Rs300,000
for passengers departing for UAE, Turkey, China,
France, UK, USA and Bulgaria. Rs150,000 to all
other countries. Departure tax for second visits
is Rs400,000 for all destinations.
Getting There by Water
http://www.caspianferry.ru/en/routs.htm
Main
ports: The main port was Khorramshahr
until its destruction during the war with Iraq.
Following reconstruction, the port was reopened
to ship traffic in 1992. Imam Khomeini
(website:
http://bikport.pmo.ir
is located in the northwestern edge of the Persian
Gulf and near Iraq. The ports of Abbas
and Bushehr are to be found in
the Persian Gulf and Nowshahr
and Anzelli on the Caspian Sea.
Getting There by Rail
RAJA
Trains (part of Iranian Islamic Republic
Railways) (tel: (21) 883 5159; website:
www.raja.ir
) operates passenger services from Tehran to Istanbul
(Turkey) and Damascus (Syrian Arab Republic);
from Tabiz to Djolfa (for the CIS) and Van (Turkey);
and from Zahedan to Quetta (Pakistan).
Getting There by Road
Note
tour.tk: There are various routes
possible from Turkey, Pakistan and Turkmenistan,
although entering/leaving Pakistan by road is
not recommended, due to the vicinity to Afghanistan.
Cycling & Maps
  |
Rip & Waterproof |
| If you need/want to go to Tehran on your bicycle, don't be deterred by other people saying it is dangerous. Plan! Because if you get into Tehran on a Thursday afternoon or (even better) Friday, the streets are very quiet, almost deserted! It is the Iranian weekend, so you will have the whole place to yourself (almost). |
Iran Map Cost of living
Iran:
all prices in Iranian Rials (IRR)
| drinks and snacks | food: local markets; restaurants; and stores |
||||
| water (mineral) |
1.5 litre 1.5 litre 200ml 1 litre 300ml 1 litre |
2,500 3,000 800-1000 6,000 2,000 3.500 |
sangak flat bread barbari pide type bread falafel + drink in tehran dinner-soup salad bread breakfast-lavash bread, honey, cheese and tea pizza-takeaway |
30x80 30x80 one serving one serving one serving med |
1,500 2,000 5,000 20,000 10,000 20-35,000 |
| beer-non alcoholic | 330ml can | 4,000 | |||
| tea tea filter coffee (cafe) instant coffee Nescafe instant coffee-ground |
25 bags pot per cup per cup 125g 250g |
12,000 5,000 14,000-20,000 3,500 15,000 25,000 |
rice (white) pasta eggs tinned tomatoes tomatoes |
kg |
28,000 4,500 12,000 12,000 4,0000 |
| milk yoghurt / curd cheese (feta) Magnum icecream |
1 litre 200g kg each |
4,000 |
potatoes onions broad beans - fresh |
kg kg kg |
5,000 3,000 6,000 |
| chips salted peanutsdried apricots |
200g pack kg kg |
tba tba tba |
|||
| apples oranges bananas |
kg kg kg |
15,000 23,000 8,500 |
|||
| cornflakes (iranian) chocolate biscuits-plain biscuits-chocolate |
375g pack 100g block 200g pack 200g pack |
3,500 5,600 4,500 tba |
pineapple (can) oil (corn) |
500g can 500ml |
15,000 10,000 |
| peanut paste jam |
500g jar 400g jar |
tba 15,000 |
|||
| accommodation | personal | ||||
| budget city hotel |
40,000 per dorm bed 80,000+ double with share bath |
deodorant - roll-on |
50ml 150g bar 200ml each 100ml 5 pack 2 pack |
17,000 5,000 4,500 tba 7,000 10,000 7000 |
|
| camping |
possible everywhere except cities:
iranians camp/picnic and and some rivers have
spots |
||||
| internet | 7,000-10,000 per hour | ||||
| *
tba = price to be announced * January 2009: at time of writing 1.00 USD = 9.83 IRR all prices have been taken from internet resources such as wikitravel, hostel world, leading supermarket chains, travel blogs, forums and of course our own travel experiences and purchases of everyday products in food markets, bazaars and local shopping facilities. They are only an indication and designed to give you a general impression of the cost of living in Iran. Items are geared towards the budget conscious traveller with an occasional craving for a bit of luxury. |
Source:www.exchange-rates.org |
Bike shops
| Mashhad | Cross Cycle No.22108-22110, Grand Floor, Almas-e Shargh Commercial Complex, Mashhad Mobile:+98-935-4686289 Fax: +98-511-7113066 Tel: +98-511-7113060-65 email: mashhad_subsidiary@cross-ir.com |
| Noor | Cross Cycle Arian Hotel st, Noor Tel: 012262576590-93 email: noorshop@cross-ir.com |
| Tabriz Free service for tourists ! |
Saeed Mohammadi Bike
|
| Cross Cycle No.4-Booalisina St.Valiasr Quarter Tabriz Tel: +98-21- 6942683 email: tabriz_subsidiary@cross-ir.com |
|
| Tehran
|
Saba Docharkh ***
|
| Our experiences: high end bike shop. You will be able to find anything here, including Schwalbe tyres. It is a way out of the city, but worth the trip. Friendly staff, English spoken. | |
Cross Cycle shops: |
|
| No.7,2nd floor, No.1633 Above sadr Bridge, Shariati Ave. Tehran Tel fax: 22678041 email: shariatishop@cross-ir.com |
|
| #169, Satarkhan Ave Tehran 14417 Tel: +98-21- 6942683 email: satarkhanshop@cross-ir.com |
|
| No 2,1 floor,Kamranieh str, Moniryeh sqr,Valieasr Ave, Tehran Tel: 021-66404217-66404262 email: moniryehshop@cross-ir.com |
|
| Pouya Cycle 163 Sattarkhan Ave. Tehran Tel: +98 21 6642 8800 Fax: +98 21 6642 9434 e-mail: info@pouyacycle.com website |
