Echoes of Persia
8 Days & 7 Nights
DAY 1.Tehran
Arrival tehran , Meet & assist transfer to hotel .O/N
DAY 2. Tehran
Tehran has been Iran’s capital since 1778 and is its biggest city, with over 14 million people living within its metropolitan area. It also boasts countless museums and is at the heart of most of Iran’s cultural and artistic events. The city is on an upwards slope going North, with the city centre at about 1,200m and parts of North Tehran rising up to 1,700m.
The National Archaeology Museum of Iran was completed in 1928 by the French architect Andre Godard. It contains ceramics, pottery and other archaeological gems from excavations all over Iran, including Persepolis, Susa and many other significant sites. The exhibition displays are charmingly chaotic, but stuffed with authentic artifacts, including pottery dating back to 6-7th millennium BC. Striking finds include a human-headed capital from Persepolis and some stunning friezes from the Apadana Palace. The museum is an absolute must for anyone interested in archaeology or the history of Iran.
The Golestan Palace, literally the Roseland Palace, is the former royal Qajar complex in Iran’s capital city, Tehran. The oldest of the historic monuments in Tehran, a world heritage, the Golestan Palace belongs to a group of royal buildings that were once enclosed within the mud-thatched walls of Tehran’s Historic Arg (citadel). Golestan Palace Complex consists of 17 structures including palaces, museums, and halls some of which are Brilliant Hall (Talar e Brelian), The Building of Windcatchers (Emarat e Badgir), The Marble Throne (Takht e Marmar), Karim Khani Nook (Khalvat e Karim Khani), Containers Hall (Talar e Zoroof), Diamond Hall (Talar e Almas), Abyaz Palace, etc.
The Grand Bazaar also known as Tehran’s Grand Bazaar is a historical market located in southern Tehran. Throughout its history, in addition to shops the Grand bazaar has contained banks and financiers, mosques and guest houses. Traditionally, the Tehran bazaar was split into corridors, each specializing in different types of goods, including copper, carpets, paper, spices, and precious metals, as well as small traders selling all types of goods. Today, modern goods are available as well, in addition to the many traditional corridor traders that still survive. Its many corridors are over 10 km in length. There are several entrances, some of which are locked and guarded at night. It is located In Arg Square and the main entrance is Sabze meydoon. O/N
DAY 3. Tehran/Qazvin / Zanjan
Early in the morning drive to Qazvin about 2 hours City tour of Qazvin to visit Museum Qajar Bath, HammamQajar (Qajar bathhouse), Qazvin Chehel Sotoon Palace, SarDar e Alighapou, the antient Bazar of Qazvin Saad al Saltaneh Caravansary (the biggest indoor caravansary located in the city) drive to zanjan . Overnight .
DAY 4. Zanjan
Excursion to visit Soltaniyeh Dome that is the highest and biggest raw brick made dome in Iran and the UNESCO world heritage site and the third largest Dome in the world after Santa Maria Dome and Hagia Sophia Dome. Base on the time we will visit the traditional Laundry House that belongs to Qajar Era and called Rakhtshoor-khaneh ,Traditional Bazar where you can find many beautiful hanicrafts . Overnight Zanjan.
DAY 5. Zanjan / Takab
Drive to Takab to Visit Takht-e Soleyman (UNESCO site) – The archaeological site of Takht-e Soleyman, in north-western Iran, is situated in a valley set in a volcanic mountain region. The site includes the principal Zoroastrian sanctuary partly rebuilt in the Ilkhanid (Mongol) period (13th century) as well as a temple of the Sasanian period (6th and 7th centuries) dedicated to Anahita. Overnight
DAY 6. Takab / Hamadan
Drive to hamadan enroute visiting Alisadr cave .O/N
The mountainous position of Hamadan has led to the formation of many wonderful and beautiful caves of which according to specialists the Alisadr is one of the most astonishing. Located 60 kilometers north of Hamadan, Alisadr is a vast cave that contains a lake and a labyrinth of chambers along which one can sail for tens of kilometres. The clear water of the lake is several meters deep and the cave’s walls, floor and ceiling are covered with an abundance of marvellous stalactites and stalagmites and various natural stones that have taken the shape of various animals, objects and islands. No living creature lives in this cave and in its water because there is no natural light
DAY 7. Hamadan / Tehran
Hamadan was the summer capital for the Achaemenid kings in the 5th century BC. The town is raised on a high plain which escapes the heat in summer but is mercilessly cold in winter, attracting snow and harsh winds. In classical times, Hamadan was known as ‘Ecbatana’ or ‘Hegmataneh’ and held a legendary reputation. In 728 BC, the Median King Deiokes claimed the city with a splendid palace and in the years that followed it, established itself as a crucial settlement under different leaders. Hamadan then finally collapsed after the Arab invasion at the end of the 7th century AD. Today, Hamadan is still an important city, having re-established itself under the planning of a German engineer in the 19th century. With its Grecian style, the stone lion was likely built in honour of one of Alexander’s slain generals.
Dating to the 14th century, the Tomb of Esther & Mordecai was once Iran’s premier Jewish pilgrimage site. They are believed to have averted a massacre of Jews planned by Xerxes’ commander, Haman, and instead had Xerxes have him killed.
The Stone Lion, an intriguing lone statue, is thought to date to Alexander the Great’s invasion of Iran in the Hellenistic period. With its Grecian style, the stone lion is believed to have been built by Alexander in honour of his close companion and one of his top generals, Hephaestion.
Ganjnameh is a set of trilingual rock carvings in cuneiform engraved on the mountain by Darius I and his son, Xerxes. They were once believed to hold the key to hidden Median treasure. They were, however, instrumental in the decoding of these ancient scripts (which later lead to the decoding of Sumerian as well) thanks to work by the English army officer, Henry Rawlinson. The Median treasure was, alas, not what they described.
The Alavyan Dome no longer has a dome, but it does house some floral stucco from the Ilkhanid era, the most interesting of which represent a poem by Atar about thirty birds that move through the seven stages of Sufi’ism in their search for a God, a fable that explains the concepts of the religion.
Ecbatana, the first Median capital founded in 612BC, was built along a grid system with a main avenue wide enough for two chariots to pass and even a sewerage system. The city walls were allegedly composed of seven layers, enclosing two walls lined with gold and silver in the centre. Houses boasted wind badgirs similar to those at Yazd today as well as clay ovens. There is also a small but interesting museum on site.
at evening drive back tehran .O/N
DAY 8. Tehran
Departure flight to your country
