ostkarten

Summary

I travelled in Iran in October/November 2014 for 19 days and spent EUR 20 on daily average (without international transit costs) + EUR 95 for visa. Stayed 50% in dorms and 50% in cheap rooms with shared bathrooms. Fast travelling, mostly walking in cities, a few (shared) taxis for remote places.

Overview on the average daily costs:

Food is quite cheap and transport is a real bargain, hotels are cheap but no value for money due to a lack of backpackers infrastructure (exceptions: Yazd and Shiraz). Iran has an exceptional couchsurfing network; consider this if you’re on a very tight budget. And: there are tourist entry fees.

Cost info

Hotel

For budget travellers not much choice and no value for money if compared with other parts of Asia. You cannot book online, so try to get information elsewhere in advance. Dorm beds (if you find any) are from EUR 5 to EUR 8 (often incl. breakfast and okay-ish wifi). Yazd and Shiraz are best (and cheapest) for dorms and traveller atmosphere, and breakfast buffet is good here (stick with the lonely planet recommendations).

Yazd, finally some good budget accomodation:

Teheran, Esfahan and Kerman are a shame. North from Teheran and south from Bam is even worse from what I heard from travellers.

Esfahan has the second biggest square in the world but is not the biggest on providing good hostels for the cheap traveller:

Simple rooms (mostly twins) with shared bathrooms are around EUR 8-15, sometimes incl. wifi and breakfast.

Try couchsurfing. Everyone who’s been couchsurfing in Iran loved it. Or consider staying in mosaferkanehs (cheap guesthouses for Iranians), but the beds are very hard and you have to find one first. Don’t expect much English, western style toilets and to be welcome all the time (especially as a single travelling woman). At least, hot water should be available all the time.

Food

Cheap (but not so good). Fast food mostly. Sandwiches, kebabs (with rice), falafel, fries and coke on the street. Soups and stews when you’re lucky. Meals cost around EUR 2-3, breakfast is often included in dorm/room prices. You will find some good and cheap tourist restaurants in Yazd and Shiraz.

Alcohol is strictly forbidden.

Transport

I travelled by bus mostly, but flying (with old planes due to the embargo), trains and private car with driver is possible as well.

Bus travel: Excellent. Great value for money. Buses are frequent, fast, comfortable, reliable and very cheap, roads are good. Modern VIP buses (good for overnight travel) come with luxurious seats, water and snacks. Examples: A normal bus from Teheran to Kashan (200km) was around 2 EUR incl. snacks, a VIP sleeper bus from Kerman to Shiraz (570km) was 7 EUR incl. lots of snacks.

Kashan,….

…., where I got really cheaply by bus.

Taxis: Cheap, and unbelievably cheap when a local books for you or if you take them by surprise. ;)

Other (entry fees, services)

Tourist entry fees from EUR 1 to EUR 4 and sometimes not worth the money: The entry fee for a small garden can be as high as the entry fee for Persepolis, one of the greatest sights in Iran. I only booked one tour (Kaluts desert from Kerman), which was way overpriced though we bargained hard. Cannot say if this is the rule or the exception.

Persepopolis,…

…150.000 Rials. Because you’re a foreign tourist.

Visa

Expensive. And not the easiest to apply for (especially if you’re US-American or Canadian), but situation should get better soon.

Different pricing from embassy to embassy/consulate. Most of the time you will need a reference number. You can apply for the reference number via travel agencies, which takes some time and – of course – money. In summer 2014 (Vienna, Austria) I paid EUR 95 for visa fee and reference number. Others paid little bit less/more.

Further info

Currency

Rial (IRR), but more common: Toman (= 10 IRR).

ATM/Credit Cards

This one is really important! Due to the international embargo you cannot withdraw money (with an international card) or pay with (an international) credit card. Bring enough cash for exchange (USD works best). There are complicated and very expensive ways to get cash, if you run out of it, so at least you won’t starve (but try to avoid this situation, it’s not worth the hassle).

Tipping

From my experience mostly not expected.

Tourist pricing & bargaining

Tourist entry fees everywhere (mostly from EUR 1 to EUR 4), but at least no camera fees. Almost no tourist pricing if it comes to other expenses. Taxis like always are the only exception, so bargain hard. And of course souvenir shops, carpet sellers, etc. if you’re into bazars (I’m not)…