Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Official Tehran savaris leave from outside (US$3). Unofficial ones pick up at Valiasr Sq.
Cranky buses run to Hir (via Razmiyan) around 11am and to Mo'allem Kalayeh (US$1,
2½ hours) around 1.30pm (not Friday). However, for these Alamut Valley destinations,
savaris are vastly better. Mo'allem Kalayeh savaris (US$5, 1¾ hours) depart from gigantic
Qaribqosh Sq, 2km east of Valiasr Sq. Razmiyan savaris (per person/car US$2/10, 1¼
hours) depart very occasionally from
Istgah Razmiyan
(Helalabad Sq off Sa'di St)
: to
get there take a shuttle taxi up Naderi St to Sardaran Sq, walk a block west along Beheshti
St then 300m southwest down Shahid Fayazbakhsh St.
For Rasht, savaris depart from
Darvazeh Rasht
(Enqelab Sq)
where some through
buses also pick up/drop off.
Train
The best-timed trains to Tehran (US$2.50, two hours) depart at 8.30am and 10.35am. For
Zanjan (2½ hours) handy trains leave at 8am and 5.40pm. There are useful sleeper trains
to Tabriz at 9.10pm (US$6, 11 hours) and to Mashhad at 8.45pm, but tickets can be in
short supply.
Getting Around
City buses run both ways along the main drag (Imam Khomeini St/Taleqani Blvd), but
cars and shuttle taxis can only use it eastbound, returning from Valiasr Sq to central Azadi
Sq (Sabz Meydan) via Shahrdari or Buali Sts. From the centre to the bus terminal change
at Valiasr Sq. From the terminal to Azadi Sq loop around via the bazaar.
Alamut Valleyتوملا
ELEV 1400M
Few places in Iran offer a more tempting invitation to hike, explore and reflect than the
fabled Alamut and Shahrud Valleys. Beneath soaring Alborz peaks, the landscapes are in-
spirational and delightfully varied, with scenic suggestions of Patagonia, Switzerland,
central Australia and Syria all spiced by a uniquely fascinating medieval history. Nestled
almost invisibly on widely spread rocky knolls and pinnacles lie the shattered remnants of
over 50 ruined fortresses. Shrouded in fabulous myths, they were the heavily fortified lairs
of the medieval world's most feared religious cult and are collectively known as the
Castles of the Assassins
(see boxed text,
Click here
)
. The most interesting are at Gazor
