Iran and Southern Iraq Autumn Combo

DESCRIPTION

This tour takes us to all of the major sites in Tehran as well as the ancient capitals of Shiraz and Esfahan, as well as being able to check out Southern Iraq.

On top of the rich history of the region, this tour also offers lots of opportunities to interact with locals, and witness the visual reality of what is the Iranian Revolution. On the trip itself and through our local guides, we will be doing lots of hidden extras (not published on the itinerary!) and where possible we will show you every side of this unique and majestic country.

Tour begins in Tehran, but has been arranged with enough flexibility if people need to arrive or leave one day early. What makes this tour special is not just what we will be doing, but what we won’t be doing! All meals will be held in genuine restaurants used by local people, not tourists traps, nor will we be taken on expensive shopping trips.

We offer visa support for people of all nationalities (except for Israel). And if this was not enough, YPT will then proceed on to our group tour of southern Iraq! We conducted a research tour of Baghdad and beyond in April 2018. It proved to be not only very safe but incredibly informative & fascinating. The area is spoilt with world-class heritage and is completely unspoilt by tourism meaning we will feel like the only foreign travellers in town.

There is a huge amount of ancient and modern history waiting to be explored in Iraq. We’ll travel from Baghdad north along the former death highway to Samara and back again to Najaf, Karbala, the Mesopotamian marshlands and onto Basra before boarding the only train in the country back to Baghdad. We cover a huge amount of ground with our expert local guide explaining all as we go.

For a tour of this nature, security is the most important factor and the itinerary is subject to change depending on the situation on the ground and the information we receive from our local partners. The local guide and YPT guide’s decision on eventual itinerary changes is final and done with your safety in mind.

ITINERARY

Monday October 7th – Tehran

Morning and afternoon arrival by flight.
Free afternoon to walk around Tehran, get to know your group.
Visit National Jewellery museum – the contents of this place actually back up the Iranian currency, a truly amazing experience and certainly one of the highlights of the trip regardless of if you are a jewellery fiend or not!
Visit to the heart of Old Tehran to soak up the night time atmosphere, drink some local tea and people watch.
Overnight in Parastoo Hotel.

Tuesday October 8th – Tehran

Drive through Tehran past anti-US propaganda and the US embassy (possibility of actually seeing inside the embassy, something which was considered impossible only a couple of years ago!).
Visit Saad Abad & Niavaran palaces, the last Palaces of the last Shah of Iran. Lunch at Darband hills.
One hour free time or tea by the river.
Shopping in the Tajrish Bazaar of Tehran and visit a nearby mosque. One hour free time.
Traditional Iranian dinner of kebabs at famous restaurant Ayaran restaurant, near Ferdosi square.
Evening walk around the city, with us taking the opportunity to try some shisha, fresh juice bar, and mingle with locals.
Overnight in overnight in Parastoo hotel.

Wednesday October 9th – Tehran/ Shiraz

Check out of hotel for morning flight Shiraz.
Visit the citadel in the centre of the city and mingle with locals.
Visit Grand Bazaar for some shopping and photos. Chance to buy old anti-American stamps from a local shop owner and collector.
Lunch in Saray E Mehr restaurant in the middle of bazaar for traditional Di Zi dish.
Free walk around the bazaar or relax with tea and shisha at poets house/tea house. Great chance to mingle with local students.
Dinner at hotel or out to a fast food joint for burgers, falafel, and sambusas.
Overnight at Parsian hotel.

Thursday October 10th – Shiraz/Persepolis

Up bright and early to visit the colour stained mosque when the morning light shines through spectacularly.
Late morning drive to Persepolis.
Lunch at traditional restaurant called “Paradise” on the way to Necropolis tombs.
Visit the botanic gardens of Shiraz.
Stop for traditional Shiraz ice cream at a famous local shop.
Visit a famous Hafeizieh Iranian poet’s park and tomb. Great opportunity to mingle with locals and take photos.
Dinner at hotel.
Exploring the streets. Shopping for military hats and patches.
Overnight in Parsian hotel.

Friday October 11th – Shiraz/Esfahan

Drive to Esfahan with stop at Cirus’s tomb, an old fortress on the way. Tea time break.
Lunch in a restaurant in one of the smaller cities on the way.
Go to the famous old Khaju bridge.
Walk across bridge and mingle with locals. Short rest at hotel.
Walk for a dinner at local restaurants.
Visit one of the oldest carpet shops. Explanation on a variety of Persian carpets and opportunity for a purchase. The presentation involves a show how carpets are made and explanation of 30 different styles of carpets.
Evening visit to the 300 year old Abbasi Hotel for traditional Iranian tea.
Overnight at the centrally located Esfahan tourist Hotel.

Saturday October 12th – Esfahan

Visit the beautiful Safavid Chehelsetoon Palace.
Sheikh Lotfollah mosque and Ali-qapoo palace.
Lunch in a traditional restaurant at the square.
Visit to Shah Mosque.
Free time to see square and shop for gifts at surrounding bazaar.
Chance to change money for small crisp rial denominations. There is an official change place with good rates but they also have a stack of small denominations that they hold. (They remembered us from last time and changed some money for the group).
Optional visit to Iran/Iraq war museum.
Visit Zurkhane gym to watch an ancient Persian sport workout, a strength building exercises done with traditional drum and bell music.
Overnight at the Tourist Hotel.

Sunday October 13th – Esfahan/Tehran

Morning flight to Tehran.
Visit Mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini.
Visit the Revolutionary Martyrs Cemetary.
Stop at the Shah’s Monument AKA Revolution Monument for photos on the way from the airport.
Farewell meal at the Armenian Club. Armenians are the main ethnic Christian minority in Iran.
Overnight in Parastoo hotel.

Monday October 14th – Tehran/Istanbul

Free morning to do last minute shopping.
Flight to Istanbul and spend the night there before next part of the tour.
Overnight in Istanbul

Tuesday October 15th – Baghdad

Meet your tour leader and fellow pioneers at Istanbul Ataturk airport before we depart on our direct flight to Baghdad. (Time to be confirmed two months before the tour, flights to Baghdad change schedule very often so make sure to be in Istanbul the day before)
Arrival and meet up with our local guide and fixer who will give an introduction on travelling in Iraq and a breakdown of the itinerary for our stay
Dive by the victory over America Palace and see the square where Saddam’s statue was toppled in 2003. All on the drive in from the airport.
Overnight in the high security“Baghdad Hotel”. Complete with swimming pool, gym and bar!

Wednesday October 16th – Baghdad

It’s a Baghdad city tour day and we kick things off with a visit to the National Museum.
Visit the incredible and well renovated Al – Mustansariya School. This is commonly known as the oldest school in the world.
Walk through the adjoining copper market. A wonderful place for souvenirs and photography
We drive an hour outside of the city to the ancient city of Ctesiphone. These days all that’s left is the palace archway which is the largest single span vault of unreinforced brickwork in the world
Back to Baghdad for a feast and overnight.

Thursday October 17th – Karbala

Up early for the drive north to Samarra. We pass through multiple checkpoints along the route driving by many villages recently destroyed during fighting against ISIS.
Samarra is famous for its Minaret (also known as the Great Mosque of Samarra). We will climb the spiralling staircase all l the way to the top for the 360 degree view. Not for the faint hearted!
Drive back to Baghdad and head straight to Abu Ghraib. No not the prison which is long gone but it’s abandoned and ancient site of Agargouf Ziggurat.
Continue on south to Iraq’s holiest city of Karbala
Dinner and overnight in Karbala

Friday October 18th – Najaf

Up early for some Karbala sightseeing taking in the must-see Al Abbas mosque and Iman Husayn shrine
Drive to Babylon, once the largest and most important city in the world. We tour the ancient ruins with our local expert and see what’s left of the hanging gardens.
Saddam Hussain Palace – Perched right on top of Babylon, the dictator made sure he had the best view of the site. We spend some time exploring the looted remains of one of his many former palaces.
We drive to Najaf, the third holiest city in Shia Islam. We’ll take in its most important site – the Imam Ali shrine
Dinner and Overnight in Najaf

Saturday October 19th – Najaf/Basra

We wake up early for a walking tour of Najaf, including Imam Ali’s house (the very spot where imam Ali was killed) and the Kufa Mosque.
Drive south to the Mesopotamian Marshes. We’ll take a bout trip through the maze of marshes stopping by local villages for tea. The marshes once engulfed a whole swathe of Southern Iraq with numerous floating villages. Today the receding waters have led most families to change rheir livelihood but we’ll still see the few that remain.
Visit the Adam and Eve tree AKA the tree of knowledge in the village of Qurna. Legend has it that Eve ate the apple from this very tree in the Garden of Eden.
Drive onto Iraq’s southernmost city of Basra
Dinner and overnight in Basra

Sunday October 20th – Basra

We’ll visit the Ashar and Shanashil Al Basra area to catch a glimpse of the old Basra: old style merchant houses with balconies leaning over the narrow streets.
We take a cruise across the Shatt Al Arab river and see some shipwrecks from the Iran-Iraq War from the 80s.
Just like most places in Iraq, Saddam Hussain also built a grand palace in Basra. And of course we’ll visit it.
Iraq’s biggest football stadium is in Basra. Iraqi’s love their football and are even more proud of the 60,000 seater Basra sports city stadium!
If you’re a train fanatic then this one is for you; we’ll take the only active railroad in Iraq; the night train from Basra to Baghdad.
Overnight on train.

Monday October 21st – Baghdad

Early arrival into Baghdad train station. The station itself a real highlight so we’ll take some time to get some breakfast and take photos here.
Visit the incredible Suffi shrine, a welcome escape from the city’s hustle and bustle
See the Liberation Square monument, which commemorates the establishment of the Republic of Iraq.
The Al Shaheed Monument is the martyr’s memorial spot for people who died during the Iran-Iraq War. These days it’s a highly controversial monument, as it was originally built during the Saddam era.
And of course, Baghdad can’t be complete with a visit to the Flying Carpet Monument, Alibi Baba and the 40 thieves’ monument and the Magic Lamp monument.
End of tour for those of us who don’t continue to Iraqi Kurdistan.