Visa

Iranian visa is not that hard to get as you may suppose. At least as long as you're not in an "enemy" country. But  even if, it's still possible to get it.

Before you go to embassy or send them any documents, I advice to apply for a visa in KEY2PERSIA. It's a travel agency that helped me to get the visa- by giving me a verification code. It costs 30 Euro and is worth it, trust me.
There are also other agencies, but I can't say whether they are good or not. I recommend key2persia, even if sometimes it took them some time to reply my emails. Ms Zahra, whom I contacted was really nice and helpful , and I got my code after 3 days (which is fast, since I was informed it might take up to 10 days). Don't forget to add the scan of your passport to the application.

Onca you have a verification code, you can bring/send your documents to the embassy. The visa costs 50 dollars, at least in my country. Attach two passport photo and a copy of your travel insurance.

I received my visa after 5 days, but be prepared that it might take longer.

Good luck :)

Iran part I - a plane + before you decide to go...

I think Iran is not a common destination for tourists. I decided to give it a try.
I want to share my experience with you, in a case you needed some info . I will update my blog and I hope to enclose all the information- hotels, taxi, food etc.


Firstly, remember that Iran is an Islamic Republic. What does it mean for you?
Well, you will not be able to drink alcohol. No, not even beer. And no, no night clubs. You can go to one of illegal parties, they're really popular as far as I know. But really, do you go to Iran to PARTY?

As for a beer, you can buy non-alcoholic Iranian equivalent:

But I do not recommend it . As long as you don't like kvass. It tastes like kvass . 

For a woman, going to Iran means wearing kind of hijab. Before you say NO-NO and imagine a woman in burqa, take a quick look at http://manteausdaily.wordpress.com/ to see what the Iranian hijab really is. 

:)

To go to Iran I have chosen Emirates airline. You can get to Tehran from loads of cities with a stopover in Dubai. It's an expensive option though. At first I wanted to choose Pegasus, but I met someone working there who dissuaded me this idea. But if you don't want to spend half of your budget, then Pegasus seems like a good option. Just try to make your connection time longer that 2 hours. Otherwise your baggage might have a forced stay in Istambul. 

I think it's easy to get to Tehran from most of Asian countries.

I am personally going from Hamburg- as I told, with Emirates.

If you live close to Moscow , you can choose Aeroflot. Other options are:

- Tyrolean Airways from Vienna (about 680,31 € round trip )

- Belavia from Minsk (about EUR: 432,81)

- Gulf Air via Bahrain from Paris, Athens, London, Istanbul or Larnaca  (I can't check the price tho)

- Lufthansa from Frankfurt (500 Euro to 700 Euro)

- Qatar Airways from any city via Doha (about 600 euro)

- Turkish airlines by Ankara

- Oman Air via Muscat

- Mahan Air from Dusseldorf

- Iran Air from Amsterdam, London, Vienna, Milan