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Day 1: Sunday - Depart |
En Route |
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Depart your overnight flight to Europe. |
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Day 2: Monday - Transit Europe/Tehran |
En Route |
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Transit European airport and connect with your onward flight to Tehran. |
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Day 3: Tuesday - Arrive Tehran |
Laleh Hotel |
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Early morning arrival at Tehran's Mehrabad International Airport where you are met and transferred to the Laleh Hotel. Your hotel room is pre-booked for immediate occupancy upon arrival. This afternoon visit the Carpet Museum with its magnificent collection of Persian carpets. In the vaults of Iran's Central Bank, view the fabulous Crown Jewels, perhaps the world's most stunning collection of jewels. Highlights include the Darya-ye-Nur, a diamond weighing 182 carats, and the throne of Nader Shah, encrusted with 26,000 gems. (B,L,D) |
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Day 4: Wednesday - Tehran/Shiraz |
Homa Hotel |
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Today tour the Archaeological Museum, Iran's finest museum, housing many of the incredible discoveries from Persepolis. Midday flight to Shiraz, the city of "Roses and Nightingales." Afternoon city tour including the tomb of Iran's greatest lyric poet, Hafez, set in charming Eram gardens. The nearby 19th century royal palace is an excellent example of the Ghajar architectural style. Visit the brilliantly lit Holy Shrine of Shah-e-Cheragh, an important pilgrimage site. (B,L,D) |
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Day 5: Thursday - Persepolis/Pasargadae |
Homa Hotel |
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Full day excursion to one of the most important sites of the ancient world, Persepolis, the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid kings. Built by Darius the Great in 512 BC, it once was surrounded by walls 60 feet high. There are impressive bas-reliefs and the remains of the palaces of Darius the Great, Xerxes and Artaxerxes are immense. In the elegantly colonnaded Apadana, the kings once held audiences and received visitors. In 323 BC after a great battle, Persepolis was burned to the ground by Alexander the Great - he claimed it an accident! Two miles north of Persepolis is Naghsh-e Rostam, an Achaemenian necropolis consisting of four hypogea, or rock hewn royal tombs of Darius I, Xerxes, Artaxerxes and Darius II. They overlook a Fire Temple and some magnificent Sassanian rock-reliefs. At Pasargadae, the first capital of the Iranian tribes, see the imposing but simple tomb of Cyrus the Great and the ruins of several Archaemenian palaces. (B,L,D) |
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Day 6: Friday - Shiraz |
Homa Hotel |
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Morning tour of Shiraz beginning with the pink-tiled 19th century Nasir-ol-Mosque and the 18th century Arg-e-Karimkhan, an imposing fortress built by Karim Khan. Next is the Qajar period Narenjestan Museum, an ornate house built in the late 1880's by Mirza Ebrahim Khan. The balance of the afternoon is free for independent exploration, perhaps, at the covered Bazar-e Vakil, considered by many to be the finest souk in Iran. (B,L,D) |
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Day 7: Saturday - Shiraz/Kerman |
Grand Tourist Inn |
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Today drive to Kerman. Visit the remains of the 4th century AD Sassanid Hunting Lodge at Sarvestan (access permitting) and the Congregation Mosque of Neyirz. A picnic lunch will be served near the beautiful Maharlou Salt Lake. (B,L,D) |
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Day 8: Sunday - Kerman/Bam |
Grand Tourist Inn |
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Full day excursion to Bam, site of a remarkably well-preserved medieval mudbrick citadel, Arg-e-Bam. The Arg was founded in Sassanian times but most of the present site dates from the Safavid era. It is surrounded by a two-mile crenellated wall supported by dozens of towers. Both the inner and outer citadels are intact and the view from atop the ramparts is breathtaking. Continue to the small town of Mahan to visit the 15th century mausoleum of the Sufi leader, Shah Nematolah-e-Vali, and the peaceful Ghajar garden, Bagh-e Tarikhi. (B,L,D) |
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Day 9: Monday - Kerman/Yazd |
Tourist Inn |
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This morning's tour begins with the Safavid period Ganj-Ali-Khan complex including bazaar, baths and caravanserai. Lunch is served in the charmingly beautiful tearoom. Afternoon drive to Yazd. (B,L,D) |
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Day 10: Tuesday - Yazd/Isfahan |
Abazzi Hotel |
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Morning tour of Yazd. Visit the Zoroastrian Towers of Silence and Fire Temple, as well as the 14th century Friday Mosque with dazzling tilework, exquisite mosaics and the two tallest minarets in Iran. See the Fahadan Quarter with its massive Badgirs (Wind Tunnels) and the Safavid period Pirnia House and gardens. Drive to Isfahan. (B,L,D) |
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Day 11: Wednesday - Isfahan |
Abazzi Hotel |
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Full day tour of Iran's most beautiful city, Isfahan, 17th century capital of the Safavid Dynasty and in its heyday called Nesf-e-Jahan - "Half of the World." See the famous bridges of Shahrestan, Khajou and Sio-se-pol, and the Armenian Quarter including the onion-domed Vank Cathedral. Visit Chehel-Souton, the palace of 40 columns (count them!) built by Shah Abbas. Isfahan's main attraction, the Royal Plaza, is monumental. Tour the enchanting music rooms of the Ali-Qapu Palace and the balcony overlooking the plaza from where the Safavid Kings watched polo matches. Visit two of the Islam's greatest mosques, the Sheikh Lotfollah and the Shah. Your day ends at the Qeisarieh Bazaar where shops display the art and handicrafts for which Isfahan is famous. (B,L,D) |
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Day 12: Thursday - Isfahan |
Abazzi Hotel |
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Day at leisure for independent exploration and shopping in the Qeisarieh Bazaar. (B,D) |
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Day 13: Friday -- Isfahan/Tehran |
Laleh Hotel |
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Morning sightseeing tour including the magnificent Friday Mosque and a walk through the Jewish Quarter. Midday return flight to Tehran. The balance of the day is at leisure until your Farewell Dinner this evening at a charming local restaurant. (B,L,D) |
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Day 14: Saturday - Depart |
En Route |
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Transfer to Tehran Airport for your return flight home via Europe. Bon Voyage! (B) |
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INCLUDED IN YOUR PROGRAM |
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• Accommodation as detailed in itinerary. |
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SORRY, NOT INCLUDED IN YOUR PROGRAM |
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• Departures taxes. |
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