Iran Travel and Destination Guide

Little understood and seldom visited by western tourists, Iran can seem opaque and enigmatic. Many stereotypes are based on its confusion with the Arab world, a fact lost on many in the West and a mistake many in Iran, with its over 2500 years of Persian history, would probably take issue with. An essential stop on the Silk Road, at one time the Persian Empire stretched from Greece to India, and brought its famously tolerant culture-including early medicine-to a world mired in comparative medieval backwardness. Today's Iran is still a place of bustling bazaars, glorious architecture and mountain villages, with a young, friendly and open population. As long as you're not too attached to that glass of wine (although it was invented here), a visit will take you beyond the rhetoric into one of the world's truly great cultures.