If Iran is your next trip destination, or you are already in Iran and you are planning for hiking in Tehran, you really need to read this post.
Tehran is the capital town of Iran. As for tourist attractions, Tehran is one of the top cities in the whole country. You will find Tehran as a city that does not sleep. Whatever you hear in the news about Iran, most of it happens in Tehran. The embassies are located in Tehran. The history, music, food, people and many other attractions you will find in Tehran. But is Tehran really the best trekking and hiking spot in Iran?
Why Trekking in Alamut Valley?
As the travel guidebooks for Iran like Lonely Planet, Bradt and Stefan Loose recommend, the best spot for hiking in Tehran is not within Tehran but it is some 4 hrs drive from Tehran. The best hiking spot in Iran is Alamut Valley. Valley of Assassins or world-wide known as Alamut Valley, is located within approx. 100 kilometers from Qazvin and Qazvin town is located 150 kilometers from Tehran. Of course Alamut Valley is accessible from the Caspian Sea, as well, but the distance wouldn’t be that big different.
Many tourists finish their trip of Iran in Tehran. At the end of their trip, they have one or two days to spare. Most of the time they look for a spot for hiking in Tehran. For the past decade, I have planned many tours from Tehran to Alamut Valley and finally back to Imam Khomeini Airport (IKIA) to finish their trip.
Accessing from Tehran to Qazvin is possible in some ways. As a tourist, you can take buses or public taxis or even trains. One of the easiest ways would be to book a pick-up from Tehran by me. I am a professional and law-abiding driver.
Qazvin, a stop between Tehran and Alamut
After reaching Qazvin, depending on your timing, you can sleep in here. Qazvin is an ancient town dating back to over 3000 years ago. This Silkroad-based civilization is the home to the largest inner-city caravansary in the middle east. You can not stop loving this place. Besides from the Caravansaray of Sa’ad Al-Saltaneh, you can spend one full day visiting the highlights of Qazvin.
I can transfer you to Alamut Valley at the end of your day to sleep in an accommodation in the Valley. It can be a village house or a hostel depending on our hiking itinerary.
Or you can sleep your second night in Qazvin (in some options we have here for sleeping), and the next morning be transferred to Alamut Valley.
Up to now, I have tried to talk about hiking in Tehran, but as you are reading, the best hiking region in Iran is not in Tehran but it is located more north-west in Alamut Valley of Qazvin province. It should be noted that both Tehran and Qazvin provinces are located on the south slope of the Alborz ranges in northern Iran.
Here in Alamut, we have many different hiking and trekking trails and many possibilities.
In this post I am writing about what I call “ the classic trail” in Alamut Valley. This trail starts from Garmaroud village and reaches Yuj and Maran at the end of the plan.
From my start in this profession, tourists always ask about details. How many kilometers per day? How high per day? How much descend per day? and many other questions.
I have already answered some frequent questions on Hiking in Alamut and Alamut Valley.
In this post I am trying to answer even more questions and hiking in Alamut Valley.
Now for the first time, I am able to publish the details of this trek thanks to the tourists and thanks to modern technology and smartphones.
Alamut Castle
Depending on the itinerary of your tour and time availability, we can take you to visit Alamut Castle before reaching Garmaroud.
Alamut Castle or as we locally call it “Hasan-e-Sabah” castle, used to be the headquarters of the castles of the Assassins in Persia and Syria.
The climb to Alamut Castle and visit will take approx. 3 hours.
If you visit Alamut Castle with me, I will proudly take you deep into the history of the Assassins’ Order.
Before going hiking in Iran, you need to check your gear for hiking. Not much is needed. You only need your trekking shoes, warm or waterproof clothes and walking sticks.
If you don’t have them, you can buy mountain stuff from these shops in Qazvin.
Alamut Valley Wildlife
Alamut Valley is relatively rich in terms of wildlife. While you are hiking in Alamut Valley, have your eyes out for wild animals like wild goats, ibex, wolves, snakes, agama, porcupines, hedgehogs and even on really rare occasions leopards and bears.
I have personally seen a brown bear only once while we were trekking in the mountains of Alamut.
Birds and bird-watching can be quite popular in Alamut. We have tens of different species of birds here in the Valley. The most famous ones are the Golden Eagle and Bearded Vulture.
The golden eagle is amongst the largest eagles in Iran and the bearded vulture is one of the largest birds in the whole world. The tips of the open wings of this vulture can reach up to over 3 meters.
Eurasian hoopoe, European roller, rock nuthatch, magpie, raven, crow, chough, nightingale, crested lark, woodpecker, bee-eater, little owl, dove, partridge, chukar, kestrel and many other smaller species are amongst the birds’ population in the Valley of Alamut.
Hiking in Alamut Valley
Hiking in Tehran which literally happens in Alamut Valley, starts from Garmaroud village.
Up to Garmaroud we transfer you by car and the trekking starts from this village.
We will assign a local villager to guide you through the mountains. The guide will prepare a picnic lunch, usually a vegetarian meal. Depending on the weather conditions, he will set a fire and prepare hot tea for you.
If you have planned to do hiking in Tehran and you ended up in Alamut Valley, get ready to meet local villagers.
Alamut Valley is the home of over 200 villages, most of them residential. People here in Alamut speak Farsi with a strong accent close to the Caspian region.
Their career is usually in agriculture within which they do both farming and animal husbandry mostly goat and sheep.
Day 1 – Garmaroud to Dineh Roud
For the first day, you will start from Garmaroud, and end up in Dineh Roud at 1900 meters above sea level. You will hike for approx. 6:00 to 8:00 hours and approx. 11 kilometers.
In Dineh Roud village, you will sleep in a village family’s house. You should not expect a fully-equipped personal ensuite. Usually, there is one room or a large shared room. There is no bed, but mattresses and blankets. There is hot water available. There are a shared toilet and a shared bathroom. The family cooks hot food the same day for you.
If you are a vegetarian, you need to let us know at least one day in advance.
Day 2 – Dineh Roud to Picheh Bon
The next morning after breakfast you will continue your hiking in the Alamut mountains. For the second day of your hike, you will walk for approx. 8 hours and a distance of approx. 12 kilometers.
The destination for this day is the village Piche Bon at 2700 meters above sea level.
In Pichebon you will sleep in a village house with a great view of the mountain Shah Alborz at 4,125 meters above sea level.
The living conditions here in Piche Bon are quite the same as in the village Dineh Roud.
Day 3 – Picheh Bon to Maran
The 3rd day is the descending day. After breakfast you will still ascend a little bit (approx. 400 meters). You will reach the Caravansaray of Pichebon. From this point, the elevation will decrease. Now you have officially passed the border of Qazvin Province into Mazandaran Province. You will pass the “Salaj Anbar” passway on your hike.
After approx. 6 to 9 hours and approx. after 14 kilometers of hiking, you will reach Maran village.
Unfortunately, there is no trail from Maran to Yuj. It is only a road and walking on a road wouldn’t be so nice.
From Maran we arrange a transfer for you to the Caspian town of Tone Kabon. You can sleep in Tone Kabon or you can move towards the west to Ramsar or towards the east to Chalous.
Our trekking tour in Alamut Valley ends up in Tonekabon.
We are able to perform this tour as vice versa. We can start from Tone Kabon and finish the tour in Qazvin.
For us to be able to better manage the tour items, you can please book the tour some days in advance.
As I am writing this post on April 2023, the Iranian government has banned whatsapp from free access.
If you are in Iran and you are trying to contact us, just simply touch the “Email Icon” or “Whatsapp Icon” at the buttom of this page.
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