Tabriz Tour | Tabriz Travel Guide | Tabriz Travel Tips
Written by Iran Travel Agency
Tabriz is the largest city in
northwestern Iran.
It is situated north of the volcanic cone of Sahand, south of
the Eynali
mountain. It is the capital of East Azarbaijan Province. Tabriz lies at
the junction of the Komur River (Mehran River) and the Aji River.
With a population of 1,600,000
Tabriz is Iran's Fourth largest city, after Tehran, Mashhad and Esfahan.
Its an ancient city that its
history is about 4500 years ago these informations beloges to digs that
archaeologist find near the blue mosque.
Tabriz is the largest city in
northwestern Iran.
It is situated north of the volcanic cone of Sahand, south of
the Eynali
mountain. It is the capital of East Azarbaijan Province. Tabriz lies at
the junction of the Komur River (Mehran River) and the Aji River.
With a population of 1,600,000
Tabriz is Iran's Fourth largest city, after Tehran, Mashhad and Esfahan.
Its an ancient city that its
history is about 4500 years ago these informations beloges to digs that
archaeologist find near the blue mosque.
Lying at an altitude of 1,340
meters above sea level, 619 km northwest of Tehran, the second largest city in
Iran until the late 1960's and one of its former capitals ( with a population
of 1,400,000 according to 1992 census), Tabriz is located in a valley to the
north of the long ridge of Mount Sahand. The valley opens out into a plain that
slopes down gently to the northern end of Lake Orumieh, 60 km to the west.
Provincial capital of Eastern Azarbaijan, it is 310 km southeast of Bazargan
(Iran- Turkey frontier); 159 km south of Jolfa on Iran-Azarbaijan Republic
border, and can be reached by good road; rail (742 km from Tehran, with
connections to Europe and Moscow), and air from Tehran and other major cities.
The 160-km long Aji ,Chai or Talkheh River is the major river of the city,
formed by merging of three smaller rivers, namely the Ab Nahand, Quri Chai, and
Ojan Chai, all of which originate from the Sabalan Mountain and the heights in
the southeastern part of the town. The river and streams join the Orumieh Lake
after passing through the valleys between the Sorkhband and Yekkeh Chin
mountain north of Tabriz and Osku district. Mehran River or Maidan Chai, also
called Liqvan River, originates from the peaks between Karim and Sultan
mountains overlooking the Liqvan village (a: major center of cheese production
in Iran) near Esparakhoun and Qeshlaq.
What
to See
Not much to see inside the city itself,
but the region around has much more touristic potential.
El Goli (formerly Shah
Goli) A superb park around a square artificial pond. In the center, a
small hall is located on an island and hosts a restaurant. Very nice for
eating some tchelokebab or sip some tea while enjoying the freshness of
the park in summer.
Blue Mosque A mosque which
was once certainly superb, but had been destroyed in an earthquake and not
rebuilt until recently. The inside of the mosque is tiled with superb blue
ceramic. Unfortunately, many pieces went missing during the quake and were
simply replaced by painting instead of tiles. Historic renovation, Iranian
style. Goy Masjed (in Persian Masjed-i Kabud) also known as "The Blue
Bosque" is a famous historic mosque in Tabriz, Iran.
It was built in 1465 during the reign
of Ak Koyunlu's Sultan Y‘aqub ibn Uzun Hasan by the orders of Salehe Khatun,
daughter of Jan Beigom Khatun of the ruling royalty. After dying, Uzun Hasan
was buried in the Southern part of the mosque.
The mosque was severely damaged in an
earthquake in 1778, leaving only the entrance iwan. The mosque was
reconstructed at early 1900 by Iranian Ministry of Culture.
The mosque was named as Blue Mosque
because of so many beautiful blue tiles that were used to cover the building.
Most of these tiles have been detached by earthquakes but some of them are seen
on the walls of building specially in the entrance gate.
Ark-e-Alishah Arg e Ali-Shah
also known as Arg e Tabriz, is a remnant of a fortress built in the
Ilkhanate period. Currently it is placed in the center of Tabriz, in Iran.
Historians believe that it was used as
a military castle but clerics claim that the structure was initially used as a
mosque in its early days, but during the Qajar era was used as a military post,
and storage facility for weapons (in Persian Ark means castle). Supporting this
phenomenon the clerics have been damaged large parts of the Ark to make a new
mosque [1].
It also played an important role in the
Constitutionalist war of Iran in the early 1900s against Mohammad Ali Shah of
the Qajar dynasty.
After the Revolution, large parts of
the building were destroyed by the cleric people to prepare a new place for
Friday prayers in Tabriz. The structure today stands 28 meters high, and is
still used as part of a space for holding Friday prayers in Tabriz.
Constitution house a house
retracing the story of the Iranian constitutional revolution in the early
20th century, Tabriz being a high place of the uprising. Quite well
documented and well kept, although few English translations are available.
The edifice is located next to the
Tabriz grand bazaar, on Motahari Ave. During the years leading up to the
Constitutional Revolution and afterwards, the house was used as the gathering
place of the leaders, activists, and the sympathizers of the movement, among
them Sattar Khan, Baqer Khan, Seqat ol-Eslam and Haji Mirza AqaFarshi. The
two-story building was constructed in 1868 by Haj Vali Me'mar-e Tabrizi. It has
numerous rooms and halls. The most beautiful parts of the house are a skylight
and a corridor decorated with colorful glasses and mirrors.
Bazaar one of the most
beautiful and largest in Iran and world. Some parts have been renovated
and are truly wonderful. You will find mosques, bid selling halls, and all
kind of trades possible. Worth to get lost inside for a few hours.
Azerbaidjan Museum a good place
encompassing the long Iranian history. But poorly kept: very few
translations and erratic classification make the trip inside the numerous
dynasties intricate for first timers.
Numerous places to see around Tabriz.
The mountainous region of south Azerbaidjan offers breathtaking views and
excellent treks among castles, rocky paths and remote villages.
Orumyeh Lake a salted lake
with salt beaches and improbable bathing spots (gender separate, of
course). Numerous migratory birds stop there on their long trip for some
rest and food.
Babak Castle breathtaking
castle, nested on a rocky peak at an altitude of 2,700 m. Babak was
apparently one of the last Zoroastrian heroes fighting the Islamic
invasion, 1400 years ago. A 2-hours walk to get up there, but definitely
worth it. What a view !
Kandovan a troglodytic
village 2 hours away from Tabriz. Great for discovering both the odd
beauty of the place and the daily life of an Iranian village, among sheep,
donkeys, hens and cats... Women in printed chadors can go outside and
playing kids are all around. Mullahs obviously don't bother going there
too often. Resistant walking shoes are mandatory if you want to climb up
the village. A living example of human adaptation to exceptionally unusual
natural surroundings, Kanddvan village is located 50 km to the south of
Tabriz, Osku, on the northern slopes of a valley at the foothills of Mount
Sahand. A river originating from the Sahand peaks passes through the
valley. There are a number of natural springs to the north of the river,
the water from which has traditionally been used for the treatment of
kidney stones, according to the locals. The physical structure of the
village looks like images from fairy tales. Natural cones, scattered over
a vast area, serve as human dwellings on rock formations which themselves
seem to have been the work certain sculptors. The road from Tabriz goes
through this natural artwork. On getting nearer to the dwellings, the visitor
finds out that large families are living inside two or three of these
hollow interconnected cones with features such as openings on their
surface playing the role of actual windows. The lowest cones are used as
stables and those on top as the living quarters.
The interiors of the dwellings, usually
divided into a living and a bed room, are dimly lit; however, the villagers are
used to it. The interconnecting corridors are very narrow. From the outside,
the dwellings look so similar to each other that one may easily get lost in the
village. Steep pathways and steps are made of rock pieces for animals as well
as human beings. As the legend goes, the first people to settle here were the
soldiers involved in military operations nearly 800 years ago, who found the
cones by chance and used them as their temporary camouflage and accommodation.
However, among archaeologists, it is considered to be of Pre-Islamic Period.
Mount Sahand big dome
topping at around 3,700 m. Interesting to climb in summer, or for skying
in winter (1 lift available, another in project)
Rob-e-RashidiThis complex was
built 700 years ago . This place was a place that they do all surgeries in
there. The books were made of leather . They teach science in there.
Tabriz city hall Was the first
city hall in Iran and was maden in Tabriz.
Gholestan Garden Is good place
to relax under the shadows of trees.
Tabriz Art Museum Is the first
art museum in Asia and Iran and the fifth in the world.
Poets Tomb Also known as Maghbarato-Shora
Many poets are buried here, as well as Shahriyar.
Canonical palace This beautiful
palace was built approximately 60 years ago.
