Explore Qeshm Through Locals
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Karim Khan Citadel, District 8, Shiraz, Fars Province, Iran
Explore Qeshm Through Locals
Explore Isfahan Through Locals
A tailor-made day by day plan based on your interests and budget
Decked with seemingly never-ending flower gardens, marked by historic attractions and majestic architecture, and famed for its wine, it is no wonder Shiraz is dubbed the city of love. But it is at night, when the atmosphere is rich with fragrance and poetry, that one can feel the love in the air—literally.
From the tombs of literary giants such as Saadi and Hafiz adorned with flowers and world-renown gardens, including Bagh-e Jahan Nama, and Delgosha Garden, to the remains of historic cities such as Pasargadae and Persepolis, and shopping places like Vakil Bazaar, a tour to Shiraz is sure to satisfy a wide range of tastes. Keep on reading to know what to expect on tour in Shiraz.
If you`ve ever come across one of Saadi or Hafez`s poems and felt like you were walking in an endless garden of flowers hand in hand with your beloved, you would probably want to visit the place that inspired such poetic insights.
Shiraz is considered the heart of Iran`s culture and literature since it is as old as history records and is home to diverse communities and cultures. The innumerable colorful gardens and trees make the air pungent with the perfume of flowers. And naturally so, Tap Persia tours are planned in such a way as to sustain this aura in the background throughout.
If you plan to visit Shiraz, although the city is beautiful any time of the year, Spring is the perfect season. The newly-garmented tree lines and freshly-bloomed flower gardens around the city look as if little parts of heaven have fallen to the ground and give a stunning fabric to the city, and one can only admire the beauty in awe.
A tour of Shiraz is never complete without walking at length in its mesmerizing and gorgeous gardens and parks. Most important of which are Jahan Nama, Delgosha, and Eram Garden, but if you want to add a touch of poetry to your visit, you can visit Hafez or Saadi mausoleum, where you can hear poetry readings in the air mixed with the chirping of the birds.
Don`t get any ideas yet! Although Shiraz is famous for its bloodred luscious wine worldwide, the production and or consumption of all alcoholics have been outlawed since the 1977 Islamic Revolution, and Shiraz is no exception.
Still, Shiraz wine has left an ineffaceable mark on the city’s history, and nowhere is this mark more visible than in the literary works of eminent poets. Since antiquity, good wine and good poetry have gone hand in hand; this becomes an inescapable truth when reading Hafez or Saadi, some of Iran`s most celebrated poets; who knows, perhaps the secret to good poetry is good wine, or maybe it’s the other way around.
Either way, Shiraz stands tall in the literature world and carries the city of love and literature title in Iran, if not anywhere else. The city could not be more deserving of that title since it has given birth that gave birth to some of the greatest poets of history.
Tourists are advised to plan their itinerary around the country`s two most celebrated poets` tombs: The tomb of Hafez and the Tomb of Saadi, which have been turned into tourist attractions, both for domestic and foreign visitors, through an abundance of colorful and fragrant flowers and trees. The tombs and mausoleums have become hubs for poetry readings, especially at night or on certain festive occasions such as Newroz— Iranian new year.
World-renowned poets and Eden-like gardens are not Shiraz`s only offerings to tourists! If you enjoy contemplating ancient ruins where the capital of the greatest empire in the world once stood, Shiraz should be at the top of your itinerary. Here, there is no scarcity of historical sites; the city is dotted with various religious and non-religious attractions that draw thousands of hundreds of thousands of tourists each year.
It is easy to lose sight of all the beauty and majesty of Shiraz`s architecture when one is surrounded by flower gardens. But beware! The city`s historic and ancient attractions hold just as much splendor. As an ancient and long-standing city, Shiraz dates back to as far as 2000BCE, when the Achaemenid Empire ruled Persia. The remains of the ancient empire`s capitals, Persepolis and Pasargadae, are now among tourists’ top visiting sites, for they are the constant reminders of Iran`s ancient glory.
Other historical attractions with a religious aspect include Nasir-ol-Molk Mosque and Shah Cheragh Mosque; the former admired for its colorful and stunning architecture, also dubbed the Pink Mosque, and the latter for its religious value— a holy site where locals pilgrimage.
Much like its gardens, Shiraz prides itself on its colorful community, where cultural and national values bond groups of people that are very different. As one of the oldest cities in Iran and with a population of one and half a million people, Shiraz is home to a decent number of Christians and Jews. Places of worship for Christians and Jewish people alike exist throughout the city.
Just one more reason to travel to Shiraz, as if the reasons above weren`t enough! As one of the oldest cities in Iran, dating back thousands of years, Shiraz has numerous invaluable historical sites that have been recognized by UNESCO.
Just to bolden the fact that Shiraz`s beauty is world-renowned and recognized around the globe, some of the UNESCO sites in the city have been mentioned here: Pasargadae, Persepolis, and the Eram Garden (Bagh-e Eram).
Bagh-e Eram is only one of the nine gardens recognized as the symbolic Persian garden. The reason goes beyond mere beautiful flowers and trees. The honor is in recognition of the application of a wide range of professional areas such as water management, engineering, architecture, and botany.
The eternally-present question in every tourist’s mind, “What to bring home?” need not become a headache in Shiraz, from edibles including sweets and confections to handicrafts and artworks. The range of souvenirs the city offers is impressive, to say the least.
Let us begin with the edibles, shall we? While not all Shirazi food can be brought home in a neat package and gifted to friends and families, many of them do! Edible souvenirs local to Shiraz include Masqati, which is a type of sweet made from starch, sugar, and saffron that comes in different flavors, Youkhe, made from a thin paste twisted into several layers and sugar powder, cinnamon or pistachio powder, and Shirazi cookies, cookies baked Shirazi style.
You can purchase handicrafts instead if you have a sweet tooth and would rather run a pass on sweets and edibles. As an art hub of Iran, Shiraz offers marvelous artworks, some of which have been mentioned below.
A specific version of marquetry, Khatam Kari, is an ancient artistic technique. Art forms are crafted on wooden articles; the result is achieved by applying detailed and thorough decorations on the object. Common materials used in the decoration process include gold, brass, and silver: ceramic tableware, toreutics, and kilims.
Shiraz is as rich in art and architecture as it is in poetry, with over several thousand years of history. As Iran`s sixth-largest city, and given the fact that it has served as the nation`s capital several times in the past, it is home to numerous historical and recreational attractions whose full exploration would take more than just a few days.
Whether you enjoy marvelous gardens, try out local foods, buy handicrafts, or visit historical sights, Shiraz will suit your taste. It harbors a wide range of attractions both in nature and in looks. Take a tour with us and discover the city of love and literature.
All tours offered by Tap Persia are customizable and can be tailored to your needs and expectations. From nightly poetry readings in the gardens of Hafez and Saadi mausoleums and visits to marvelous historic mosques such as Nasir-ol-Molk and Shah Cheragh with exquisite architecture to visiting ancient remains of Pasargadae and Persepolis, all are included in our tour packages.
Visit tappersia.com to find out more about our Iran tour and how you can customize your favorite tours. Discover Persia, discover Shiraz through Tap Persia.
