Hawraman (it is said that it means land of Ahura Mazda or land of Sun) is a region which its bigger part is in the west of Iran (one part of it In Kurdistan and another part in Kermanshah province) and the smaller part is in the east of Iraq (Kurdistan of Iraq). Two villages in Hawraman are well-known; Hawraman Takht and Palangan.
Palangan, probably is the oldest village between Hawraman's villages. As for most of the ancient villages in Kurdistan, security is a key, so, you cannot see the Palangan, if you are not very close to it; it's almost hidden afar (we are not talking about new buildings). A stepped village (or stair village) with an eventful history where, still, you can see their ancient traditions such as celebrating Nowruz (new year of Iranian). There is everything; traditional village, river, mountain, dance, celebration; life.
Hawraman Takht: If you go to Hawraman from Marivan road, that tortuous mountain road goes up and nearby of the mountaintop you have to turn left, there is the gate of Hawraman; the scenery is breathtaking, picturesque, exotic and impressive. You will see a valley, a different world, profound and mysterious like a fairyland, stepped villages. This difficulty to get there tell you why the people there are very attached to their traditions; they used to be blocked off by snow in the winter, besides the difficulty to get there. Through history, they benefit from this situation and its recently that, the modernism is wandering there.
Tips: Best time to visit there is April and May and to tell you the truth, it's not off the beaten track any more; although, there are fewer travellers than classic Iran.
For the travellers who are interested in visiting off the beaten track villages, I would say east of Kurdistan is the best choice.