Sandwiched between the looming summits of Sahand and the Bozqoosh Mountains and cut through by the channels of the Aji River, the city of Tabriz stands as one of Iran’s most enthralling urban destinations. It’s famed for its wealth of cultural sites and long history of nearly 5 millennia, while there’s also a burgeoning business scene caused by the city’s rapid industrialisation.
Ask your Tabriz tourist guide about the must see sights of the downtown, from the Blue Mosque to the leafy El Goli Park, with its gushing fountains and regal gardens. Then head to the Tabriz Bazaar, a magnificent arabesque relic of the old Silk Road and the largest covered marketplace on the planet, to explore its endless maze of stalls as well as purchase one of it’s famous handmade carpets.
And if the wild ridges of the mountains get just a little too much as you sit eating kebabs and bubbling abgousht amidst the bustling local fray of Kouy Valiasr, then why not make a jaunt into the hinterlands of the greater East Azerbaijan Province, perhaps for the beaches of Orumyeh Lake, the ancient cave homes of Kandovan, or for a spot of skiing on the slopes of Mount Sahand.