Costs in Iran

Are you looking for a breath-taking destination for a budget travel? Then, why not Iran? Iran is a really good country to have a budget travel in. In each city, you will easily accommodate in cheap as well high quality hotels, hostels, and other types of accommodation, eat in luxury restaurants and have enjoyable moments. 
Raadina prepares a travel guide containing some tips on costs of traveling in Iran which helps you enjoy your trip to this historical and beautiful country. 

Iranian Rial or Toman?

Rial (IRR) or ریال is the official currency in Iran and can be seen on the all notes are produced in 5000, 10000, 20000, 50000, 100000 and 500000 Rials as well as the coins in 250, 500, 1000 and 5000 Rials, but people mostly use Toman for selling and buying goods and services in daily life, in shops and Bazaars, restaurants, hotels, etc. The notes are printed in both Persian and English digits on each side and descriptions on the coins are in Persian. Coins are not a great deal of importance for you since it is ten to one using them anyway, they're mostly paid for in situations like charity issues or shared taxi's fair. 
The difference between Rial and Toman may become the most challenging issue for those coming Iran and make them totally confused, however the problem will be solved if you ignore the last 0 of the amount. We will demonstrate it here to make you avoid the confusion: for example, at a supermarket, the salesperson may ask you to pay 1000 Toman for a small bottle of water, it means you must multiply 1000 Toman in 10 and pay 10000 Rials. And the reserve, if something worth 2,000,000 IRR, you need to divide it over 10 which will be 200,000 Tomans. Is it solved out? Can you tell us how much an item costing 25,000 Toman will be in IRR?
That’s right! 250,000 IRR.

Currency in Iran 

The value of Rial has been weakened due to the sanctions against Iran in 2018. Currency crisis is considered as an unpleasant issue for the Iranians but it can be an opportunity for those who tend to travel to this historic country with numerous unique historical and natural attractions. So, the recent dramatic decrease in Rial rate makes international tourists’ travel much easier and much cheaper than ever before.  

Costs of Traveling in Iran

Traveling to Iran is much easier than you may think about it. We tend to explain how it may cost to travel to Iran closely from the most important issues like accommodation, transportation, food etc. 

Accommodation Costs in Iran

As it was mentioned earlier, the costs of traveling to Iran has become very low. In recent decades, due to an increase in the number of tourists visiting Iran, there have been different kinds of accommodations built with different range of price for a night stay. For example, there are hostels in which a twin room costs $10 and on the other hand there are luxury hotels staying in which for a night for a twin room can cost around $150 or more. Overall, the average price of accommodation at a hotel for each person for a night would be about €50 while staying in any hotel in Western countries would cost much more. It is important to mention that US dollars and Euros are the most frequent and widely-accepted currencies at Iranian hotels, so most of the time you may not need to exchange your money. 
To add more, in some hotels, there are exchange offices where you can safely change your currency, an example can be Dad Hotel in Yazd.

Transportation Costs in Iran

Transportation in Iran is also so cheap. Although an exact price cannot be said as it varies depending on the distance, date of traveling and how crowded are the flights, approximately domestic flights in Iran for each person costs between €20 to €60. Train tickets and intercity bus ticket are even cheaper; for example, a VIP bus ticket from Tehran costs around €5 in February 2019. The local bus tickets and taxi fares are very cheap, around some cents per kilometer. 

Cost of Food and Drink in Iran

Although Iran is rich in variety of dishes, these dishes are not expensive. The average daily price for food is completely reasonable or even cheap. If you buy food from street vendors, it is possible to cost even less than a dollar or euro. However, eating in a restaurant can start from €3 in mid-range restaurants to €50 in expensive restaurants in Tehran, Isfahan, Shiraz and other large cities. Snack and junk food surely cost much lower, around less than a dollar for an ice cream. 

Entrance Ticket Fees

Unlike other tourist attractions in other parts of the world, the attraction tickets in Iran are not expensive. In most attractions, it only costs about €2 to €5.

MAH Card for Tourists

It is necessary to mention that credit cards like Visa and Master do not work in Iran. So you need to carry cash to Iran. In Iran, you can exchange your currency in numerous exchange agencies in large cities and towns. There is even an exchange office in international airports in large cities. However, carrying a big amount of cash is not safe, therefore, recently some banks issued some debit card for tourists with which you can shop in almost all stores in Iran, withdraw cash from ATMs, even pay for your hotel and tickets. One of these debits cards is MAH CARD which is the only prepaid travel debit card for tourists in which they can deposit in euro and dollar and use it to shop in IRR or draw out IRR. There is no limit on the amount you deposit in your MAHCARD. You can deposit as much money as you think you may need while traveling in Iran and when you are leaving the country you can draw out the remaining balance. So, there is no need to carry a high amount of cash in Iran. The expiration date of MAH Card depends on the expiry date of your visa. To get more information about a MAH Card, refer to Mahcard.com and read more about it. 

Exchanging Your Money

If you wish to have some money in cash with you while traveling in Iran, where can you exchange your money? You can exchange your money whether in exchange agencies or offices throughout the country, or banks. If you are flying to Iran, the very first place where you can exchange your money are the exchange offices located in the airport. They are safe enough; however, the exchange rate may be higher. Moreover, in larger cities in Iran, there are several exchange agencies where you can exchange your money safely. As an example, click to learn about these agencies in Yazd. In addition, you can find exchange offices in some big hotels to exchange your money. In cities such as Tehran, Isfahan, etc., you can even exchange your money in the street with the dealers (e.g. in Ferdowsi Street in Tehran); however, you must be careful enough not to be ripped off. There is no limit on the amount you wish to exchange; i.e. you can exchange as much money as you wish. 

What to Do If You Run out of Money in Iran?

There is no need to worry about. You just need to go to an exchange agency (called Sarafi in Persian) and ask them to help. They will give you the instructions through which money can be sent to you from home to Iran. Although it is not the issue not to be solved, it is highly recommended to have enough money with you in order to avoid any problem.

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