Tehran Warnings or Dangers

by TheWanderingCamel
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Tehran traffic

Tehran's traffic problems just keep on growing. Huge traffic jams are an everyday occurrence and the pollution problems , particularly in the lower parts of the city, are acute. Allow yourself plenty of time to get anywhere you have to be to a timetable - the airport, bus station, etc. If you find the pollution is getting to you, do as the Teranis do, take some time out in the foothills of the mountains around the city -visit a teahouse in the hills and valleys outside the city or the palace complex of the Shahs at Zaferanieh, in the north of the city.


	Keep your hands where they can be seen	Tip Rating:

By CliffClaven

on November 16, 2006

by CliffClaven
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There are far fewer police on the streets of Tehran than in London, Paris or New York. But westerners, since there aren't so many of them wandering around the city, tend to get noticed. You don't want this pair taking aim at you – so behave yourself when you are in Tehran.


	Gutters	Tip Rating:

By grets

on June 14, 2007

by grets, 1 more photos
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One of the major hazards in Tehran, is the state of the roads and pavements. And not just in Tehran, it is the same all over Iran in all the cities we visited. It really is not a place for wheelchair users. The gutters are deep and wide (and full of very fast flowing icy cold mountain glacier water in spring, often causing severe flooding), and sometimes it can be quite hard to get across from the pavement to the road. Many places have small concrete ‘bridges’, but often these are absent, or not in the place you want to cross. Keep your eyes on the ground or you could come a-cropper like Yasmina did – falling over and hurting her knee when she missed her step. Be careful.


	Shopping - or lack of it - at the airport	Tip Rating:

By grets

on June 11, 2007

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The shopping 'mall' at the
airport

Don’t leave it until the last minute to make those important gift-purchases. Having taken a domestic flight from Mehrabad Airport which was full of cute little shops selling souvenirs, snacks and all sorts of useful and useless items any traveller needs, I was so disappointed with the shopping opportunities at the new, modern Imam Khomeini International Airport. They are almost non-existent! There were a few (maybe four) small, expensive shops in a row, that’s it! Don’t rely on any duty-free (Iran being a dry country, there is no alcohol of course) for gifts and memories of your trip. Buy them when you can!


	Traffic	Tip Rating:

By grets

on June 11, 2007

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The biggest danger by far in Tehran, is the traffic. You take your life in your hands crossing the road, with the myriad of cars, taxis and motorbikes who all weave in and out on the road and sometimes on the pavements too. Zebra crossings don’t help you much either, as traffic do not stop for pedestrians. You don’t wait for a gap in the traffic to cross the road in Iran, you create one. When you see a small window of opportunity, aim for it, walk with confidence and don’t hesitate. You’ll be fine, we were.


	MONEYCHANGERS - VIOLENT CRIMINALS	Tip Rating:

Updated By DAO

on January 24, 2008

by DAO
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CRIMINALS

THESE MEN ARE DANGEROUS CRIMINALS. In fact the fat one on the left physically assaulted me when I started shouting for the Police. These evil criminals are Moneychangers on the street. I needed some cash and they offered me a better rate than the Exchange shop and the banks were closed. I knew they would charge me a small charge, but then they said I had only given them $40 when I handed over $50. That’s when I shouted Police! And the guy on the left hit me. Then my $50 was handed back and these guys disappeared. The Police did arrive, but seemed uninterested in my photo. Well I got a free lesson. I found an exchange shop that gave me a descent rate nearby. After that I only used the banks. AVOID THESE MEN. THEY OPERATE IN FERDOSI SQUARE


	EMERGENCIES:	Tip Rating:

By omidamini

on July 17, 2005

by omidamini
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It's hoped that you won't need any of the fonumbers: Ambulance 220071-2. Tehran Traffic 197, 8834910. General 115, 6469990. Water 5634000. Power 3261. Gas 194


	Fake police	Tip Rating:

on July 29, 2004

In Tehran and Esfahan some people have developed a nice scam. They pretend to be police, stopping tourists demanding to see their passport. If they get it, they will be gone in a moment. In tehran i was stopped by a patrol of three siviliandressed men in a paykan. The leader showed me an ordinary ID card saying he was poliuce, demanding to get my passport as he asked if i had heroine or hasjis. I responded "let us go to the nearest uniformed police". Then they disappeared.


	Traffic and Driving	Tip Rating:

By omidamini

on August 29, 2003

When you come to Tehran you would very clever because here driving is so bad and dangers and here have a bad teraffic


	Fake police	Tip Rating:

By jkseddon

on September 26, 2004

While the problem is worse in Esfahan, watch out for men claiming to be police who will ask for your passport then demand money before they give it back. Generally they will cruise in Paykans (the old cars found everywhere in Iran) and hold up some document from the window to get you to stop. Either walk into a shop or as I did, pull your camera out and they'll leave you alone. Of course if there hadn't been people around I wouldn't have dared to be so brazen.