Qazvin Tour Packages & Travel Information

Qazvin province

In this section, we are going to acquaint you with one of the best tourist destinations in Iran.

Qazvin is a province in Iran that is bordered by Mazandaran and Gilan provinces to the north, Zanjan Province to the west, Hamedan and Markazi provinces to the south, and Alborz province to the east. Due to its numerous monuments, Qazvin province is a province with the most historical sites in Iran. About 11 percent of the total national monuments recorded are located in this city.

Qazvin is highly regarded by tourists for a couple of reasons. First, there are so many historical sites in the city, and second, pristine valleys full of water in the area have made it a suitable location for Canyoning.

 The City of Qazvin

The city of Qazvin is the provincial capital of Qazvin Province, and the history of Qazvin refers to the city of Qazvin.

History of Qazvin

Qazvin region dates back to the pre-Achaemenian and Medes periods.

Qazvin has always been of great importance throughout history. In Seljuk period, when Tughril died, the heads of state gathered in Qazvin to plan for empowering Tughril’s child, Alp Arslan.

In Safavid period, the city of Qazvin was elected as the capital by Shah Tahmasp I.

After siege of Isfahan by Afghans, Tahmasp Mirza, son of Shah Sultan Hussein, was officially crowned in Qazvin.

Qazvin Elevation above Sea Level

Qazvin Province is bordered by Alborz Mountains to the north and as a result, this province is located at a range of elevations. The city of Qazvin has an elevation of 1,350 meters above sea level.

Weather in Qazvin

Weather in Qazvin Province is influenced by three air currents, including:

• Western humid air mass
• Northern cold air mass
• Southern warm air mass

These three air currents cause different kinds of weather in this province.

Humid air mass cause high rainfall in the province in autumn and winter.

Cold air mass of north cause decrease in temperature, especially at high altitudes of the province.

And finally warm air mass from the south cause heat and high temperature in the plains of the province.

The average maximum temperature in Qazvin is around 18 degrees Celsius and the average minimum temperature is about minus 2 degrees Celsius.

This is the average temperature not the absolute temperature. On some days of the year, at high altitudes the temperature even reaches -27 degrees.

How to Reach Qazvin Province

Qazvin is easily accessible from Tehran by land and rail:

This province is located on the way of Tehran-Tabriz rail route and it is connected to the cities of Iran and also foreign cities such as Istanbul in Turkey.

The main land route from Tehran to Qazvin is:

Tehran, Alborz, Qazvin: about 150 km.

Qazvin Tourist Attractions

As mentioned above, due to the long history of Qazvin province and because it was the capital city of Iran in a period, it has many historical attractions. Moreover, because of the climate and high rainfall in this region, this province has many natural tourist attractions and it is also one of the perfect places for Canyoning.

Tourist attractions in Qazvin province include:

Qazvin Bazar and Sa’d al-Saltaneh Caravanserai

Iran traditional bazaars are one of the main historical attractions of this country. These bazaars can be seen mostly in big cities that were once the capital of Iran. Qazvin was the capital of Iran in Safavid era and it has one of the most beautiful covered bazaars. Qazvin bazaar dates back to over 1,000 years ago, and it enjoyed prosperity when Qazvin was the capital of Iran. After Safavid era, this bazaar was highly regarded in Qajar period, too, and more shops of this bazaar date back to the Qajar period.

There is a beautiful caravanserai located beside Qazvin bazaar that is known to Iran as the biggest caravanserai in Iran. This caravanserai was built under the orders of Sa’d al-Saltaneh, the ruler of Qazvin of the time, and so it is called Caravanserai of Sa’d al-Saltaneh.

Chehel Sotun palace

One of the most important monuments of Qazvin is Chehel Sotun palace or Kolah Farangi Mansion.

To date, it might thought that Chehel Sotun palace belongs to Isfahan! But there is another Chehel Sotun palace located in Qazvin which is much older than the one in Isfahan.

This building, remained from Safavid era in Qazvin was built under the orders of Shah Tahmasp Safavi in 1544.

Alamut Castle

One of the tourist attractions of Qazvin Province is a strong fortress with a special strategic position and it is known as Alamut Castle. This castle used to be home to the leader of a religious sect in Iran. Because there were dreadful valleys all around the castle, it had a safe and highly strategic location and its inhabitants could easily defend themselves against invasion.

Aminiha Hosseiniyeh

Another historical attraction in Qazvin is Aminiha Hosseiniyeh. You have definitely seen pictures of this beautiful building among Qazvin historical attractions.

This public mourning area or hosseinieh is in fact the religious site and a mansion in Qazvin that many tourists travel to the city to visit. Aminiha Hosseiniyeh was built by Haj Mohammad Reza Amini, a great merchant in Qazvin, in 1859.

Jameh Mosque of Qazvin

Another very important monument in the city of Qazvin is the city’s Jameh Mosque. This mosque was built in 808 AD, and is the first and largest Jameh mosque in Iran. This mosque was built on the remains of Sassanid fire temples.

The mosque has witnessed many events throughout history, including the destruction of a part of it at the time of the Mongol invasion of Iran.

The architecture of this building is mostly attributed to Safavid era, because it was restructured in this period, and several sections were added to this mosque.