The concrete jungle of Tehran can seem a little daunting at first, but it doesn’t take long to get your bearings and feel right at home. We don’t have a lot of time scheduled in Iran, so we’d recommend you arrive a few days early to have a good look around. You can check out one of the many museums, mosques or markets. Brett, one of the tour facilitators (and founder of Social Cycles) will be in the city to greet you and offer some local advice. Our first official activity for the evening is a welcome dinner at a ‘local’s favourite’ restaurant.

We start the day with the wonderful people from Omid-e-Mehr foundation. Learn how this incredible non-government organisation empowers local disadvantaged young women through three key areas: self-empowerment, education and training. Starting in 2004, Omid-e-Mehr was set up to help victims of sexual, physical and mental abuse. Today, it has over 200 young women enrolled in its program. This insight into Iran is an incredible, eye-opening education. In the afternoon, we will start to make our way to Qom, the second holiest city in Iran. This is an ideal place (and time) to see Muharram, the mourning of Imam Hossein. The festivities of this religious occasion will follow us on our whole trip across Iran in September, but nothing will be more prevalent than what you will witness in Qom.

We’ll take the van in the morning to get out of town into the foot of the mountains. This is where we start our first cycle day as we begin a gradual climb from 1400m to 2800m asl over the first 30km. After a bit of undulation, we finish the day at 1750m asl at the 70km point, before getting into the van and driving to Kashan. We plan to arrive into Kashan in the comfort of a hotel to give you a chance to rest, relax and explore the incredible town of Kashan at your leisure.

We’ll arrange the van to take us to Fin Gardens (about 10km out of town) for the morning, but the rest of the day is yours to explore. Kashan is a really interesting city that is rarely spoken of outside of the country but is a common tourist destination for locals. And for good reason.

The Agha Bozorg Mosque is an excellent example of 19th-century architecture, the bazaar, Sultan Amir Ahmad Bathhouse and Bagh-e-Fin Garden are all easy to get camera crazy over. And then there is the food to eat and rugs to buy! Of course, this is an opportunity to soak up the cultural surrounding by just taking rest. Take your camera for a walk, drink tea with a local stranger and let the local hospitality guide you.

We drive out of the traffic of Kashan and onto a quiet road, some 1400m asl. The 25km climb is broken up by exploring some of the local villages on the way. Don’t be surprised if the locals invite us in for tea, and if so, expect a feast of fruit, dates, homemade sweets and of course, black tea. The day finishes at 2200m asl in the small historical village of Abyaneh. Make sure you take some time to go for a stroll and marvel at the wonderful red colours of the mud-brick town.

From Abyaneh we tackle the mountain range to the West. A slow 22km climb will take us to new heights of 2800m above sea level into a land of complete remoteness and rural fascination. These are the roads less travelled, let alone cycled, and these are the roads that lead to great adventures and authentic experiences. We will arrive at the tiny village of Meymeh (200m asl), before being picked up by the van to transit into Esfahan. It’s important to note that the first 22km of this ride from Abyaneh is not supported by either vehicle as the terrain is not suitable.

Esfahan is the number one tourist destination in Iran, and for good reason. Being one of the oldest cities in Iran, some 2500 years, Esfahan is famous for its tree-lined boulevards, Life-Giving River, The Zayandeh-Rood, abundant and beautiful mosques, bazaars, bridges and city squares.

Esfahan is an incredible city to explore and discover through the diverse food, cafes and teahouses. We will also dig a little deeper and meet Congress 60, another NGO, to learn a little more about what happens beneath the surface of this friendly and welcoming community.

As standard, we will drive out of the city of Esfahan to quieter roads. At a starting elevation of 2300m asl, we’ll make our way through remote outback Iran, via small villages to a small town, not too far from the Dena Protected Area. The elevation of our destination is at the 1500m asl point, and although it”s not all downhill on the bike, there certainly is more down than up!

We continue our journey on the bike through the mountains for a further 60kmk or 70km, depending on the route we go and the confidence of the group. The beauty of cycling out in these back end roads is that it is an opportunity to witness true Iranian hospitality. Tourists are covered with kindness and are considered by some to be ‘guests from God’. These off the beaten track roads will give us the opportunity to take our time and stroll through local villages on the way, whilst enjoying local foods and capturing that amazing photograph.

Starting at an altitude of 1700m, we will climb to a peak of 2500m over the first 60km, before descending to 2300m for the evening in the next 10km. This is the last cycle day of the trip and the distance we cycle towards Shiraz will depend on the group and the time we want to arrive. Having two support vehicles and a small group allows for greater flexibility in our cycling day and everybody should be able to have a great day. Shiraz is another fabulous city and one that wants to be explored. We’ll have the entire following day to explore, but the mosque and Hafez Tomb are great places to visit for sunset and evening times.

We take a full day here to explore, relax and reflect on the experience over a previous couple of weeks. Shiraz is a photographers dream with highlights such as Eram Gardens, Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, Vakil mosque and bazaar, Karim Khan citadel just to name a few. We’ll spend part of the day visiting our final NGO of the trip, while the rest is yours to explore what suits you best (and to grab some of that last-minute shopping!)

We’ll drive straight to the country’s premier attraction, Persepolis. This ancient empire was built in 518 BC by Darius the Great as the capital of the mighty Achaemenid Empire. Alexander the Great burnt the city to the ground in 330 BC, but many remnants of its former glory remain and Persepolis lives on as one of the greatest wonders of the ancient world. Officially made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.

It’s a long day in the van, but we’ll get you to Tehran by early evening to say goodbye.