Mehmankhaneh Tehran
Near the old bridge, the ageing Mehmankhaneh Tehran is basic but clean-enough.
Shahlizar Hotel
Comfortable, cosy rooms have cutesy straw bows decorating their doors. Manager Maziyar speaks some English and is keen to show guests the beautiful views (to mountains and port) from the fifth-floor rooftop (no lift).
Apadana Hotel
Comfortable and central, the Apadana’s rooms are fully equipped, though the wallpaper is starting to look a little tatty and water pressure can be rather low in the upper rooms. Staff are friendly and some speak English.
Hotel Siraf
The large, tired rooms need an overhaul and could be much cleaner. They’re not worth the money. Bargain as hard as you can.
Mehmanpazir Minu
On the northern ring road, the new Mehmanpazir Minu is great value, with fancy Achaemenid-motif bed-heads on the hard beds and air-conditioning in most rooms.
Shahrdari Inn
Clad in multicoloured marble behind the trees of the park, attractive rooms in cream and pastel-blue have bay windows with sitting areas. A few have castle views (eg room 127). Bathrooms are passable if less polished. Some staff speak English.
Marmar Hotel
Comfortable rooms are graciously less lurid, but with some wear to the furniture. Bring earplugs for the road rumble.
Mosaferkhaneh Ye Haram
There’s no English spoken, no English sign, and the rooms and shared bathrooms are uberbasic. But it’s the cheapest in town and the welcome is warm. Popular with families, it’s a reasonable choice for lone women travellers.
Mehmunsara Fadagh
Deep in the old city, this mehmunsara in a 200-year-old building is the cheapest, most interesting hotel in town; note we didn’t say atmospheric.
Hotel Khayyam
A cosy mosaferkhaneh whose small but relatively pleasant rooms have attached showers but ageing shared squat toilets. Comparatively overpriced.
Hotel Khorshid Jonub
A simple but clean family-run place about a 10-minute walk east of where the speedboats leave.
Motel Kaveh
Arched windows and a two-tiered terrace give the Kaveh a vaguely colonial look. Neat rooms with kitchen, shower and Western loo are excellent-value year round. It’s very central in an overgrown garden (marked ‘096’).
Abyaneh Hotel
Located on a hill above Abyaneh, this multi-storey place is the only hotel and restaurant in town. It’s taken years to complete and the finished product is very comfortable.
Mosaferkhaneh Reza
Four-room crash-pad Mosaferkhaneh Reza is the savari terminal for Kaleybar (IR10,000, one hour), Meshgin Shahr (IR10,000, 1¼ hours) and Tabriz (back/front IR12,000/14,000, 1¼ hours).
Hotel Mohammad
For lodgings, the super basic Hotel Mohammad, unmarked in English opposite the Imamzadeh, is not the sort of place you’ll stay more than one night.
Tak Setareh
Quiet, relatively well-kept mosaferkhaneh where you can play nard (a local form of backgammon) in the little lobby area.
Safa Apartment Hotel
It’s busy, but the rooms are tired – and when we visited, staff seemed tired of seeing so many guests.
Amir Hotel
Above a popular restaurant, the good-value Amir has small, comfortable rooms with bathrooms and a friendly reception in the cosy lobby. Varzesh Sq is identifiable by its ‘sport monument’ displaying huge footballs in a giant cup.
Zagros Hotel
Zagros Hotel is a local tourist attraction in itself with park-like grounds, a ‘geyser’ lake and a (currently broken) mini-cable car.
Darya Hotel
Just east of the Eskele Sangi, the Darya is Qeshm’s best option for value, location, comfort and service. Rooms are spacious and come with kitchenettes; front rooms (US$40) have water views.
Hormoz Hotel
Clearly the pick of Bandar’s lodgings, the enormous Hormoz is an international standard hotel with the look, facilities and most of the service that entails. Rooms are luxurious and most have a balcony – with either views or glimpses of the Gulf.
Chaharfasl Mehmankhaneh
Well-kept if basic rooms with fridge and TV share separate bathrooms up steps marked ‘Drawing Room’. Some rooms are windowless.
Na’In Tourist Inn
The government-run excellent Na’in Tourist Inn has stylish split-level apartment-style rooms.
Mahan Inn
The big, tidy rooms here are good value, staff is friendly and the restaurant is decent. The hotel is at a roundabout, a couple of blocks west of the mausoleum.
Hotel Doosty
A useful landmark west of the town centre is the new, dolphin-fronted Hotel Doosty whose best rooms are a decent midrange deal and whose restaurant is excellent value (meals IR18,000).
Iran Hotel
This hotel with friendly, English-speaking staff gets it right with a restrained elegance that’s personable and not over formal. Bathrooms are small but new and sparkling clean.
Hotel Kormesh
Facing Imam Khomeini Sq across a children’s play area, the basic Kormesh is very central but easy to miss: find an unmarked door (usually covered with a towel), go inside then knock on the glass door to the right.
Ghasr Apartment Hotel
This new, modern-styled hotel has good-sized rooms and facilities at fair prices. Double beds are available; apartments have two bedrooms.