At the centre of political change in Iran, Tehran University is a fascinating place to wander around. There is, however, a ban on foreign nonstudents entering alone. Although enforcement is haphazard, the best plan is to hang around the front gate on Enghelab Ave until you’re ‘adopted’ by someone keen to practise their English. All visitors must be off campus by 3pm.
Tehran University
Tehran
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
2.09 MILES
The glories and excesses of the Qajar rulers are played out across this complex of grand buildings decorated with beautifully painted tiles and set around…
7.77 MILES
Sprawling across the foothills of Darband, this estate was a summer home to royals since the Qajar dynasty, although it was the Pahlavis who expanded it…
2.22 MILES
The maze of bustling alleys and the bazaris (shopkeepers) that fill them make this a fascinating, if somewhat daunting, place to explore. Despite being…
1.51 MILES
Owned by the Central Bank and accessed through its front doors, the cavernous vault that houses what is commonly known as the ‘Jewels Museum’ is not to be…
Niyavaran Cultural-Historic Complex
8.68 MILES
In the Alborz foothills is the palace where Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and his family spent most of the last 10 years of royal rule. It’s set in 5…
3.88 MILES
This epic-scale museum, on a landscaped site of 21 hectares, is dedicated to the Iran–Iraq War, a bloody eight-year conflict that claimed a million lives…
3.26 MILES
The inverted-Y-shaped Azadi Tower, built in 1971 to commemorate the 2500th anniversary of the first Persian empire, is one of Tehran's visual icons…
1.57 MILES
Next door to the National Museum, and part of the same complex, this museum offers a stunning collection of arts and antiquities from throughout the…
Nearby Tehran attractions
0.49 MILES
Near the centre of Tehran, Park-e Laleh is a well-designed green space that because of its location amid so much traffic becomes an urban oasis. It’s a…
2. Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art (TMOCA)
0.7 MILES
In a striking concrete modernist building on the western side of Park-e Laleh, this museum's impressive collection boasts works by Picasso, Matisse, Van…
0.85 MILES
Housing more than 100 pieces dating from the 17th century to the present day, this is a great place to see the full range of regional patterns and styles…
1.26 MILES
The Glass & Ceramics Museum is, like many of its exhibits, small but perfectly formed. The galleries walk you chronologically through the ages, with…
1.37 MILES
This white, twin-spired church, a centre for Christianity in the Islamic Republic, sits at the southern edge of the city's Armenian quarter. Built between…
1.5 MILES
A hub for the contemporary and traditional arts in Tehran, this complex has several gallery spaces over two levels exhibiting works in all media on a…
1.5 MILES
Along with the street art on the walls of the US Den of Espionage, this several-decades-old mural has to be one of the most photographed pieces of public…
8. Treasury of National Jewels
1.51 MILES
Owned by the Central Bank and accessed through its front doors, the cavernous vault that houses what is commonly known as the ‘Jewels Museum’ is not to be…