When Qazvin took its turn as Iran’s capital, this attractive, colonnaded cube was Shah Tahmasp’s royal palace. Built in 1510, it was greatly remodelled in the Qajar era. Set in the town’s central park, it looks especially photogenic at night, with its delicate balustrades floodlit and its back-lit coloured-glass windows glowing through the foliage. It now serves as a calligraphy museum.
Chehel Sotun
Iran
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
0.19 MILES
This huge, beautifully restored Qajar-era caravanserai is now the design centre of Qazvin. The long, vaulted passages house independent artists showcasing…
0.35 MILES
Now that the Sa'd-al Saltaneh caravanserai has been transformed into a modern arts-and-crafts precinct, the remains of Qazvin's original covered bazaar…
0.27 MILES
This Qajar-era mosque has a distinctive long, narrow courtyard that acts as the demarcation line between the old bazaar and the renovated Sa'd-al Saltaneh…
0.81 MILES
This large, well-proportioned shrine has a Qajar facade, a 16th-century blue dome and plenty of mirror tiling. Set in a big, fountained courtyard…
0.72 MILES
Behind an unassuming brick wall is this well-preserved Qajar mansion built by a rich merchant in 1773. The courtyard garden is a pleasant place to linger…
0.54 MILES
Built in 1115, but extensively remodelled in the early 17th century, the Masjed-e Jameh has huge iwans (vaulted three-walled halls) and a fine marble…
0.3 MILES
In a beautifully restored, multichambered subterranean bathhouse dating from the Sassanian period, lifelike mannequins document the different cultural…
0.06 MILES
This spacious modern museum predominantly features 19th-century decorative arts, but the bottom floor has some 3000-year-old bronzes and ceramics from the…
Nearby Iran attractions
0.06 MILES
This spacious modern museum predominantly features 19th-century decorative arts, but the bottom floor has some 3000-year-old bronzes and ceramics from the…
2. Sa'd-al Saltaneh Caravanserai
0.19 MILES
This huge, beautifully restored Qajar-era caravanserai is now the design centre of Qazvin. The long, vaulted passages house independent artists showcasing…
0.2 MILES
The massive Ali Qapu was originally a 16th-century gateway to the royal precinct, a kind of forbidden inner city. Today it’s a police post, so don’t take…
0.27 MILES
This Qajar-era mosque has a distinctive long, narrow courtyard that acts as the demarcation line between the old bazaar and the renovated Sa'd-al Saltaneh…
0.3 MILES
In a beautifully restored, multichambered subterranean bathhouse dating from the Sassanian period, lifelike mannequins document the different cultural…
0.35 MILES
Now that the Sa'd-al Saltaneh caravanserai has been transformed into a modern arts-and-crafts precinct, the remains of Qazvin's original covered bazaar…
0.35 MILES
The 20th-century Kantur Church has a blue-brick belfry dome and sits in a tiny Russian graveyard.
0.41 MILES
Dedicated to the daughter of the sixth Shia Imam, Ja'far al-Sadiq, this colourfully domed 14th-century shrine has a fine blue conical spire and Kufic…