The Asian overland trail is a living thing, according to the currents of our times.

In the 1960s people often stayed away from the Soviet border and went through Syria and Iraq.

In the 1970s Afghanistan was in its traveller heyday, the overland route went to Herat, then along the ring road through Lashkar Gah and Kandahar, up to Kabul (Herat to Kandahar to Kabul is a dream journey of mine...), then over into Pakistan. The crossing through Baluchistan was seen as very arduous and insecure, and it was unpaved.

Then in 1978 trouble started, and in 1979 the Iranian Revolution, and shortly after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan killed the Asian overland trail.

I guess it was sometime in the mid 1980s, as the Karakoram Highway opened to foreigners, that the overland route slowly started to revive, re-routing south through Pakistan. As Iran opened up slightly following the end of the Iran-Iraq war, the route through Baluchistan as we know it today started to become popular.

In the early 1990s, the collapse of the Soviet Union suddenly opened up a vast swathe of Eurasia which had not been a viable overland route since the Mongol Empire disintegrated.

Then some people flew planes into some towers in America, and everyone got scared to go to anywhere where there were Muslims. As a result, very soon after Afghanistan was 'liberated' and made something of a comeback, though never to the same extent as before.

Pressure from Western Governments on Pakistan lead to the effective closure of the Khyber Pass in 2008, killing the chances of Afghanistan coming back into the mainstream.

2011 on, the Taftan - Quetta Highway becomes increasingly insecure, foreigners are disappearing and being attacked, as well as locals.

2014; despite some signs of a diplomatic thaw, Iran decides to insist on a guide for those with a vehicle, and perhaps for all British and Canadians (as well as Americans) regardless of transport.

At the same time, the first (strictly guided) travellers are crossing Burma from India to Thailand with their own vehicles, for the first time since the mid 1950s.

So, the Great Asian Overland moves into Central Asia. Maybe one day the Chinese authorities will grow some balls and be brave enough to allow foreigners to drive themselves around China, even if they may see the reality behind China's prosperous facade. Perhaps all the hype around Iran will settle, and Baluchistan will quieten down.

For now though, it looks like the day of unfettered travel across Asia are coming to a close for some time. All I can say is I'm damn glad I drove it when I did... now I'm just waiting for the Sahara to 'open' again, maybe I'll be there in 5 or 10 years!

Daniel

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Cheers to that!

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Daniel thanks - It really puts perspective on things.

[Quote]: 'Too much, there's too much f***ing perspective now!'
David St. Hubbins - This Is Spinal Tap (1984)


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Right Way Round ...

Hi, there!
In fact it seems to be true that there is a new regulation in Iran requiring tour guides to accompany any individual traveller entring Iran by vehicle. For cars/trucks/buses it might be doable, but how they wish to do it on bikes is still a question to me.
The reason behind this rule seems to be security / control...
But, as on the other side the current government is opening up for contacts with the outside world, I doubt that such rules will be applied for long...
As a few friends of mine are planning to come an visit us in Tehran, I will stay in touch with the guys in the Tourist Ministry and other authorities here and will seek clarification. Sure that I will post as soon as I have news for you.
In general and as "this is Iran" (a usual excuse for anything strange happening here), there is always 100 ways around any regulation, I suggest HUBBers to keep calm, go on planning your trip! Those already at the border, try to negotiate your ways through without company. (May be it is just wise to pack properly so that there is NO way to have someone sitting in the back...)
Greets,
Daniel (not in Prague, but in Tehran )

Hello!
Compulsory guide was belong to election time which occurred in June 2013, so there is no reason for asking a compulsory guide.
As i contact some people in tourism department they said overlanders can enter to Iran without guide as same as past, once you got the visa border guards can not refuse you.You guys just keep planing your trip!

Drive safe !

the post that I made in the other topic:

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I also heard from quite a few tourists by car or motorcycle entering Iran without guide in the last few month (apart from us who also did).

So if your are willing to take the (in my opinion quite small) risk to be refused at the border when you don't have a guide, just apply for invitation without mentioning any transport (anyway - what has the kind of transport to do with the visa?) and go for it! This great country is definitly worth this risk!

@bauerma:
The fact that some tourists make it into the country without guide is no proof for the non-existence of the obligation. At least not in Iran.
I think it is better to have an official proof so that not even at remote border crossings or in contact with some uninformed "Sherrifs" travellers will run into problems.
Therefore, I will try to get something written from a responsible unit inside Iran that I would post here so that everybody could carry a printed copy once arriving at the Iran border.
Please note: sometimes there are severe lacks of information between Iranian Embassies abroad and local authorities.
If you should run into something like this, it will not help you even if you recall the name of the person in the Embassy whom you talked to...
Iranian officials are used to all these fantastic fairytales they hear from their own people so they simply do not care...
The only way is friendly showing the guy standing in front of you your full respect, that you accept his importance and authority etc. - and that you personally ask him to make an exception so that you can visit his beautiful and lovely country...

I'm not going to be spooked by all of this and happily continue my preps. Just had extensive discussions last week with my visa agency about all paper work and submitted all the visa paper work including Iranian application this weekend. Not a word from them or other agencies I talked to about compulsory guides for Iran! It is their core business so I guess they should know first!

Totally agree. This looks like a disinformation thread - and given the few posts by the OP, moderators should consider changing the headline to "NO compulsory guide in Iran".

BTW: Iran has some of the friendliest consular & border staff in the world.

I got my visas within 24 hours in Munich. Super professional, well-organized and friendly. They even have a free coffee maker, drinks dispenser, passport foto machine, Xerox copier and TV in the waiting room.

I entered Iran from Armenia and from Turkmenistan. Border guards were so friendly, it seemed I could have gotten in without a visa!

Well that is one attitude to take. For someone not travelling with their own vehicle, this is a trivial issue. If someone leaves Turkmenistan say, with their car and is then refused entry to Iran because they ignored a change in the rules, then that person may not have such a cavalier attitude.

Nobody is trying to spook people, or spread disinformation. A number of travel agencies and embassies are reporting the need to take a guide. This seems to come from the MFA. It seems however that the staff at the borders may not be aware of this change, it may only be implemented at the time of visa application.

The aim of this thread is to establish from people's experiences whether it really is impossible to take a vehicle into Iran without a guide.

You may have found that the Iranian officials are helpful and friendly (not usually my experience), but rules are rules, if those officials are implementing them.

Things are changing in Iran. For example, the Iranian MFA no longer issues visas for independent travel to Brits and Canadians. It seems also that Pakistan is keeping foreigners out of Baluchistan. This is an area of the world where up to date information is essential, otherwise plans which people have spent a lot of time and money preparing may come seriously unstuck.

If there is a post on this thread which is not helpful, then I would suggest that it is yours.

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I just got an email back from Key to Persia - No tour - no guide = no visa.

So, what are the plan B options from India - Fly bike to Kaz and ride through Russia ?

It's hardly disinformation. It was a genuine question that has got a lot of different replies with no concrete answer either way. The reason I haven't posted more is because I still don't know the answer and haven't had more to add.

The fact that you met friendly staff is nice for you, but not so helpful for the unlucky person who gets caught out with the wrong paperwork by the only unfriendly official in Iran.


That is interesting - that's the agency who told me I didn't need a guide for the visa. So a different answer from the same agency!

My current plan is to see if the visa is approved (I have been told to wait nearer to the time the visa is needed before applying) and then to try and arrange a temporary Iranian carnet. The RAC carnet is prohibitively expensive considering Iran is the only country that requires one on my route. If I can't get one then I'll have to try leave the 2 wheels behind and use the 2 legs instead.

I repeat: unless you are from the 2 or 3 countries that are on really unfriendly terms with Iran, don't bother about the guide, the visa application number or any other purported difficulty.

??


We are talking about visa agencies reporting to travellers that a guide is necessary if they are taking in their own car. Nobody wants to take their car / bike to Iran and then pay for a guide to come along with them.

It is understood that we could just not tell them about the vehicle, but what we are trying to find is if anyone has been to the Iranian border with their car / bike, and been let in without a guide.

As for a visa application number, most embassies / consulates will simply refer applicants to an agency to obtain a visa authorisation number. Few embassies will do this themselves, and the consensus is that they take longer, and have a lower chance of success, for whatever reason.

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