Uraman Takht Travel Guide(2): Discover Iran's Hidden Mountain Village
This is the second part of my Uraman Takht travel journal.
I will provide the link to the first part.
Link : Uraman Takht a Hidden gem of Iran -1-
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| View from the hotel window |
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| Exterior view of the hotel |
Like a huge, rippling wave that became a mountain in an instant, and an ark precariously sailing above it that became a village just before it was about to break apart, the morning in the small village still felt thrilling, majestic, and grand.
The people living here were born with relatively small builds but hardy temperaments. It was hard to believe even after seeing it with my own eyes, but I saw a child who had just entered elementary school taking the wheel of a car on an errand for their mother, with a younger sister in tow.
Whether they were just trying to park or going to pick up family members far down the slope, I don't know, but for me, over thirty with a 'closet license' (rarely used driver's license), heading somewhere on such treacherous mountain roads, even if nearby, would be impossible without great courage.
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| Lunch at Alin's house in Uraman Takht. His family served me bread, eggs, and vegetables. |
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| The cucumbers here looked different from those eaten in Korea, but they tasted exactly the same. |
Like a huge, rippling wave that became a mountain in an instant, and an ark precariously sailing above it that became a village just before it was about to break apart, the morning in the small village still felt thrilling, majestic, and grand.
The people living here were born with relatively small builds but hardy temperaments. It was hard to believe even after seeing it with my own eyes, but I saw a child who had just entered elementary school taking the wheel of a car on an errand for their mother, with a younger sister in tow.
Whether they were just trying to park or going to pick up family members far down the slope, I don't know, but for me, over thirty with a 'closet license' (rarely used driver's license), heading somewhere on such treacherous mountain roads, even if nearby, would be impossible without great courage.
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| The houses in Uraman Takht are made of bricks quarried from the local mountains, and the alleyways are very beautiful. |
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| If you have a fear of heights, it might feel a bit scary. But it's truly beautiful. It's much more impressive seeing it in person than in videos. |
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| I was standing on the rooftop of someone's house. The roof was just below the street level. I quickly went back as I thought the homeowner might not appreciate my presence there. |
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| In Korea, if chestnuts fall from trees, here, things that look like chestnuts grow from the
ground toward the sky. The similarity is that they are tough and prickly to touch, but the
difference is that, unfortunately, they cannot be eaten |
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| I also noticed a mysterious creature that seemed to be wary of the strange intruder
wandering around the village. Not a spider, but like a cautious spider hanging from and shaking its web, this unidentified living being repeated peculiar and rough acrobatic flights in place until I left |
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| Timelapse of Uraman Takht as the sun sets |
As the long sun set over the small village, and the ground and air heated by the scorching sunlight began to cool, the land embroidered with jewels reflected the sky, and in the darkness, the sounds of children's laughter and running began to be heard.
The children rode bicycles on the streets lit by village lights, went downhill, and ran after motorcycles driven by their uncles.
Then, gathering one by one to play in the small open space in front of the hotel, they disappeared one by one as they were led home by their parents' hands, and after dinner time, they gathered again
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| The cows that had gone up to the cliff to graze also walked back down to find their respective homes. When the cows reached the front of their owners' houses, they stood outside the door making sounds, and shortly after the owners opened the doors, they went inside |
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| Timelapse Starry night |
After the village's daily life ended, peaceful quiet arrived.
Although the children's voices disappeared one by one into silence as time deepened, the street lights illuminated the village brightly until late into the dawn.
When I woke up early in the morning and checked my camera, I found that due to the bright lights, my GoPro couldn't capture all the starlight, but it left me with a video of star trails that looked like snow falling from the sky.
Whenever I see the starlight in the night sky, my thoughts deepen, and I wonder what thoughts the people who lived here long ago fell into while looking at the night sky. Various thoughts and memories that come to mind while looking at the night sky alone in the desolate, dark mountains are vividly recalled here without noise, but on the other hand, I also felt an eerie feeling in the silence.
The occasional illusions and silhouettes swaying far away in the darkness might have, before religion and science took root, left behind various legendary beings and been passed down as stories, making children's nights fearful
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| Morning Scenery of Uraman Takht |
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| Mashk (مشک ) people used to make doogh and butter with this tool |
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| The road from Uraman Takht to Paveh. Isn't it amazing that a green, deep river flows through these high mountains? |
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| Where on earth does this river flow from? This is a very high mountain region. |
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| The road to Paveh |
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| And a dessert |
- When entering Iran by land, try to avoid very late night arrivals. If you enter late at night, you won't find any place to exchange money.
- It's also impossible to activate your mobile phone. As of March 25, 2025, the current exchange rate in Iran is 98000 tomans to 1 dollar. When I traveled there, it was approximately 57000 tomans 2024.
- Prices are very affordable. I stayed at economy hotels for about $8-20. Although sometimes the toilet had low water pressure, I was generally satisfied, and people were friendly.
- When activating your phone, be sure to ask if they can install a VPN for you. It will be a great help to you. Never forget this.
- If the employee is a very nice person, give them a small tip and then look for a paid VPN. Free VPNs are sufficient, but paid VPNs perform very well.
- The Snapp app is almost essential for travelers. If you have a close local friend, ask for their help. It has all the necessary functions such as delivery, finding accommodation, calling taxis, etc When calling a taxi with the Snapp app, drivers often cancel for intercity travel because the price is too low.
- Once a driver accepts your call, try to negotiate paying more with a Persian message. While there are drivers who will take you to your destination at the price suggested by the Snapp app, if you can't get a Snapp taxi for a long time, it wasn't bad to offer about 1.5 times the price via message.
- Even if you offer a slightly higher price, it is still very reasonable compared to travel in other countries. If all else fails, try finding taxi drivers directly and negotiate the price. No confirmed public transportation options were found from Marivan to Uraman Takht.
- It may be because it's off-season. You need to use a taxi, but there are no taxis going there at night due to the dangerous mountain roads.
- There is a taxi terminal in Marivan, so try negotiating with the taxi drivers there. There was no direct bus from Astara to Marivan, and since the bus schedules were not clear, I continued to use taxis.
- If you have sufficient information and time, you can also reach this place by transferring between several intercity buses. The hotel facilities in Uraman Takht were excellent for the price.
Hotel Room Price for 1 day . 800000rial = 1$ (2025/05/09) - For information on transportation apps and cost of living for convenient travel in Iran, please refer to this link An Essential for Iran Travel
