Tehran in 3 days

The Tochal Telecabin (6 stations, 7.5 km, rising from 1,800m to 3,730m above sea level) is the world's longest urban telecabin — departing from within Tehran's city limits and reaching the snowfields of Tochal mountain in 1 hour. In winter (November–May) there is skiing and snowboarding at the upper stations. In summer, the hiking and the view over Tehran (16 million people visible from above) is extraordinary.

Ash reshteh (thick noodle soup with herbs, legumes, kashk — a fermented whey — and fried onion with turmeric and mint) is Iran's most comforting winter dish — perfect after the mountain air. At any restaurant near Tajrish Square or in the northern districts where traditional food is at its finest.

The Sa'dabad Complex (in the forested hills of northern Tehran) was the Pahlavi summer palace — a complex of 18 palaces set in 110 hectares of forest. The White Palace (Kakhé Sefid) has the complete Pahlavi-era state rooms preserved, including the Peacock Hall and the famous legs of a bronze horse at the palace entrance (the decapitated Reza Shah statue whose base was kept). The most atmospheric pre-revolutionary palace museum in Iran.

The Tajrish Bazaar (northern Tehran, at the foot of the mountains) is the finest local market in the city — the produce stalls, the dried herb sellers, the traditional bread bakeries and the confectionery shops. The Shemiran district around Tajrish has the best traditional northern Tehran restaurants: fesenjan (walnut-pomegranate duck stew) and the northern Iranian rice dishes.

The National Museum of Iran (Muse-ye Iran-e Bastan) has the finest collection of pre-Islamic Iranian art — the Achaemenid Persian artifacts from Persepolis (gold rhytons, seal cylinders), the Elamite bronze collection, Seljuk-era ceramics, and the ancient pottery sequence from 5,000 BC to 1500 AD. The 1937 building itself (by French architect André Godard in an Sassanid style) is extraordinary.

Zereshk polo ba morgh (saffron rice with barberries — the tiny sour red zereshk berries that explode with flavor — with slow-cooked chicken in turmeric and tomato sauce) is the most celebrated Persian rice dish. The tahdig (crispy rice crust) is the most fought-over piece on the table. At any traditional restaurant in central Tehran.

The Treasury of National Jewels (in the basement of Bank Melli, central Tehran — one of the most restricted and most extraordinary museums in the world) holds the Iranian crown jewels: the Darya-ye Noor (Sea of Light — the world's largest uncut pink diamond, 182 carats), the Peacock Throne, the Kiani Crown (studded with 1,800 emeralds, rubies and diamonds), and the Globe of Jewels (an 1869 globe made of 51,366 gems). These represent the accumulated treasury of 300 years of Persian imperial rule.

The Milad Tower (2009, 435m including antenna — one of the tallest towers in the world) has a revolving restaurant and an observation deck at 315m — the view over Tehran (the Alborz Mountains to the north, the desert to the south, and 16 million people below) at sunset and at night is the finest in the country.

Kebab koobideh (ground lamb and onion on wide flat skewers, grilled over charcoal and served on the skewer over buttered saffron rice) with fresh lavash bread, grilled tomatoes and a bowl of fresh herbs (the Persian herbal table — always basil, tarragon, coriander and mint alongside the meal) is the farewell meal in Iran. At any traditional kebabchi in the city.