TK/*A : LAX-IFN (Isfahan, Iran) for $601 a.i. , 16,526 miles @ 3.6cpm
 

Routing is LAX-IST-IFN-IST-LAX for 16,526 miles W fare which can be credited 100% to United Airlines

Sample dates:
February 19th – March 4th, 2013


Pictures and routing are available on my blog post here -

http://pointssummary.com/2012/12/28/...ing-all-taxes/


Note: A visa is required for US Citizens

Bookable on turkishairlines.com

Really a VISA for a us citizen to go to Iran?

Should mention more specifically that this is for Isfahan, Iran. IFN is not a common code, and many people may not want to go to Iran. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isfahan...tional_Airport

I'll pass on that milage run.

Nice... Isfahan is a gorgeous city and great food. Too bad my visa just expired last week.. was in Iran in September.

I would love to go; how hard / easy is it to get a visa and how long does it take?

I've wanted to go for some time but Iranian acquaintances have said that one needs a letter of recommendation from a Iranian national to get the visa?

I'd encourage anyone contemplating this to read the State Department Travel Advisory. US citizens have rather onerous visa requirements.

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_p.../cis_1142.html

Perhaps also worth reviewing the current OFAC sanctions list to make sure you don't run afoul of the US government in the process:
http://www.treasury.gov/resource-cen...ages/iran.aspx

Any reason why would many people not want to go to Iran?

After just seeing the movie ARGO few minutes ago, I will pass on this one :)
I'd rather stay safe and misjudged as stupid and culturally challenged.

A great fare for the Iranian nationals living in US who want to get a cheap flight home...

If I could easily get an independent travel visa (unheard of for Americans lately), I'd be all over this.

Chris

I'd also like to hear from any US citizens who have experience getting an Iranian tourism visa.

Folks if we could leave the larger political discussions for another forum and focus on the fare it would benefit all readers.

Thanks.

tcook052
Mileage Run Moderator

I second his request. TIA.

I met one US citizen in Iran, actually in Yazd, he told me, it took like 3 years to get the visa.

Australian/HK/Mexican passports don't need a visa in advance according to TIMATIC although UK/Canada/US passports do need a prearranged one.
If you are female, ADMISSION WILL BE REFUSED TO WOMEN NOT WEARING ISLAMIC HEAD COVER, SCARF, LONG SLEEVES OR STOCKINGS.

The difficulty of getting a Visa would top the list for me. I'll leave any political reasons out of this, I just know that many would not want to go through the process involved. I would really want to go personally, but I simply do not have the time. The original post said only "LAX-IFN", I requested that the mods add the specific location, so anyone looking would know that it may take a little more effort to undertake this particular trip. Failing to list the city involved if it is not reasonably obvious is a major issue I have with many posts on this forum, and considering I didn't know IFN off the top of my head (and I know quite a number of obscure ones) I felt it should be noted what the actual location was.

W fare
Sunday min stay
max 12 months
base fare 88
EoE not permitted except for US domestic flights and other TK fares (but these don't really change anything important)
valid thru EoS

For US citizens it's a lot like visiting North Korea... you have to be accompanied by a guide at all times.

Are itineraries involving Iran even eligible for mileage credit? Flights to Cuba don't earn miles in many US programs.

Nice fare.
am doubt that why so many people twist the image about Iran.

Iran is one of my favorite countries. People are very friendly there. They are earger to knowing the outside world. Tourists are always welcome. most important, everything are very cheap there.
I was in Iran from SEP-OCT, people gave me free fruit, they bought the tickets for me. they showed me around the city for free. They even invited me to dinner & live in their house for free. so on...
I will definitely will go again

I agree! But as long as you don't leave the airport in LAX, you will be fine :cool:

Esfahan is a wonderful city, as already mentioned by several here. Imam square is magnificent.

Can I swap the miles for a bullet-proof vest?

I'd rather not lose my PreCheck status, thanks.

Were those people who are saying that they have visited there and had a fine experience traveling on American passports, and if they were, how did they handle the visa issue. Are there tour companies that will faciliate the travel for Americans?

You'll need that bullet-proof vest when you get home, funny guy. 2009 homicide rate per 100,000:

• US: 4.9,
• Iran: 3.0

Here's a good link for people interested in visa issues: here

+1
Also had some similar experience as yours.

For those interested in Iran (especially IFN) you can have a look to http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trip-...-air-more.html

Great deal for Iran! If I wasnt worried about getting a visa I'd take it in a heartbeat.

Actually a good friend of mine is living there right now :confused:

Iran is a wonderful country. I went there in 2004 (I think). Isfahan is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The people are friendly. It has a culture of not eating out so restaurants are not particularly good.

If I thought I could get a visa quickly, I'd go in a heartbeat, Global Entry be damned!

I can't remember whether the tour company I went with took care of the visas or I did independently. It wasn't inordinately long. Tho it was 8 years ago.

I read in a Singapore newspaper a couple of days ago that the Iranian government was cautioning Iranians against going to the US. A 73 year old man died 2 days after entering the US. He had been detained and questioned for 5 hours by immigration. The Iranian govt blamed the detention for his death.

Please don't judge a country's people by its government.

On the plane seconds before we landed, I was treated to the sight of glamorous women wiping off make up and covering their beautiful dresses with a hijab. I had read about that but thought it was an exaggeration. I did don my head covering and long sleeved jacked before we deplaned.

I long for the day when I can easily travel there. (I was told there used to be non stop flights from Isfahan to NYC.) (I also want to go to Cuba.)

The guide we had was terrific. My son and I wandered about fairly freely. We ate dinner outside the designated spots and took off on our own during free time. We arranged a flight back to Tehran so we didn't have to endure 14 hours on a bus. Again, 8 years ago.

What does TSA have to do with visiting a foreign country:rolleyes:

I got approved for global entry right after coming back from Iran in 2011, and I m not even American.....

Wirelessly posted (Blackberry8700c: Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; Android 4.1.2; GT-I9300 Build/JZO54K) AppleWebKit/535.19 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/18.0.1025.166 Mobile Safari/535.19)

Yep I've been to several "axis of evil" countries and still have precheck and ge functioning just fine. Though returning from Sudan I did get flagged for a screen at customs. Some how origin airport was tagged in the ge receipt.

I'm sure there were Americans visiting Berlin or Tokyo in the 1930s who said the same thing.

Do tell how Berlin of the 1930s compares to Iran?
Please, educate those of us who get their facts from actually visiting places and not from fox news....

Tehran, like Berlin in the '30s, is the seat of a government that threatens to attack countries that don't threaten it, in fulfillment with a hateful ideology.

BTW, when you were visiting Iran, did you happen to see Basij beating people in the streets? I'm pretty confident that the tourist sites you visited did not include Evin prison.

[Mods, please feel free to take down this post along with other such "political" commentary. Posts about the practicality of travel to Iran (e.g., getting a visa, safety when there, etc.) ought not be counted as "political."]

Winding up in a political prison is a very "practical" aspect of traveling to Iran which should definitely be discussed on FT. Posters discuss things like being able to shop, eat, obtain lounge entrance, etc in various airports in different countries. The possibility of being imprisoned and tortured in different countries, when it's a distinct possibility, is way more important, so why should FT want to keep such info from frequent flyers?

because FT itself is very political... They censorship what can be said on here and often delete post or close very appropriate threads.

No one is keeping such info from frequent flyers. It is a matter of not going OT when the conversation is supposed to be about MR deals per se, not about the politics of the destination. I agree with you that Tehran can be likened to Berlin of the '30s in terms of sinister, but I disagree with you that this thread is the place to discuss that likeness. (And I expect the mods will take down our posts, as they should.)