Torkaman Sahra

The Turkmen Plains, or the Torkaman Sahra, lie in Iran’s north eastern region, bordering Turkmenistan and the Caspian Sea. The seemingly interminable rolling green hills remain virtually untouched and tricky to access without your own car, but the views are simply spectacular. One focal point to head to is the Khaled Nabi cemetery, notable for its tombstones. Also nearby is the famous 11th century tower structure Gonbad-e Qabus, memorialised in the west in Robert Byron’s travelogue The Road to Oxiana.

Dasht-e Lut

The Dasht-e Lut (Lut Desert) is one of Iran’s two great deserts, covering an area of over 50,000 square kilometres in the central eastern part of the country. Reportedly laying claim to the hottest land surface temperatures ever recorded, an astonishing 70.7 degrees, it is not an ideal location for an afternoon picnic. Nevertheless, the weather beaten, moonscapes of the desert make an unforgettable venue for night-time camping beneath the stars, and the views at dawn are mesmerising. Tour guides will take you from the city of Kerman for a reasonable fee. Be sure to check out the mysterious kaluts too, the famed giant rock formations of the desert.