Thinking about Iran, you may imagine it as a vast desert without any tree where…
Dress Code in Iran: Simple Guide of What You Should Pack
Iran is one of the few countries in which hijab is mandatory both for residents and travelers. So the first question for many travelers is what to wear? It is specially confusing for women. If you have traveled to Iran before, you may have experienced this hassle even in taking picture for your passport: “shall I have head scarf in the picture or not?”
The answer is no for sure, it is not obligatory to wear scarf for your passport picture. Not as strict as you may think, but there are rules you should know before you travel to Iran. Here we have provided a simple guide regarding dress code in Iran, a guide about rules and also rumors.
Let’s start with men, it is simple and straightforward as there are not much to observe. As a man, the only thing you should avoid is wearing shorts in public places and most importantly in religious places. It seems normal to wear shorts at seaside but we would not recommend as you may get much attention. T-shirts and sandals are absolutely normal.
But as a woman you should consider a variety of things. First of all cover your hair or actually part of it in public places from parks and restaurants to even hotel lobbies. You may have seen young girls who just cover a small proportion of their hair under a head scarf in the internet or probably in news. That’s it. Don’t be too strict with yourself. Wearing headscarf for the first time, we recommend to use bobby pins to fix it on your hair and avoid rearranging it over and over.
In big cities, you may find it really confusing to see girls with long hair who are using scarf just to outwit the rules. The best advice here is to avoid their style in small city and villages since people are usually more conservative in smaller communities. It is always recommended to observe local community’s traditions and respect their believes. Also visiting holy shrines and some mosques, you are asked to wear chador, an open cloak wrapped around head designed for full coverage from top to toe. Don’t worry, at the entrance there are several chadors which you can borrow for the time you want to spend at holy places.
The next thing is to wear a loose gown which hide your body shape. The gown, known as manto, is also better to be long enough to fall to your mid thighs and have long sleeves, normally ¾. Pants should also be long up to your ankles. There are a common fashion of using tight pants among Iranian women, so don’t worry about it. You can also wear skirts but it should be long enough to replace pants.
What about color? There are still films showing Iranian women being forced to wear black clothes. But don’t believe them, it is a myth. When in Iran, you will be shocked seeing girls with colorful scarves and clothes walking in the streets as tough they are participating in a public fashion show.
Not considered as clothes, you may have problem finding information about having tattoo, make up and nail polish travelling in Iran. None of them are forbidden. Nail polish and make up are everyday routines of many Iranian girls, sometimes even overused. Tattoo is also becoming more common specially among young people. Though it is not forbidden, it is sometimes frowned upon or attracting to much attention in bad way of course in small towns and also religious places. So visiting holy places or participating religious rituals, it is better to cover it.
Out of all the above mentioned rules, you may still have problem choosing your outfits. Here is a general rule: you are hesitant to wear a tank top as a man or a hat which covers most of your hair, so don’t do it! Though they are not in our list of forbidden clothes in public place, in relatively conservative culture with a religious background, they may cause over much attentions and gaze which may lead to your being inconvenient!
And finally, don’t forget that Iran is a four season country so the fabric of your clothes really matter. Be well prepared for the weather in advance as wearing head scarf or clothes with long sleeves could be really annoying in hot summer days, especially in southern as well as central regions.
Let us know if you have any question about dress code in Iran below.
