Sari is a city in the beautiful Caspian region of Iran with about half million people residing in the town and same amount in the suburbs, on the left side of Tajan River and about 20 km south of the Caspian (Mazandaran) Sea. Sari is in the north of Iran on northern slopes of Elburz mountains.
Sari is an ancient city, as all of the historical maps referring to this city, being the capital of the ancient Hyrcania civilization 6 centuries before Christ and the Kingdom of Tabaria till the 17th century. It was twice the capital of Iran within the last four centuries.
Sari and some towns in Mazandaran is one of rare cities of Iran that night life is available during summers. Many people enjoy gathering each other in some places such as Barbod, Paradise, Tooska and Nemashown to play games, enjoy music and pleasant weather, or eating meals. Or to read some poetry book such as Diwan-i Hafiz. You also find many of restaurants in city center (specially Farhang Street) and a restaurant in the Tavakol alley which provides Italian dishes.
The city is connected to Gorgan and Tehran by train as well, since it is on a major branch of the Iran's railway.
Every day there are four passenger trains getting to Sari, one Local train runs from Gorgan about 06:00 and reaches Sari before 09:00, and returns from Sewatcow at 13:00 to getting Sari in 14:30, one from Tehran runs in 09:10 everyday to getting to Sari about 16:30, and leaving Sari at 20:30 (summer) and 21:10 (winter) to getting Tehran about 04:00, There are Twin Mazandaran trains which have Gorgan destination running from Tehran, one runs from Tehran in about 19:30 (winter) and 22:10 (summer) getting Sari about 03:30 (winter) and about 05:50 (summer) and another at the same time gets to Sari about 10:45 (summer) and 09:10 (winter) to reach Tehran about 07:00 (summer) and 05:30 (winter). The scheduled program of Twin Gorgan destination trains are changing periodically. However Sari destination train gets to the city about 16:00.
Sari is connected to Neka and Shahi by the A62 Autobahn, all of the coastal cities in Mazandaran have at least 8 bands (4 forward and 4 backward). Many of people are visiting Sari via Turkmenistan-Mazandaran (Iran) borders, it is possible to getting Visa of Iran from border, and to continue trip around Mazanderan Sea.
There are five bus terminals in Sari, so it's easy to get around the county by buses.
City buses has destinations to approximately all of the towns in Iran, but be aware that the buses are not running everyday, but it has hourly buses for Tehran, Also it is possible to getting the bus from the Imam Khomeini Sq. in the southeast of city when no bus may be founded in the busy days.
The port of Amir Abad is on the beautiful southern coast of the Mazandaran Sea, but cruises are not of high quality.
The spreading of the city makes taxis available almost everywhere.
There is a wide choice of taxi systems including ceremony taxis, wireless telecommunication taxis, airport or rail station taxis, telephony taxis and shared taxis.
You may call 133 from everywhere of the city and county to ask for a ride anywhere in Sari in less than five minutes or taking you from approximately 20 km far distances (requires registration) and even to serving you getting any destination around Iran. So if you would like to stay more than a week in Sari, registration with this office is recommended.
Parking may not found in the avenues of Sari, and parking is usually in the small streets and alleys, or have a small entrance from avenues. It is recommended to park your car in your hotel's parking.
Driving may be an option for going to some sights in the suburbs such as Soleyman Tanga (meaning Strait of Solomon), or Masandaran Sea. Destinations which are of primary concern to a visitor are the Caves from 70th millennium BC and towers of dynasties of Tabarian Kingdom.
Notable are famous houses such as Kolbadi House and Amir Divan House (Ramedani House) , Archaeological sites including Hutto Cave (70th millennium BC), Kamarband Cave (70th-millennium BC); also the Resket Tower from the Qaran era and the Farahabad Complex Place from the Safavid era.
There are many places to go in Sari. Here are just a few:
There are many sports complexes in Sari. Most popular are Jahan-Pahlavan Takhti Sports Complex, Hashemi-Nassab Sports Complex, and Montazeri Sports complex.
Sari is one of the most cultural cities in Iran. It hosts several universities:
Local Sari food that can be bought as souvenirs include special cakes, rice, yogurt and fruits. The Sari Wood and Paper Company is famous throughout the Middle East.
If you are in Sari, fish is the best way to go. If you're not really interested in fish, Kebab shops are scattered all over the city. Don't forget a meal in this city would not be complete without salads and Naan bread (Iranian bread).
The favourite drink of Sari in winter is Caspian Tea (Chay), it is available almost everywhere around the city, especially in winter. In summer when it is hot and humid, Doogh a traditional yoghurt drink is also available. The local cola (ZamZam) is also available.
Although many residents prefer to use governmental villas in the Farrah Abad. But these resorts may not provide sleeping to foreigners, but it is recommended to using Babolsar hotels, which are about 35 km from Sari via Bahnamier Road and about 60 km in nights via A62 autobahn. They have the view of Sea. They may not be available or by cheap fare during busy days.
There are many Internet cafés and chat rooms scattered all over the city, the Internet speeds ranges from acceptable to fast.
To find high speed internet providers, look that if it has server or not. Foreigners usually use the cafes around the Time Square.
Sari is relatively a very safe city, even in the middle of the night, so don't let this worry or bother you at all during your stay in Sari. If you are in trouble you can ask for help by calling police at 110 or Emergency medical services at 115 or Fire department at 125.
You might want to have plastic money to prevent having your money stolen. Bank-e Melli-ye Iran (National Bank of Iran) which is a government-owned bank in Iran, provides an ATM debit card service (plastic magnetic card) for tourists who visit Iran. Tourists just need to head the nearest branch of this bank. Information on this service can be found here (dead link: January 2023). Another way to prevent having your money stolen, is going to the nearest bank and getting a gift card. They are exactly like ordinary ATM debit cards, but once they get empty, they cannot be recharged. Sepah Bank or Bank -e- Sepah is a governmental bank that has a current account service (dead link: January 2023) for foreigners which provides ATM debit card and cheque writing option. A list of permitted Iranian banks can be found here (dead link: January 2023)
If you don't know Mazandarani or Persian, don't let this bother you or make you worried, there are many foreigners and Iranians there who speak English in the city.
Also it is recommended to appreciate the native people who are not able to talk to you in English with these Mazandarani sentences: Tie Fieda or Tie ri Bielaarremi, but please extend your voice like singing since people can better understood while they extend their voice.
Primary administrative division