Just as there are motels and truck stops along today's highways around the world, the ancient Silk Road had caravanserai , roadside inns where voyagers could eat and sleep. Many are still standing and some are still in business.
Many caravanserai were in Persia, today's Iran . In 2023, 54 especially important, well preserved and/or architecturally interesting ones were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site ; those are the subject of this article.
A typical caravanserai has several buildings, including stables for the caravans' horses and camels, grouped around a central courtyard. Some are quite large, able to accommodate several caravans. Some are in towns; the more rural ones are often fortified against the local bandits.
See also: Silk_Road#Sleep , Persian Empire Map of The Persian Caravanserai
35.058353 51.420136 1 Deyr-e Gachin . (updated Sep 2023 ) 35.770731 53.732372 2 Noushirvān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 35.770539 53.730144 3 Āhovān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 35.458228 50.974597 4 Parand . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.266569 60.655161 5 Robāt-e Sharaf . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.153244 54.477108 6 Anjireh Ājori . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.162211 54.484039 7 Anjireh Sangi . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.995936 60.718367 8 Abbās Ābād Tāybād . (updated Sep 2023 ) 37.271914 47.8431 9 Jamāl Ābād . (updated Sep 2023 ) 37.153294 56.920742 10 Qelli . (updated Sep 2023 ) 35.999886 59.313486 11 Fakhr-e Dāvūd . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.868158 51.370403 12 Sheikhali Khān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.299136 51.812386 13 Maranjāb . (updated Sep 2023 ) 31.672694 52.068447 14 Amin Ābād . (updated Sep 2023 ) 33.7686 51.489525 15 Gabr Ābād . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.265017 51.809733 16 Mahyār . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.809358 51.609322 17 Gaz . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.713431 52.435786 18 Kūhpāyeh . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.307878 56.806442 19 Mazinān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.284592 57.143603 20 Mehr . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.165719 58.086231 21 Zafarāniyeh . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.744636 58.055386 22 Fakhr Ābād . (updated Sep 2023 ) 33.855286 58.518017 23 Sarāyān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.765281 52.177136 24 Qasr-e Bahrām . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.409186 55.6533 25 Mayāmey . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.361219 56.387875 26 Abbās Ābād . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.428131 56.060578 27 Miāndasht . (updated Sep 2023 ) 31.411858 54.706853 28 Zeynoddīn . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.227925 54.009194 29 Meybod . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.487967 48.282989 30 Farasfaj . (updated Sep 2023 ) 31.513364 52.133206 31 Īzadkhāst . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.384533 47.434933 32 Bisotūn . (updated Sep 2023 ) 30.290956 57.078936 33 Ganjali Khān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 35.936286 50.719622 34 Yengeh Emām . (updated Sep 2023 ) 38.977444 45.576972 35 Khājeh Nazar . (updated Sep 2023 ) 38.343894 46.86335 36 Goujebel . (updated Sep 2023 ) 38.001044 47.881586 37 Sāeen . (updated Sep 2023 ) 37.044775 49.902236 38 Titi . (updated Sep 2023 ) 30.788203 50.561525 39 Dehdasht . (updated Sep 2023 ) 38.466 44.623528 40 Khoy . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.990831 50.446956 41 Bāgh-e Sheikh . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.971206 52.799364 42 Neyestānak . (updated Sep 2023 ) 31.940011 57.140408 43 Chehel Pāyeh . (updated Sep 2023 ) 33.366381 56.070414 44 Khān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 33.991561 56.979178 45 Deh Mohammad . (updated Sep 2023 ) 34.876633 48.220728 46 Tāj Ābād . (updated Sep 2023 ) 31.569333 56.850169 47 Chāh kūrān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.344947 54.667983 48 Kharānaq . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.440722 53.631053 49 Rashti . (updated Sep 2023 ) 29.267114 51.208258 50 Borāzjān . (updated Sep 2023 ) 33.237956 48.211336 51 Chameshk . (updated Sep 2023 ) 32.043961 48.852128 52 Afzal . (updated Sep 2023 ) 27.1985 54.375972 53 Bastak . (updated Sep 2023 ) 36.269294 50.000708 54 Saʿadossaltaneh . (updated Sep 2023 ) Article Geo different to Wikidata Wikivoyage : Latitude 30, Longitude 50 (
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Wikidata : Latitude 35.0583528, Longitude 51.4201361 (
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Difference : 578.1km