IranParagliding
A paraglider high above the snow-capped cone of Mount Damavand

Paragliding in Iran

Fly the roof of the Middle East

Damavand rises 5,610 m over the Alborz, and below it sit some of the least-known flying sites in the world. An open reference to where you can fly here, when it works, and what the trip actually takes.

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Why here

An entire mountain range, effectively unflown

  • Mountains almost nobody has flown

    The Alborz runs 900 km across the north of the country and tops out at 5,610 m. Outside a small local scene, most of it has never had a wing over it.

  • Three climates, one trip

    High alpine, bare desert plateau and humid Caspian forest sit within a day of each other. A two-week trip can fly all three.

  • Long, dependable seasons

    The plateau works in spring and autumn while the high Alborz runs through summer. There is somewhere flyable most of the year.

  • Almost no air traffic

    Away from the city basins you will not be sharing a thermal. That is the whole point, and it will not last forever.

Flying sites

Start with these

All 6 sites →
Placeholder illustration of a paraglider above a snow-capped volcanic cone Data unverified

Central Alborz · Mazandaran

Damavand

A 5,610 m dormant volcano standing alone above the Alborz — the image that sells flying in Iran to the rest of the world.

Season
May–Sep
Level
Advanced
  • Thermal
  • Cross-country
  • Hike & fly
Placeholder illustration of a paraglider above a steep alpine ridge Data unverified

Central Alborz · Tehran

Tochal

The Alborz wall rising straight off north Tehran, reachable by gondola from inside the city — the most accessible high mountain flying in Iran.

Season
Apr–Oct
Level
Intermediate
  • Thermal
  • Cross-country
  • Ridge soaring
Placeholder illustration of a paraglider over high alpine ski terrain Data unverified

Central Alborz · Alborz

Dizin

A high Alborz ski resort north-west of Tehran where the lift infrastructure turns a long hike into a short ride.

Season
Jun–Sep
Level
Intermediate
  • Thermal
  • Cross-country

The map

Everywhere we fly

Pins are approximate and meant for orientation. Amber pins mark sites whose technical data has not been verified by a local pilot yet.

Before you go

The unglamorous half of the trip

Nobody abandons a flying trip because the thermals looked weak. They abandon it because they could not work out the visa, the money or the customs desk. So those pages get the same care as the site guides.

Flown one of these sites?

This is a reference, and references get better by being corrected. If a season is wrong, a launch has moved, or a site is missing entirely, tell us — and if you can verify the technical data for a site, that is the most useful thing anyone can send.

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