Taftan

Taftan is a city in Balochistan. It's very close to the borders of Iran and Afghanistan.

Understand

Taftan derives its name from the mountain peak which is on the Iranian side of border and is snow capped in winters. The city is famous for trade items going from Indian subcontinent to Iran and vice versa.

This is the first Pakistani town you'll encouter on the Istanbul to New Delhi over land route.

Get in

Taftan is on RCD highway which connects Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan. RCD is a well built road and connects Taftan with Quetta to the east (600 km away, 12 hours of driving) and then onwards to Karachi to the south.

(August 2010) If you arrive from Iran via Zahedan and the border town Mirjaveh and have finished the paperwork, security forces (Balochistan Levies) will take you to their headquarter where you have to register once more. Then they will offer you an armed escort for the bus ride to Quetta for Rs1500. It is possible to refuse but no bus company will take you without escort if you're a recognizable foreigner.

Get around

See

Do

Buy

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Stay safe

The area is a major smuggling area for drugs, oil, carpets, movies, so be careful.
Do not stray too far from the main highway as not to get lost in the desert and trapped in a possibly lethal situation caused by dehydration.

Connect

Go next

To Iran
To Pakistani cities of Quetta, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Islamabad

gollark: I'd prefer the ability to swap out batteries over waterproofing.

gollark: I have a long wishlist for phones, but I think the most important thing is actual replaceable parts.

gollark: It's weird, because back in 2017 or so I think most phones, or at least a lot of them, had removable batteries. Now basically none do.

gollark: That's good. We need phones which can actually be repaired. Ideally swappable USB-C ports, screens and batteries with actual standards for multiple phones.

gollark: I've managed to avoid C and assembly so far and am happier for it.

This article is issued from Wikivoyage. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.