Tak Taku Homestay: Rustic Living close to the Sand Dunes of Iran
A trip to Isfahan is not complete without exploring the beautiful rolling sands located close to it in Verzaneh. One can either explore it as part of a day trip from Isfahan or stay at a village called Toudeshk Cho and explore it the more rustic way. I chose the later and ended up staying at a family run place called Tak Taku Homestay that is located on the way from Isfahan to Yazd. The below review is based on my recent experience of staying here.
1) This is a good family run place located by the mountains in a small village of Toudeshk Cho. The place is homely, comfortable, has heated rooms and offers shared bathrooms. You sleep on mattresses laid out on the floor, but in a traditional and cosy setup. Costs vary depending on whether you take bed and breakfast, bed and breakfast with dinner or full board.
2) The place serves food, but it is necessary to book in advance.
3) The place comes with free wi-fi.
4) Since it is located close to the highway, one can easily find buses to Esfahan, Yazd, Na’in and Tehran.
5) The owner of the homestay also allows you to cook in their kitchen if you do not wish to eat their home food.
6) For sightseeing, you can hike in the mountains around, do a walking tour of the village or explore the Varzaneh sand dunes located 45 minutes away. The homestay owner arranges taxis that you can hire to visit the desert.
7) While a lot of things are good about the homestay, I would have preferred if the owner had a nicer attitude towards his customers. To me and my other traveler friends, he sounded brash and arrogant. May be, he is featured on lonely planet and wikitravel, but that doesn’t mean that he treats his customers badly. In my stay here, I found him hostile sometimes and speaking at the back many times, which I did not appreciate one little bit. However, he was helpful at many times, which was good for us.
While the location of the homestay and the homestay itself is good, I would return to this place only if the owner improves his attitude towards his customers. Having said that, you should may be give this place a try and see for yourself if things have improved.
