The 14 essential things to do in Isfahan

Built between 1598 and 1629 under Shah Abbas I, who made Isfahan his capital, Naqsh-e Jahan Square ('image of the world') measures 560 by 160 metres. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. Four monuments line it: the Shah Mosque to the south, the Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque to the east, the Ali Qapu palace to the west and, to the north, the Qeysarie gate opening onto the grand bazaar.

In the middle, a long pool and lawns where families settle in the evening; all around, two-storey arcades house shops and workshops. The square appears on the back of the 20,000-rial banknote.

Begun in 1611 on the orders of Shah Abbas I and completed around 1630, the Shah Mosque, officially called the Imam Mosque, closes the south side of Naqsh-e Jahan Square. Its tiled portal faces the axis of the square, while the prayer hall is turned towards Mecca: the vestibule makes up the difference. Around the courtyard, four iwans lead to the prayer hall and its turquoise dome.

It ranks among the masterpieces of Persian architecture of the Islamic era and is, with the square, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Friday prayer is still held there.

On the east side of Naqsh-e Jahan Square, opposite the Ali Qapu palace, the Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque was built from 1602-1603 to 1618-1619 by the architect Muhammad Reza, during the reign of Shah Abbas the Great. It has neither minaret nor courtyard: a bent corridor leads straight under a single dome, entirely covered in tiles.

Smaller than the Shah Mosque, it ranks among the masterpieces of Safavid architecture. It was restored in the 1920s on the advice of the art historian Arthur Upham Pope.

Often overshadowed by Naqsh-e Jahan Square, Isfahan's Friday Mosque has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site in its own right since 2012. It juxtaposes twelve centuries of styles, from the 9th-century Abbasid period to Seljuk, Ilkhanid, Timurid and Safavid additions.

You can see two Seljuk domes, a four-iwan plan that became a model across the Iranian world, and finely worked brick and stucco decoration.

On the west side of the square, opposite the Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque, the Ali Qapu palace ('the grand gate') was originally the gateway to a vast palace complex that stretched to Chahar Bagh avenue. It is 48 metres high, with six floors linked by narrow spiral staircases.

On the sixth floor, the music room is pierced with circular niches cut into the stucco, both decorative and acoustic. The palace is part of the square's UNESCO World Heritage listing.

Built under the Safavid shah Abbas II, the Chehel Sotoun palace ('the forty columns') owes its name to its twenty wooden columns whose reflection in the long pool gives the illusion of forty. A royal reception pavilion, it is famous for its large historical frescoes and miniatures. Its garden is one of the nine 'Persian Gardens' jointly inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2011.

The most famous of Isfahan's historic bridges, the Si-o-se Pol ('the bridge of 33 arches'), also called the Allahverdi Khan bridge, spans the Zayandeh river over nearly 300 metres. Built in the early 17th century under Shah Abbas I, it is at once a bridge, a dam and a promenade: its two levels of brick arcades have become the city's emblem. Note: the river is often dry, the bridge then overlooking an arid bed.

East of Si-o-se Pol, the Khaju Bridge spans the Zayandeh, the largest river of the Iranian plateau. Built in the 17th century under the Safavids, it is both a bridge and a weir, and links the Khaju quarter on the north bank with the old Zoroastrian quarter on the south bank.

Its arcades also served as a public meeting place, and it is often described as the city's finest bridge. The art historians Arthur Upham Pope and Phyllis Ackerman, specialists in Persian art, are buried in a mausoleum nearby.

In the heart of the Armenian district of Jolfa, the Holy Saviour Cathedral, known as the Vank Cathedral, was founded in 1606 and completed around 1664. Behind a plain façade hides a teeming interior: its walls are entirely covered with biblical frescoes, from the Creation to the Last Judgment, blending Armenian art and Safavid decoration. An adjoining museum displays manuscripts and liturgical objects, including a record of the Armenian genocide.

The Grand Bazaar, or Qeysarie bazaar, was built in 1620 on the north side of Naqsh-e Jahan Square. It was one of the most luxurious trading centres of the Safavid era. Its covered alleys link Naqsh-e Jahan Square to the old Kohneh Square and the Seljuk quarter, home to the Friday Mosque.

You'll find carpets, miniatures, qalamkar (block-printed cottons), hammered copperware, spices and gaz, the local pistachio nougat.

South of the Zayandeh, New Julfa (Jolfa) was founded in the early 17th century by the Armenians whom Shah Abbas I brought from Julfa, on the Aras river. The district still has several churches, including Vank Cathedral, and remains the centre of Isfahan's Armenian community.

Its streets are now among the liveliest in the city, with cafés and shops around Jolfa Square. Combine it with Vank Cathedral and the Si-o-se Pol bridge, about twenty minutes away on foot.

Built around 1669 under Shah Soleyman, the Hasht Behesht palace ('the eight paradises') is a refined Safavid pavilion set in the middle of a garden. More intimate than Chehel Sotoun, it charms with its muqarnas ceilings, water features and filtered light. Its garden, like that of Chehel Sotoun, belongs to the UNESCO-listed Persian Gardens.

South of the city, Mount Soffeh overlooks Isfahan. Its slopes are laid out as a leisure park, popular with families late in the day, and trails climb to the heights, with views over the city and the Zayandeh valley.

It is Isfahan's nature outing, best kept for the end of the day, when the heat eases.

Completed in 1513, at the start of the Safavid era, the mausoleum of Haroun-e-Velayat is an imamzadeh (shrine) richly adorned with faience tiles. The identity of the saint resting there is disputed by historians, but the place is highly venerated locally, reputed for its 'miracles', and respected even by some of the city's Armenian Christians. Its flowered courtyard and mosaic portal make it a peaceful stop away from the crowds.