Since the end of 2019, the world has been grappling with a disease called Coronavirus 2019 or COVID-19 pandemic. For months, many countries around the world have been struggling with an unknown virus, which originated in Wuhan, China. According to researchers, the most effective way to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus is to stay at home and impose self-quarantine. Therefore, several countries have declared quarantine for consecutive months. With the quarantine and closure of land, air, and sea borders over the past few months, no transportation or travels between countries have taken place. Research on Coronavirus shows that the virus will not be wholly eradicated shortly. 

This statement is given amid the fact that the flow of life cannot be stopped. Therefore, countries have moved to ease the lockdown and open their borders. As a result, lifestyle change and travel should be monitored by health protocols. Iran, like any other country, has been facing with Coronavirus 2019 for the past months, enforcing the quarantine law to prevent COVID-19. For a while, restrictions have been lifted by applying universal health laws so that people can resume their normal life.

The established health rules have made it possible for Iran to be ready and welcome foreign travelers when the borders are open. In the following, some of the health protocols will be explained during traveling.

After the spread of Coronavirus 2019 and the changes that resulted from the fast infection rate, travel has changed into a smart travel (travel + health). These measures have been introduced and reinforced in various social sectors across Iran. These include airlines, airports, trains and metro stations, buses and passenger terminals, and residential areas. Below the rules for these two places are explained.  

1. Before travel, make sure you are in an excellent physical condition and have no cold symptoms. Individuals should make sure to carry personal hygiene items, including disposable gloves, masks, and disinfectants. Passengers will not be allowed to board the plane, train, or bus if they don’t have masks and gloves. 
2. After using toilets on the airplane and train, you should wash and dry your hands thoroughly and use a hand sanitizer.
3. Due to the number of passengers and flights, trains, and bus capacity, people are required to sit in safe distances at vehicles.
4. Flight crews and trains and bus drivers use masks and gloves at all times.
5. Aircraft, trains, and buses are cleaned and disinfected after each trip and at every stop.
6. Only packaged food and drink will be offered to travelers.
7. In addition to the usual items, the first aid kit in the plane, train, and buses include several masks, gloves, and disinfectants.

1. Social distancing (at least one meter) should be followed by passengers while obtaining a boarding pass, passing through the inspection gate, or document control areas at the entrance of the airport transit hall and the train station. 
2. The control specialist will use mask and gloves.
3. Passengers at the waiting area will keep their distance when they are choosing a place to sit, and once they are sitting, they should refrain from touching the handles or the edges of the public chair, and in the case of any contact, they should wash their hands.
4. If you have cold symptoms, you should use a mask and gloves.
5. After using public restrooms, passengers should wash and dry their hands thoroughly or use a hand sanitizer.
6. After purchasing and before using any product or food, passengers should disinfect the packaging.
7. use packaged snacks in the waiting room whenever it is necessary.
8. Passengers should avoid lying on benches.
9. To perform prayers in public prayer halls, it is obligatory to have personal seals/ Turbah and prayer mats. Passengers should wash or disinfect their hands after prayers. It is necessary to keep a distance of one meter between the worshipers in the prayer hall.
10. Health monitoring of passengers and staff will be wholly performed in waiting areas. Also, public restrooms, waiting areas, prayer rooms, food buffets, booths, and food stalls from the airport, trains, and buses will be disinfected accordingly.
11. Continuous disinfection of equipment at the inspection gate that is in contact with people’s hands and baggage carts.
12. Paying attention to the capacity of buses when transporting passengers to board a plane to avoid congestion.
13. Be sure to wash your hands after receiving cargo and luggage from airport carriers.
14. At the entrance of airport halls, train stations, and passenger terminals, there are hand sanitizers adjacent to the elevators.

Accommodation areas, such as hotels are some of the places that passengers use when traveling. Currently, due to the spread of COVID-19, the laws of these residential areas have changed, and health protocols have become part of their safety laws. Below, health protocols for hotels or any accommodation are explained: 

1. Suspicious and exposed surfaces, such as utensils, mini bar items, sheets, blankets, extra pillows, information folders, magazines, flower pot are removed from the rooms. These items will become available upon passenger requests. 
2. All surfaces that are in contact with the guest’s hands, including handles, power switches, TV control, telephone, etc., are disinfected daily.
3. All washable surfaces in the bathroom, including floors, walls, toilets, bathtubs, showers, shower curtains, shower cabins are washed daily with detergent and hot water while maintaining the safety of electrical appliances.
4. All textiles and sleeping items, including quilt covers, pillowcases, sheets, tablecloths, towels will be washed and disinfected after the guests are checked out.
5. If you see any signs of illness in the guest, in addition to washing the above items, you should clean the mattress, blanket, and runner.
6. Turbah and prayer mat and books are placed in a secure cover and will be disinfected after guests use them.
7. Various colorful fabrics are used to clean and disinfect the surfaces. The cleaning cloth will be washed regularly with hot water and detergent. This method also applies to fabric and cotton used for cleaning the floors.
8. During the cleaning of the rooms, doors and windows will be opened for better ventilation.
9. Liquid or bar soaps and other sanitary items are placed in the rooms.
10. During the collection and disposal of the waste, the utmost care and personal protection will be followed.
11. Textile washing, such as infectious sheets, is done using extreme heat and strong detergents.
12. Public spaces, reception desks, hotel lobby phones, and ATMs are disinfected several times a day.
13. Hand sanitizer has been installed at the entrance of the accommodation centers, inside the restaurants and around elevators.
14. The room key is disinfected before and after delivery guests using a spray that is available at the reception desk.

1. Travelers should only use accommodation services that have a health license and have maintained the required health protocols.
2. Travelers should use the internet to reserve a room whenever it is possible.
3. After completing the admission process and submitting the documents and finishing the admission forms, be sure to wash your hands according to the health protocols.
4. After using public restrooms, make sure to wash and dry your hands thoroughly or use a hand sanitizer.
5. Makes sure to wash the packaging of goods or foods after purchasing.
6. Try and use the food service of restaurants inside accommodation centers as much as possible.
7. wash your hands carefully whenever you enter or go out of the accommodation center.
8. All personnel who are working in residential units are required, according to the instruction of health officials, to use physical and personal protection protocols for the safety of tourists.
9. If you or one of your family members have symptoms of a cold, please ask for help.
10. Use masks and gloves to increase the safety of public places.
11. To reduce the contact of suspicious and contaminated surfaces, items such as utensils, mini bar items, sheets, blankets, extra pillows, information folders, magazines, flowerpots are removed from the rooms and will become available upon the request of passengers.
12. All textiles and sleeping products like quilt covers, pillowcases, sheets, tablecloths, towels will be washed and disinfected after the guest are checked out.
13. Turbahand prayer mat and books are placed in a secure cover and will be disinfected after the guests use them.
14. For the ease of access, hand sanitizers have been installed at the entrance of the accommodation centers, inside the restaurants, and next to the elevators.
15. A spray will disinfect the room key at the reception desk before and after hand out.
16. In order to follow the health protocols, keep a safe distance in the lobby furniture, restaurant, or breakfast area.
17. In order to reduce the levels of contact and contamination in restaurants, utensils, equipment, and accessories, and the tablecloth will be collected to disinfect the surface of the tables.
18. The salad and food buffet is closed, and food orders will be provided in safe packages according to the hotel’s standard and grade.
19. Room service will be ready to provide food and drink in the room.