Pilgrimage
Imam Reza Shrine
The religious and urban centre of Mashhad. The courtyards are for pilgrimage, not a ticketed museum, and some gates slow down on holy days.
What the complex is
The shrine is the tomb of Ali ibn Musa al-Rida, the eighth Shia Imam, and the city grew around this point for centuries. What you see today is not one courtyard: courts, porches and the Goharshad Mosque connect.
The main visit is an act of worship. You do not buy a ticket to enter a courtyard. Museums inside the complex have their own hours and entrance, and should not be assumed open just because the courts are.
What to see, and how to go
On a first visit the scale of the courts is enough. Goharshad is reached from inside the complex, and its Timurid architecture differs from the later courts. Remember the shoe-cloak exit rather than a list of court names.
The closest approach is on foot from Reza Bazaar and the central metro stations. Line 1 runs from the Vakilabad side toward Hasheminejad Airport and comes near the centre; match the station name to that day’s signs. Shoes are left at the entrance. Respectful dress is required, and chadors are usually available at the door. It is busier around prayer times, on Thursday and Friday, at Nowruz and during the Dahe-ye Karamat. This page does not replace an official notice from Astan Quds.