I don't know how I got onto this thread but anyway, I stayed with his family for about 5 days when I first entered Iran. I was taken aback when his dad asked for the money, I certainly wasn't expecting it, though I would have left something. That said, he goes out of his way to help you, you meet his friends, go to places you would probably never get a chance to see otherwise and it's a great way to enter a country which initially you will probably have misgivings about.
I paid about $25 USD a night, which in European terms is a bargain. His mother is a wonderful cook too. It's very much worth it.
As I told him afterwards, he needs to state the cost clearly BEFOREHAND so that people know what to expect. It's bad form that he hasn't corrected this practice.
At the time of entry a little over a year ago it wasn't possible to get bike insurance unless you paid for a year. This was very expensive, even for my 125cc scooter, so I risked loosing it by doing without. I'd personally take the Carnet 'fix' he's offering (also see HUBB) with a pinch of salt, he must have made a friend at the border control. You can do it without a carnet but it is a fixed amount of money and HUGE, so he's arranged a backhander. If the police stop you and know to check the form, they'll be delighted at receiving a tourateched up R1200GSA at no charge.
A.
[edit] he's not offering a Carnet but some sort of alternative just for Iran. Maybe it's valid.
