I'd say camping is safe almost anywhere and Iranians do it in the most unlikely places. You will get a lot of attention though and won't get much sleep :-)

If you want dirt cheap ask the locals. It is easy to stop a local biker and ask. Most likely they will guide you to a place or invite you into their home :-) Other than that, the LP Iran is pretty good actually. Few places mixed up and poor maps at times but good for a general idea of what is available in a given area. Prices outdated though. Some have gone up, some down. Always worth to negotiate. Generally you pay per person, not per room, which worked great for me as a solo traveler.

The Good:

* Apadana Hotel (Lat 29°56'10.51"N, Lon 52°53'10.92"E) between the ticket booth and the entrance to Persepolis. $25/single/night with views of Persepolis from the room. Probably the best value in Iran. Not in Lonely planet and much better deal than the bungalows at the campground down the road. Safe parking in gated lot in the back. They have an espresso machine too :-) Fake grotto restaurant a few k downs the road has good food.

* Hotel Iran in Esfahan (Lat 32°39'18.24"N, Lon 51°40'6.59"E). $20ish/single/night. Much nicer than described in LP. Easy walking distance to main sights. Very helpful owners speak English fluently and went the extra mile to get me some bike stuff. Spent almost two weeks there on two different trips. They can arrange safe parking nearby. One bike fits in entrance.

* Arian Hotel in Hamadan (34.793214, 48.522290, ). OK, not really cheap and hard to negotiate down but very nice with safe parking.

* Reza Hotel in Orumiyeh (37.550284, 45.073515) the first town after the Esendere/Serou border crossing. $20ish/single/night. Very nice and helpful owner, free safe parking next door, best elevator music in the country. The owner gave me a camel bag that another biker had left behind a year ago. That alone was worth more than what I paid for the room :-)

* Camping at Takht-e-Soleyman ( 36°36'6.19"N, 47°14'13.39"E)

* Silk Road Hotel in Yazd ( 31°54'2.82"N, 54°22'13.81"E). I stayed there twice and I personally think the hype has gotten the better of them at times. Service is a bit up and down but it is still a nice place with a welcome change from the standard Iranian road side food. Excellent place to meet other travelers. Generally a nice place to take a little vacation from your vacation. Other great choices in Yazd too in the same price range.

* Khan-e Ehsan Hotel in Kashan ( 33°58'49.35"N, 51°26'38.19"E). They have a couple of cheaper rooms on the roof, meant for Iranians only ($20ish). You can ride onto the roof from one side and park the bike outside the room.



* Firouzeh Hotel in Tehran. The hotel is actually pretty run down and basic and too expensive for what it is, but Mr. Mousavi at the front desk can organize all sorts of things (for a small cut :-) ), which can be a real time and money saver. Not sure about parking though. Only stayed there on a snowboarding trip. They have a web page (firouzehhotel.com - welcome) and are usually pretty responsive and can probably tell you ahead of time. Easy to store gear there. It is in the South of Tehran, smack in the middle of all the auto parts stores.

* Camping at Lake Ovan ( 36°28'59.71"N, 50°26'44.04"E). You can even go for a swim.



OK, I got my boots stolen but that lead to all kinds of interesting things. Just watch out for this guy :-) Didn't have the heart to keep him locked up and made a deal with the judge. He's out and about again.



The Bad:
* Hotel Zand in Shiraz. Not much besides safe parking. Filthy, overpriced, and insanely hot. You can do much better for that price. Doing it again I'd rather stay at the Apadana in Persepolis and ride into Shiraz for sightseeing.

* Hotel Karon in Khorramabad (33.48536900, 48.36078600). Plenty of safe parking is the redeeming feature of this place. Other than that pretty filthy, noisy, and overpriced. Other, better looking places around the corner.

A bit more at Iran | On The Road