The most important and most populous nation within the South Caucasus, Azerbaijan is usually described as a “land of contrasts” and for as soon as, the cliché truly matches. Sitting on the crossroads between Asia and Europe, this resource-rich nation is outlined by its numerous geography, starting from rugged alpine peaks within the Higher Caucasus Mountains within the north to broad Caspian seashores, lowland deserts and leopard-inhabited forests within the subtropical south. 

Whereas most cities could be reached from Baku in lower than a day, visiting extra distant villages and mountain areas can require additional endurance and a few off-road driving. Buses and trains join the main cities and key locations, however attending to off-the-beaten-path locations could contain some ahead planning and chartering a automotive and driver.

From the buzzing metropolis of Baku to the distant wilderness of Hirkan Nationwide Park and all the pieces in between, listed below are the highest 12 issues to do in Azerbaijan. 

1. Baku

Finest for museums and historical past

Bustling Baku is the capital metropolis of Azerbaijan and the most important metropolis within the South Caucasus. The invention of huge fossil gasoline reserves within the Abşeron Peninsula and the Caspian Sea has had a profound affect on this historic seaport. The wealth from oil and pure fuel has crammed Baku with towering fashionable buildings and boutique-lined boulevards; few cities on the planet are altering so rapidly.

To be taught extra about Baku’s oil-fuelled growth, it’s value visiting the National Museum of History of Azerbaijan. For a style of the grand structure that sprang up within the metropolis after oil was found within the 1840s, take a look at the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre, the Gothic-inspired Ismailiyya Palace, and the striped Institute of Manuscripts of Azerbaijan, inbuilt 1901 as a boarding faculty for ladies. 

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Across the nook, you may see the church-like Palace of Happiness, one other oil-boom landmark constructed as a non-public dwelling for oil magnate Murtuza Mukhtarov. Steps away, you’ll discover the baroque Metropolis Corridor, the castle-like Home of Sadykhov Brothers, the Baku State Philharmonic Corridor and the Western Caspian College constructing. Rising above town are the shimmering Flame Towers – three of town’s most futuristic skyscrapers. 

Don’t miss Baku’s core – a labyrinthine maze of slender alleys, repurposed Silk Street caravanserais (inns), historic mosques, colourful carpet shops and faux-old homes mixing in with the centuries-old stone structure. At its coronary heart is the Palace of the Shirvanshahs, Azerbaijan’s historic ruling clan. 

The town’s previous city has been marked as a UNESCO World Heritage Website since 2000, defending its buildings and monuments from the runaway development seen in another components of town. Stroll via previous Baku’s imposing stone gates to find the heritage of the Shirvanshahs (Azerbaijan’s medieval rulers), timeless hammams (bathhouses), and among the republic’s most enduring spiritual websites.

2.  Qobustan Petroglyph Reserve

Finest for a day journey from Baku

Roughly a one-hour drive south of the capital, the UNESCO World Heritage Checklist-inscribed Qobustan Petroglyph Reserve protects a set of petroglyphs representing searching scenes, ritual dances and pure landscapes courting again so far as 10,000 BCE. A lot of the petroglyphs are discovered within the Boyukdash and Kichikdash hills, inscribed on huge boulders masking an enormous, protected space close to Qobustan City. 

English-speaking guides can be found onsite if you wish to be led to much less apparent stone engravings, and the wonderful Qobustan Nationwide Park Museum will enable you put the pictures into context. 

Detour: Lower than 10km (6 miles) from the museum are a few of Azerbaijan’s well-known mud volcanoes – effervescent mud pots created by geothermal forces. Seeing the mud erupt immediately into life is weirdly fascinating and the location is a straightforward add-on to a visit to the Qobustan petroglyphs. 

3. Abşeron Peninsula

Finest for geology buffs

The surroundings adjustments quickly as you drive alongside the hook-shaped strip of land extending from Baku into the Caspian Sea. The Abşeron (Absheron) Peninsula is lined with well-liked seashores, forgotten castles and “burning” soils created by igniting pure fuel, making for an enchanting day journey to the nation’s easternmost tip. 

Remember to make pit stops at Ateshgah – a Seventeenth-century Zoroastrian temple enclosing a naturally burning flame – and the Mardakan Castle, an imposing Shirvanshah fortress. Different highlights embody the Qala Ethnographic Museum Complex, dedicated to conventional life in Azerbaijan and the flame-licked slopes of Yanar Dağ (actually translating to “fireplace mountain”).

Detour: On the tip of the peninsula, Abşeron Nationwide Park protects coastal grasslands and seashores that present a house for gazelles, birdlife and seals.

4. Quba

Finest for locating Azerbaijan’s cultural tapestry

Sitting at roughly 600m (1970ft) above sea degree, underneath the shadow of the massifs forming the jap part of the Higher Caucasus, Quba is the primary settlement in northeastern Azerbaijan. It’s a well-known carpet-weaving middle whose tradition has been formed by the languages, customs and beliefs of the various ethnic teams that settled within the space over the centuries. 

Immediately, Quba is primarily visited by guests as a jumping-off level for the rugged mountain trails crisscrossing Shahdag Nationwide Park, however downtown sights like Nizami Park, the distinctively Central Asian-style Sakina Khanum Mosque, and the Quba Genocide Memorial Advanced make it value a go to in its personal proper. Strolling across the tidy grid of streets at Quba’s core is an pleasurable option to uncover this unshowy northern metropolis. 

5. Sheki Metropolis

Finest for Silk Street palaces

Azerbaijan’s most charming city sits amid forested slopes within the nation’s mountainous northwest, on the lengthy street that connects Baku to the border with Georgia. Twentieth-century industrialization reworked Sheki right into a busy silk-weaving hub, however the metropolis retains its historic character, providing guests a window into the previous within the type of historic brick minarets, caravanserais and royal palaces.

Added to the UNESCO World Heritage record in 2019, Sheki’s historic middle is dwelling to one among Azerbaijan’s most eye-catching royal residences, the Palace of Sheki Khans. Different necessary royal websites embody the Shakikhanovs’ Palace and Sheki Kahn’s Mosque & Cemetery. 

Planning tip: As you enter the Palace of Sheki Khan via its most important gate, you’ll discover a coated market – an attention-grabbing place to purchase conventional Azeri crafts.

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6. Ganja

Finest for interacting with native individuals

Within the west of the nation, Ganja is Azerbaijan’s third-largest metropolis by inhabitants. As you strategy from the east through the freeway from Baku, you’ll discover the towering mausoleum of the Twelfth-century Azeri poet Nizami and the Khamsa Monumental Advanced – dominated by a collection of 30ft-tall sculptures of books standing alongside the freeway – earlier than you attain the red-brick gate welcoming guests into town.

After passing these distinctive landmarks, you’ll discover an much more hanging architectural oddity inside town. The 2-story residence referred to as the “Bottle Home” was constructed in 1967 by Ibrahim Jafarov, who clad the outside with tens of hundreds of glass bottles in numerous sizes in homage to his brother, who died in WWII.

For a unique architectural type, take a look at the Alexander Nevsky Russian Orthodox Church, a Nineteenth-century nod to Azerbaijan’s Byzantine previous hidden on a slender facet avenue. Ganja’s architectural centerpiece is the broad sq. locked between Mustafa Kemal Ataturk Ave and Shah Ismayil Khetayi Ave, accumulating collectively among the interior metropolis’s most necessary landmarks. 

On the southern finish of the sq., the facade of the Ganja State Philharmonic Corridor stands in entrance of central Ganja’s most important spiritual constructing, the Juma Mosque. The red-brick structure of the mosque and its twin minarets is mirrored within the close by Javad Khan Mausoleum and the Chokak Hamam. 

Planning tip: The middle of Ganja is well walkable and most sights could be reached on foot with none difficulties. Cheap trains run from Baku to Ganja, finishing the journey in lower than 4 hours. 

7.  Lankaran 

Finest for locating the flavors of Azerbaijan

Vacationers who dedicate a number of days to Lankaran (Lənkəran) may have an opportunity to come across the extreme flavors of the fruit and greens grown within the subtropical south, and listen to individuals communicate within the Persian-influenced Talysh language, a reminder of the interval when southern Azerbaijan was dominated by Persian sultanates. 

The title of “resort metropolis” doesn’t actually do Lankaran justice – whereas the coast right here is lined with black-sand seashores, that is additionally the middle of Azerbaijan’s tea trade and guests can immerse themselves in exactly mapped pure parks boasting among the nation’s highest ranges of biodiversity. 

Lankaran is known all through Azerbaijan for its tea, which is offered in quite a few retailers within the metropolis middle and at native markets. Azeri tea is usually brewed in a ceramic pot and diluted with sizzling water from a Russian-style samovar (water heater). 

The sprawling farmland surrounding town has lengthy functioned as Azerbaijan’s breadbasket because of its fertile soils and moist, subtropical local weather. The very best place to get a way of Lankaran’s agricultural richness is within the metropolis’s bustling bazaar, the place a whole bunch of distributors collect day by day.

Detour: Positioned on the plains between Baku and Lankaran is Shirvan Nationwide Park, recognized for its massive gazelle inhabitants and glorious chicken watching. It’s attainable to achieve the park by public transport however it’s a lot simpler to go to with a chartered automotive and driver.

8. Gabala

Finest for an adrenaline rush

Gabala (Qəbələ) is a peaceable city on the foot of the Higher Caucasus, the place backyard teahouses and luxurious resorts function the stepping-off level for mountain adventures. Earlier than you head for the hills, go to the city’s historic ruins, its imposing fashionable mosque, its many open-air teahouses and the Gabaland Amusement Park (Azerbaijan’s greatest household theme park). 

In summer season, trails via the Higher Caucasus provide glorious mountain climbing alternatives. For but extra dramatic surroundings, head to Laza within the north, the place mountain climbing trails run alongside the river, providing splendid views of the mountains.

In winter, most individuals come to Gabala to hit the slopes across the Tufandag Mountain Resort. At any time of 12 months, the four-station cable automotive gives entry to slopes at 1920m (6300ft), the place you may stroll, spot wildlife or sit and admire the gorgeous surroundings of the Higher Caucasus with an costly espresso in hand. 

Detour: South of Gabala you could find the Savalan Winery, providing day by day tasting excursions. Go to as a part of an tour to the location of Old Gabala, the place archaeological stays and a small museum discover the historical past of a settlement believed up to now again to the 4th century BCE. 

9. Göygöl Nationwide Park  

Finest for road-tripping and mountain climbing

Simply south of the city of Göygöl, about an hour’s drive from Ganja, Göygöl Nationwide Park is a well-liked vacation spot in spring and summer season. Sharing a pot of çay (tea) within the cafe by the Göygöl Lake Resort is an efficient warm-up for its lake and mountain adventures.

The must-see right here is Lake Göygöl (actually translating to “Blue Lake”) – a mirror-like physique of water forming the epicenter of the nationwide park. You’ll get pleasure from photo-worthy vistas whereas strolling across the lakeshore, however it’s exhausting to beat the views from the highest of Mt Kyapaz, which rises to 3066m (10,100ft).

The summit path begins on the foot of the mountain within the deserted village of Başqışlaq, a relic of the primary Azerbaijan–Armenia battle. The path to the highest is steep however easy, zigzagging via huge rocks and scrubby vegetation to achieve the summit, with an elevation acquire of roughly 600m (1969ft).

Planning tip: The climb up Mt Kyapaz takes about three hours, however attending to the summit would require a allow, a information and an extended off-road drive to the beginning level, so it’s best to make preparations via a Baku tour company. 

10. Xınalıq

Finest for immersion in stunning landscapes

A single, bending strip of asphalt operating between the rocky faces of tall mountains and alongside terror-inducing cliffs ends on the little village of Xınalıq (Khinaliq), the best completely inhabited settlement in Azerbaijan.

Terraced stone homes which have been occupied for hundreds of years by Ketsh-speaking, Sunni Muslim shepherds type the nucleus of this historic settlement, surrounded by the fantastic Caucasus peaks which might be the world’s large attraction.

Isolation has allowed historic customs to outlive on this remoted neighborhood, and a small ethnography museum set inside a castle-like construction traces the village’s wealthy historical past via craft objects and artifacts.

For a straightforward introduction to the world’s rugged but pristine landscapes, observe the Xınalıq–Galakhudat path, a scenic, 8km (5-mile) mountain climbing route that runs alongside the Qudiyalçay River.

Detour: Round 5km (3 miles) from Xınalıq, you could find a exceptional ateshgah (“home of fireside” in Persian). That is seemingly the world’s highest Zoroastrian temple – a sq. construction topped by a small pyramid masking a naturally burning, methane-fuelled flame. A mud street runs from Xınalıq to the temple, however to go to, you’ll have to receive a particular allow through a mountain climbing tour company.

11. Shahdag Nationwide Park 

Finest for snowboarding and mountaineering

Bordering Russia and coated in snow for a lot of the 12 months, Shahdag National Park is dwelling to a lot of Azerbaijan’s tallest peaks. It’s a rugged vacation spot for summertime mountain adventures and winter snowboarding.

Azerbaijan’s largest ski resort, Shahdag Mountain Resort,
is a well-liked winter vacation spot, that includes almost 30km (19 miles) of
slopes that are typically a lot much less crowded than ski resorts in additional
established ski resorts elsewhere in Europe.

The resort village options spas, five-star lodging, and a dozen bars and eating places. For a break from the ski slopes, go zip lining, paragliding or experience the Shahdag Coaster, a bobsled-like monitor experience. For a gentler expertise, you may get pleasure from snow tubing, trekking, horseback using and plenty of different summer season and winter actions.

Adventurers from internationally are drawn to Shahdag Nationwide Park by its spectacular peaks. Iconic summits rise to over 3700m (12,140ft), together with Mt Bazardüzü, Mt Babadağ, Mt Şahdağ, Mt Tufandağ, and President’s Mountain. Many guests come to Azerbaijan particularly to climb these beautiful mountains on organized expeditions. 

Planning tip: Since a lot of the nationwide park sits in a delicate border zone, trekking a lot of its routes requires a particular allow. An off-road car is critical to entry the park’s inside, so it’s greatest to make preparations via a trekking company. 

12. Hirkan Nationwide Park

Finest for getting again to nature

Dwelling to the critically endangered Caucasian leopard and the endemic Persian ironwood tree, Hirkan Nationwide Park is an enchanting part of the Talysh Mountains – an space as humid as it’s biologically numerous. The one means in is on foot, following unmarked paths connecting the remoted Talysh settlements which have existed within the area for hundreds of years. 

With a information, you may hike via dense forests for 14km (8.7 miles) from Sim to Istisu, passing by the peaceable Sim Waterfall, or ascend Ballı Qaya Hill for spectacular views of the encompassing Talysh Mountains. After an extended hike, unwind within the sizzling springs of Istisu, the place you may get pleasure from a calming soak within the village’s personal or public bathhouses. 

Planning tip: The very best time to go to Hirkan Nationwide Park is in spring or autumn when the temperatures are nonetheless bearable; summer season can convey uncomfortable warmth and humidity. Keep on the pleasant, rustic Sim Guesthouse, within the coronary heart of the Hirkan surroundings.