The Ultimate Travel Guide to Baku, Azerbaijan

Located on the shores of the Caspian Sea, Baku is a beautiful city where history and modernity are combined. I think every traveler will enjoy Azerbaijan’s friendly people, delicious cuisine and cultural heritage. I will prepare a detailed Azerbaijan and Baku travel guide for you. I will also include the places to visit in Baku in this Baku Travel Guide article.

Baku Travel Guide

First of all, I would like to mention some things you should know before going to Baku.

• The language spoken in Baku is Azeri Turkish.
• Azerbaijan currency is AZN, that is Manat.
• The majority of Azerbaijani people are Muslim, there are very few closed people in the city. One time we visited, it was Ramadan and there was no difference in daily life.
• Baku is a very suitable city for families with children. We were very comfortable with a stroller on our first visit. There are also many things to interest children. My son had a good time in Baku both when he was little and when we visited after he got a little older.

Is Baku safe? How are the people of Azerbaijan?

Baku is a very safe city according to my own experience. I can say that Azerbaijani people are by far the most helpful people I have ever seen. Regardless of your identity, they help you at almost every moment. For example, even though we were three adults, everyone who saw us with a stroller at the top of the stairs ran to help us without exception. If you ask for something, they try to give you more than you ask for. You will understand what I mean when you go.

How to get to Baku? Baku Transportation Guide

Baku is the capital of Azerbaijan and is located in the east of the country, on the sea coast. We have always traveled to Baku from Tbilisi, flying with Azerbaijan’s airline Azal or its low-cost subsidiary Buta Airways.

You can get from the airport to the city center very comfortably with the Aero Express bus, which costs only 1.5 AZN and takes you to the city center, 28 May Square, where the train station is located. This bus runs from 6 am to 1 am and goes to the city center in 40 minutes on average. From there you can take bus number 5 to the most touristic places or you can take a taxi, it’s a short distance anyway. Azerbaijan has a public transportation card called BakıKart. You can fill this card and use public transportation, it is also valid on the airport bus. If you take a taxi directly from the airport, it costs around 40 AZN. By the way, all of the taxis in Baku are of the type we know from London and they really add a nice atmosphere to the city.

Baku Travel Itinerary

I will try to help you plan a route in Baku. The most photogenic part of Baku, Ichisheher, is one of the first places you should visit, the old settlement surrounded by walls is on the UNESCO World Heritage list. We enter here with the Maiden’s Castle, if you want to enter the castle and go upstairs, the entrance is 10 AZN. The story of how this castle got its name is told as follows; The daughter of a Shah from the Shirvanshah dynasty loved a poor young man and the Shah built this castle for her and locked his daughter here, but the girl committed suicide by throwing herself from the castle.

Apart from this rumor, it is known that this castle was built to protect the Palace of Shirvanshahs and to fly news to the palace. After this, you can let yourself get lost in the streets of Ichisheher and take lots of photos in the streets full of old buildings. I think the most important place to see in Ichisheher is the Palace of the Shirvanshahs, a complex that includes a masjid, a bathhouse and a mausoleum in addition to the palace. Built in the 15th century, the building bears the traces of traditional architecture and is really impressive.

Things to do in Baku

When you exit from the Grand Gala Gate of Ichisheher, you reach the Nizami Literature Museum and the statue of Nizami. From here you enter the modern face of Baku. I really liked the new constructions in Baku, both in terms of architecture and greenery, I think the city is very well structured. The exterior of the Nizami Literature Museum is very beautiful, it is a great place for photographs. 🙂 The inside will also be of interest especially for literature lovers, but I think it is a building to visit in general. Just beyond here is Fountains Square, the most lively square of the city, there were Victory Day celebrations when we were there and we watched very enjoyable shows. After the square, you continue on Nizami Street, which is a very nice and organized shopping street. This street is also known as Targovi, which means street of merchants, and I think it is a must-visit for both shopping and eating.

After leaving this square, we go down to the coastline called Baku Boulevard. There is a very nice walking boulevard on the beach and there are many beautiful parks. When you walk along the beach by seeing the flame towers, you reach Flag Square and then Mini Venice and Carpet Museum. In Mini Venice, which consists of canals, you can take a ride on small boats if you want. Carpet Museum is also one of the main places to visit in Baku. Pay attention to the closing hours of the museum, 18:00 on weekdays and 20:00 on weekends. After the Carpet Museum, if you continue further along the coast, you can reach the Ferris wheel called Baku Eye.

One of the most spectacular places to visit in Baku is the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center, I recommend spending more than half a day here. I think it is worth going to the museum just to see the magnificent architecture of the late Zaha Hadid, whose every work I admire. There are many exhibitions and artworks inside, all of them impressive in my opinion, and you will also learn about Azeri culture and the Aliyev family. In addition to the general museum entrance, there is also a car exhibition and you have to buy a separate ticket to enter. Finally, if you have time, you can go to Martyrs’ Cemetery where you can have a bird’s eye view of Baku. It is possible to reach here by cable car. You can also reach the flame towers with this cable car, these towers add a beautiful atmosphere to the city from afar, but up close they look like plazas. You can also watch the light shows on these towers at night. The Zoroastrian temple of Ateshgah, located about 30 kilometers outside the city, is also among the places to visit, but we never went here because it is far away.

Where to stay in Baku? Baku Accommodation

On our first visit to Baku, we stayed for one night and we wanted to stay wherever was the most beautiful, so we chose Four Seasons Hotel. This is definitely the most beautiful hotel in Baku, location, service, elegance, view, food and everything else you can think of is gathered in this hotel. I had the chance to stay at Four Seasons hotels before, but Baku is definitely the star of my heart right now. We only had one problem, which was that we could only enjoy this hotel for one night. Ada and I had a view of the sea on one side and the famous Flame Towers on the other. From where I was lying, I was able to watch the light shows at the Flame Towers throughout the night. Our room got full marks from me with its bathroom, the comfort of the bed, the children’s activities that welcomed us for Ada and other details. The view from my parents’ room overlooked the historical area of Baku called Ichisehir on one side and the flame towers on the other.

As you can see from the room views I mentioned above, the location of the hotel is in the middle of the most touristic places. When you cross the street, you reach the famous coastal road by the sea. Carpet museum, mini Venice, İçerişehir, Kız Castle are within 4-5 minutes walking distance. If you walk for another 5 minutes, you reach Nizami Street. So I can say that you almost don’t need a car for transportation while staying at the hotel. Since Heydar Aliyev Museum is outside the city center, you only need to drive there. It is also very easy to get there from the hotel, either with the taxis in front of the door or with the number 5 bus from the bus stop on the opposite sidewalk.

The hotel’s breakfast is open buffet and there is nothing that you can say oh I wish there was this, in fact there is everything you can’t think of. It was definitely one of the best hotel breakfasts I’ve ever had. Everything was first quality and the variety was really high, in addition to the buffet, you have the opportunity to have fresh hot products such as eggs and pancakes in different ways. The breakfast room was very elegant and the attention of the staff was great. The hotel has a very nice indoor pool, we spent most of our only evening there, Ada didn’t want to leave. There is both a hot part with a jacuzzi and a cold area for swimming. If you are going to stay here, don’t forget to bring a swimsuit with you, it is very good for the tiredness of the day. For more details about the hotel and reservations you can check here.

The next time we went to Baku was for the Formula 1 races and since we were staying for 4 nights this time, we decided to stay in a more budget-friendly hotel. Ibis Baku hotel was also very nice, I recommend it.

Click here to check other available hotels in Baku!

Is Azerbaijan cheap or expensive? Baku travel budget

I had heard that Azerbaijan was generally expensive, but I did not see that much expensive prices. Of course, there are also very expensive places, but it is possible to travel at an affordable price. As I mentioned above, public transportation is really affordable and taxis are cheap compared to Europe. Among the places to visit, only the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center has a slightly higher price, but I think it is understandable since it is a really legendary museum.

What to eat in Azerbaijan? Baku food guide

Plov (pilaf): One of the most well-known and popular dishes of Azerbaijani cuisine. Rice pilaf, usually colored with saffron, is prepared with lamb, dried fruits, chestnuts and various spices.

Dolma: It is made with a mixture of minced meat and rice wrapped in vine leaves, but the minced meat is more dense, and they roll it into tiny balls. It is usually served with yogurt.

Qutab (Kutab): A type of pastry made with thin dough filled with minced meat, spinach, cheese or various greens and rolled into a half-moon shape. The qutab is cooked on a baking sheet, smeared with butter and served hot.

Lüle kebab and Shashlik: Lüle kebab, similar to our minced meat kebab, and shashlik, similar to shish kebab, are also very popular in Azerbaijan and they are really delicious. Hair kebab is also very common.

Piti: A type of meat stew cooked in small pots. Prepared with lamb, chickpeas, chestnuts, saffron, chestnuts, saffron and various spices in a slow cooking method, piti is usually consumed with tandoori bread.

Düşbere: One of the traditional soups of Azerbaijani cuisine. Small dumplings are cooked in meat broth and served with dried mint sprinkled on top.

Dovga: A soup made with yogurt, spinach, coriander, rice and chickpeas. It can be consumed cold or hot.

Sekerbura and Pakhlava: Sekerbura and pakhlava are the most famous desserts. Sekerbura is a crescent-shaped dessert filled with almonds, walnuts and sugar. Pakhlava is a baklava-like dessert with walnuts and honey.

Azerbaijani Tea and Confectionery: Tea culture in Azerbaijan is quite developed. Tea is served with a type of hard candy called kıtlama.

Where to eat in Baku? Baku restaurant recommendations

Sumakh Restaurant is one of the chic and popular places in Baku. It takes its name from sumac spice. The interior decoration is very nice, I recommend it to try traditional Azerbaijani flavors. Prices are slightly above the Baku average. For budget-friendly local dishes and an authentic atmosphere, Firuze, Dolma and Qaynana were very good. MariVanna, which I think you will love for its vintage decoration, has mainly Russian cuisine, but you can also find Georgian flavors, so I can say that there are other cuisines influenced by Russian culture. I would also like to mention Veten Restaurant, which our friends who live in Baku took us to. It is outside the city, in a place called Mardakan, but we liked it very much. You are welcomed with local music at the entrance. You walk through the streets like a small neighborhood, there are doors like house doors and these open to private rooms. You can close a room according to the number of people. Everything we ate here was great and we loved the concept. Finally, you can add Telequlle, which stands out with its magnificent view of Baku from very high up, rather than its food.

When to visit Baku? How many days to stay in Baku?

We went to Baku in May both times. It is quite hot during the day and you need a coat in the evening. As far as I know, Azerbaijan has a continental climate, so I think this is why it is hot during the day and cool in the evenings. As it is the case for most places with four seasons, spring and summer months are the ideal times to visit Baku. But even if you are going even in summer, it is useful to take a thin coat with you.

A 2 nights and 3 days program is enough to visit Baku properly. If you want to spend some time in the surroundings of Baku, I recommend you to extend this period.

What to buy as a souvenir in Azerbaijan? Shopping in Baku

For souvenir shopping in Baku, just wander around Ichisheher. You will see a lot of old shops and carpet shops. Azerbaijan’s carpets are also very famous, there is even a museum as I mentioned above, if you are curious, you should definitely check it out. Silk scarves called Kelaghayi are also among the things you can buy from Azerbaijan, they are on the list of intangible UNESCO cultural heritage. Another unique Azerbaijani souvenir is Chirag, ceramics in the shape of Aladdin’s magic lamp, which look cute and decorative. Beautiful paintings are exhibited on Nizami Street, if you are a painting enthusiast like us, I recommend you to take a look.

I hope my Baku Travel Guide will be useful for you and you will plan a nice trip to Baku. If you have any other questions, please leave them in the comments. If you have any extra suggestions, I would also welcome them in the comments. Have a nice trip!

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