Azerbaijan · Local picks
100+ Places to Visit in Azerbaijan
These are the places worth your time in Azerbaijan, from the Old City and seafront of Baku to the caravanserais of Sheki, the forests and lakes of Gabala, the mountain villages around Quba and the tea gardens of Lankaran. Classics sit beside quiet corners many travellers miss, so every kind of visitor finds something to love.
Places to Visit in Baku
Arts and Culture
- Icheri Sheher (Old City) (Old City)
A walled UNESCO listed old town of lanes, caravanserais, mosques and carpet shops. - Palace of the Shirvanshahs (Old City)
The fifteenth century royal complex of the Shirvan rulers, with tombs, a mosque and a bathhouse. - Maiden Tower (Old City)
The city's mysterious stone tower, with a small museum and views over the Old City and bay. - Heydar Aliyev Center (Heydar Aliyev Avenue)
Zaha Hadid's flowing white building, with exhibitions inside and great photos outside. - Azerbaijan Carpet Museum (Seaside Boulevard)
A museum shaped like a rolled carpet, holding centuries of Azerbaijani weaving. - Ateshgah Fire Temple (Surakhani)
A fortified fire worshippers' temple once used by Indian traders, with an eternal flame. - Gobustan National Park (Gobustan)
Thousands of prehistoric rock carvings on a windswept ridge south of Baku. - Mardakan Castle (Mardakan)
A square medieval tower in the Absheron dacha country, often almost empty of visitors. - Azerbaijan National Museum of History (Taghiyev Palace)
An oil baron's palace with lavish halls and the country's main history collection. - Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Hall (Istiglaliyyat Street)
An elegant concert hall where tickets for classical and mugham concerts are easy to get. - Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre (Nizami Street)
A gilded old theatre for opera, ballet and Azerbaijani operas by Uzeyir Hajibeyli. - Yarat Contemporary Art Space (Seaside Boulevard)
A converted naval building showing bold contemporary art from Azerbaijan and beyond. - Museum of Miniature Books (Old City)
A tiny private museum with thousands of minuscule books from around the world. - Taza Pir Mosque (Sabail)
One of Baku's main mosques, with fine interior decoration and a calm courtyard. - Bibi-Heybat Mosque (Bayil)
A rebuilt shrine mosque on the coast road, beautiful when lit at night.
Things to Do
- Baku Boulevard (Seaside Boulevard)
The long seafront park where all of Baku strolls on summer evenings. - Highland Park and Martyrs' Lane (Yasamal)
The best view of the bay and the Flame Towers, beside a solemn memorial avenue. - Baku Funicular (Seaside Boulevard)
A short ride up from the boulevard to Highland Park, easy for children and older travellers. - Fountains Square (City centre)
The busy heart of the modern city, lined with cafés and shops near the Old City walls. - Nizami Street (City centre)
Baku's grand pedestrian shopping street of nineteenth century oil boom facades.
Nature and Outdoors
- Yanar Dag (Mammadli, Absheron)
A hillside that has burned with natural gas for decades, most dramatic after dark. - Gobustan mud volcanoes (Gobustan)
Small bubbling cones of cold grey mud in a strange, lunar landscape. - Shikhov Beach (Bayil coast)
The nearest beach to the centre, busy with Baku families on summer weekends.
Shopping and Markets
- Taza Bazaar (Narimanov)
The city's best food market for fruit, cheese, herbs, caviar sellers and spices. - Yashil Bazaar (Narimanov)
A big, lively green market where locals shop for produce and pickles. - Old City carpet shops (Old City)
Lanes of dealers selling old and new carpets, good for browsing and learning. - Port Baku Mall (Neftchilar Avenue)
A modern seafront mall with international brands and cafés. - 28 Mall (28 May)
A central mall near the railway station, handy for SIM cards and essentials.
Restaurants
- Shirvanshah Muzey Restoran (Salatyn Asgarova Street)
A restaurant in an old house filled with antiques, serving classic Azerbaijani dishes. - Firuze (Old City)
A cosy basement restaurant near Fountains Square popular for plov and dolma. - Sumakh (Ahmad Javad Street)
A modern take on Azerbaijani home cooking, loved by locals. - Chinar (Shovkat Alakbarova Street)
A stylish restaurant and lounge for Asian food and a smart night out. - Nergiz (Fountains Square)
A traditional restaurant with live music and generous Azerbaijani set dishes. - Qutab stalls at Taza Bazaar (Narimanov)
Thin stuffed flatbreads cooked on a griddle while you wait.
Cafés
- Old City tea houses at the Maiden Tower (Old City)
Sit on cushions for black tea with jam and sweets in the old lanes.
Bars and Nightlife
- 360 Bar (Hilton Baku)
A rotating top floor bar with views of the bay and the Flame Towers. - Le Boulevard Bar at the Four Seasons (Neftchilar Avenue)
A grand hotel bar facing the seafront, ideal for a special drink. - Torqovaya bar strip (Nizami Street area)
The pubs and bars around the pedestrian centre where evenings start.
Events
- Novruz celebrations (Old City and Boulevard)
The spring new year in March, with bonfires, sweets and folk performances. - Baku Jazz Festival (Various venues)
An annual festival celebrating the city's long jazz and mugham fusion tradition. - Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix (Old City street circuit)
A street race that loops around the Old City walls and the boulevard.
Stays
- Four Seasons Hotel Baku (Neftchilar Avenue)
A grand Beaux Arts style hotel on the boulevard at the edge of the Old City. - Fairmont Baku Flame Towers (Flame Towers)
Rooms inside the city's most famous skyline towers, with sweeping views. - Old City guesthouses (Old City)
Small family run guesthouses inside the walls, steps from the sights. - JW Marriott Absheron Baku (Azadliq Square)
A big seafront hotel with a pool, convenient for families.
Places to Visit in Sheki
Arts and Culture
- Palace of the Shaki Khans (Old Town)
An eighteenth century palace with dazzling shebeke stained glass and painted walls. - Lower Caravanserai (Old Town)
A second great caravanserai, worth a look at its courtyard and gates. - Kish Albanian Church (Kish village)
A small round church museum in a pretty village above Sheki, from the Caucasian Albanian era. - Shebeke workshops (Old Town)
Watch craftsmen fit thousands of wooden pieces and coloured glass without glue or nails. - Sheki Khan's House (Old Town)
A smaller painted house of the khans, often quieter than the main palace.
Stays
- Upper Caravanserai (Old Town)
Sleep in a restored Silk Road inn with rooms around an arched courtyard. - Old Town guesthouses (Old Town)
Family homes with fruit trees and home cooked breakfasts.
Restaurants
- Piti at a local restaurant (Old Town)
The town's famous lamb and chickpea stew, cooked and served in a clay pot.
Shopping and Markets
- Sheki halva sellers (Old Town)
Layered rice noodle and nut halva made in Sheki and sold fresh from trays. - Sheki silk shops (Old Town)
Silk scarves called kelagayi, a UNESCO listed craft, sold near the palace.
Nature and Outdoors
- Gelersen Gorersen Fortress (Above Sheki)
A short hike to medieval fortress ruins with views over the forested hills.
Cafés
- Old Town tea houses (Old Town)
Tea with lemon, jam and halva under the plane trees.
Places to Visit in Gabala
Nature and Outdoors
- Tufandag Mountain Resort (Tufandag)
Cable cars climb into the mountains for hiking in summer and skiing in winter. - Nohur Lake (Nohur)
A calm lake with mountain reflections, popular for picnics and boating. - Yeddi Gozel waterfall (Vandam)
The Seven Beauties falls, reached by steps through the forest. - Lahij (Ismayilli)
A stone mountain village of coppersmiths on the road from Baku, a short detour.
Things to Do
- Gabaland (Gabala town)
An amusement park with rides that families from across the country visit.
Arts and Culture
- Ancient Gabala archaeological site (Chukhur Gabala)
The ruins of a capital of Caucasian Albania, with a small museum. - Nij village (Nij)
Home of the Udi people and their ancient church, a rare survivor of the old faith. - Shamakhi Juma Mosque (Shamakhi)
One of the oldest mosques in the Caucasus, on the road from Baku. - Diri Baba Mausoleum (Maraza)
A two storey tomb built into a cliff face beside the Baku road.
Stays
- Qafqaz Riverside Resort (Gabala)
A big resort hotel with pools, popular with families. - Chenot Palace Gabala (Gabala)
A wellness retreat in the forest for a quiet, restful stay.
Restaurants
- Roadside tandir bread bakeries (Gabala road)
Fresh bread baked in clay ovens along the road through the villages.
Shopping and Markets
- Lahij copper workshops (Lahij)
Watch artisans hammer copper pots and trays in tiny workshops.
Places to Visit in Quba
Arts and Culture
- Khinalug (Khinalug)
One of the highest villages in the Caucasus, with its own language and stone houses. - Red Village (Qirmizi Qasaba) (Across the river from Quba)
A rare mountain Jewish town with synagogues and a quiet, unique history. - Quba Genocide Memorial Complex (Quba)
A memorial and museum on the 1918 massacres, sobering but important locally. - Juma Mosque Quba (Quba town)
A distinctive octagonal mosque in the centre of the town.
Nature and Outdoors
- Shahdag National Park (Shahdag)
Mountain valleys and peaks for hiking and horse riding. - Afurja waterfall (Afurja)
A tall waterfall a short walk from the road to Khinalug. - Tenghi Canyon (Tenghi)
A narrow gorge of high rock walls on the way to the high villages. - Laza village (Gusar)
A village beneath sheer cliffs and waterfalls, beautiful in summer. - Candy Cane Mountains (Siyazan)
Striped red and white hills near the road from Baku, great for photos.
Things to Do
- Shahdag Mountain Resort (Gusar)
The country's main ski resort, with summer cable cars and mountain biking.
Shopping and Markets
- Quba apple sellers (Quba road)
Roadside stalls of apples and fruit preserves from Quba's famous orchards.
Stays
- Shahdag Hotel and Spa (Shahdag Mountain Resort)
A mountain hotel by the slopes with a spa. - Khinalug homestays (Khinalug)
Sleep in a village home and share dinner with the family.
Restaurants
- Quba chaykhanas (Quba town)
Tea houses where local men play backgammon over tea.
Places to Visit in Lankaran
Nature and Outdoors
- Hirkan National Park (Lankaran)
Ancient relict forest of ironwood trees, home of rare Caspian wildlife. - Lankaran beaches (Caspian coast)
Quiet Caspian beaches backed by forest and fields. - Lerik (Lerik)
Mountain villages above the south coast known for long lived residents. - Khanbulan Lake (Lankaran)
A reservoir in the forest, popular for picnics.
Things to Do
- Tea plantations (Lankaran)
Green hills of tea gardens, a classic sight of the south.
Arts and Culture
- Lankaran Fortress and lighthouse (Lankaran town)
A round tower and lighthouse from the town's fortress past. - Mir Mustafa Khan Palace (Lankaran town)
A small palace museum with a red brick facade. - Astara (Astara)
The border town with Iran, with tea gardens and a frontier feel.
Restaurants
- Lavangi at local restaurants (Lankaran town)
Chicken or fish stuffed with walnuts and sour plum, the dish of the south.
Shopping and Markets
- Lankaran bazaar (Lankaran town)
A busy market of citrus, tea and southern produce.
Stays
- Lankaran Springs Wellness Resort (Lankaran)
A wellness resort with pools and forest surroundings.
Places to Visit in Ganja
Arts and Culture
- Nizami Mausoleum (Ganja)
A memorial to the great twelfth century poet of Ganja. - Bottle House (Ganja)
A house decorated with thousands of glass bottles. - Javad Khan Street (Ganja)
A pretty pedestrian street of old brick buildings and cafés.
Nature and Outdoors
- Goygol Lake (Goygol National Park)
A beautiful mountain lake in pine forest near Ganja.
More to Explore
We are still checking these with fresh sources, so confirm opening times before you go.
- Mangal Steak House (Old City, Baku)
A refined grill inside the Old City walls, good for kebabs and a quiet dinner. - Dolma Restaurant (Old City, Baku)
A small spot focused on dolma, stuffed vine leaves, cabbage and vegetables. - Art Club Restaurant (Old City, Baku)
An Old City restaurant in a courtyard decorated with local art. - Paris Bistro (Fountains Square, Baku)
A long running city centre bistro and café, good for breakfast and people watching. - Chaykhana at Molokan Garden (Molokan Garden, Baku)
A shady city garden with tea drinkers and fountains, a calm break from the streets. - Baku Roasting Company (City centre, Baku)
A modern speciality coffee shop popular with students and remote workers. - Mari Vanna Baku (City centre, Baku)
A nostalgic Soviet style home café with tea, jams and comfort food. - Finnegan's Irish Pub (City centre, Baku)
A long standing pub where expats and locals watch football. - Absheron National Park (Absheron peninsula, Baku)
Coastal dunes and shallows where gazelles and seals can sometimes be seen. - Sheki History Museum (Old Town, Sheki)
A small museum on the town's craft, silk and trade history. - Marhal Resort area (Bash Goynuk road, Sheki)
Forested slopes and streams outside town, good for a cool summer walk. - Gabala International Music Festival (Gabala town, Gabala)
A summer classical music festival held in the mountains. - Ismayilli forests (Ismayilli, Gabala)
Wooded hills and streams for a picnic or a quiet walk. - Quba carpet workshops (Quba town, Quba)
Quba is known for its carpets, and some workshops welcome visitors. - Quba apple festival (Quba, Quba)
An autumn festival of the harvest, held when the orchards are full. - Istisu hot springs (Lankaran, Lankaran)
Natural mineral hot springs in the green hills.