Must-see attractions in Azerbaijan

  • Rəsədxana

    Azerbaijan

    Azerbaijan's world-class observatory, founded in 1966, currently has six large telescopes beneath archetypal silver domes, most now automated. By paying a…

  • Nizami Literature Museum

    Baku

    The greatest attraction of this museum for most visitors is the western facade of the building it inhabits: a fine early-20th-century structure with…

  • Fortress

    Azerbaijan

    Zaqatala’s Russian fortress is a sprawling affair whose grey stone walls are sturdy but not really imposing. Built between 1830 and 1860, it originally…

  • Əshabi-Kəhf

    Azerbaijan

    Əshabi-Kəhf is a series of holy caves, locally believed to be the scene of a Koranic miracle in which seven pious men managed to evade their enemies by…

  • Cek

    Azerbaijan

    The minuscule village of Cek (pronounced 'Jek') is just a handful of farmsteads around a rocky knob that protrudes from a sweep of grassy mountainside…

  • Şixov Beach

    Baku

    The nearest beach to central Baku, Şixov is most fascinating for photographers who want to snap bathers gambolling on the ‘sand’ with a romantic backdrop…

  • Naxçivanqala

    Azerbaijan

    Before 2006, the site of Naxçivan's 7th-century citadel was just a series of muddy undulations, almost indistinguishable from the nearby graveyard. It has…

  • Pir Həsən

    Azerbaijan

    Pir Həsən is a shrine area where you can come to have a bottle smashed over your head. Honestly. It’s considered a cure for nervousness of spirit. The…

  • Yanar Bulağ

    Azerbaijan

    Watch water burn at Arçivan village! What you see is a little drinking fountain beneath a concrete pergola, but the water that bubbles forth is made …

  • History Museum

    Azerbaijan

    The distinctive if heavily restored mansion containing this museum was built in 1913 for the grandson of Talysh khan Mir Mustafa. It features some grave…

  • Medieval Market Square

    Baku

    Directly in front of the Maiden's Tower are assorted archaeological diggings at what some consider to be the site where Jesus' disciple St Bartholomew was…

  • National Flag Square

    Baku

    In September 2010, the world's tallest flagpole (then 162m) was installed at the Bulvar's southern tip. The world record was later snatched by Dushanbe,…

  • Museum Centre

    Baku

    Once a Lenin Museum, this column-fronted neoclassical building has a sternly photogenic facade that looks best seen from across the Bulvar. Inside, the…

  • Seven Beauties Waterfall

    Azerbaijan

    Widely touted by tour companies, this series of modest cascades with wooden access stairs is pretty enough as a place to sit on a tea platform in the cool…

  • Şəbəkə Workshop

    Azerbaijan

    The şəbəkə (stained-glass windows) featured at Xan Sarayı are laboriously made by slotting together hundreds of hand-carved wooden pieces to create…

  • History Museum

    Azerbaijan

    This engrossing little museum is wonderfully old-fashioned and has very little in English, but photos show regional historical places, there's a mockup of…

  • Centenarians Museum

    Azerbaijan

    This modest two-room museum celebrates the statistically high proportion of centenarians among Talysh mountain people. Most famous was Şirəli Müslümov …

  • Statue of Nizami Gəncəvi

    Azerbaijan

    Azerbaijan's Gəncə-born 'national poet' (1141–1209) stands opposite the drama theatre, looking across the river towards a puppet theatre that is housed in…

  • Bahram Gur Statue

    Baku

    This powerful 1958 fountain-statue depicts a mythical Azerbaijani hero using a giant scimitar to slay a snake-like water-spewing 'dragon'. In a pool…

  • Museum of Miniature Books

    Baku

    One of Baku's charming oddities, this small museum presents books that are so small you'd need a magnifying glass to read the print. The fact that so many…

  • Nizami Park

    Azerbaijan

    Old chaps in flat caps sip tea and slap dominoes all day long beneath shady chestnut and plane trees on this attractive, tree-shaded square. There's an…

  • Old Town Square

    Azerbaijan

    Zaqatala's Old Town is centred on a pretty garden-square, above which rise two 30m tall çınar (plane trees) planted in the 1780s. To the south, there are…

  • Sınıq Qala Mosque

    Baku

    Partly dating from at least 1079, this little mosque is considered the the oldest still standing in Baku. Its nickname, 'Sinıq Qala' (Broken Tower), was…

  • İçəri Bazar

    Azerbaijan

    Old Town Qax is centred on cobbled İçəri Bazar, a streetscape where older houses have been given a faux-antique look on a lane guarded by castle-style…

  • Artım

    Baku

    Changing exhibitions are necessarily a little hit-and-miss at this experimental art space, which gives a platform to young or emerging new Azerbaijani…

  • Heydər Əliyev Museum

    Azerbaijan

    If you're intrigued by extreme hagiographical reverence, Azerbaijan's many museums to former president Heydar Əliyev can prove sources of inspiration. And…

  • Fəxri Xiyaban

    Baku

    Since 1948 this attractively tree-shaded graveyard has been set aside as the last resting place for Azerbaijan's foremost public figures. Many of the…

  • Archangel Michael Russian Church

    Baku

    Originally built in 1845 for worshippers from the Russian Imperial Navy, today the modest Archangel Michael Russian Church is the hub for Baku’s Orthodox…

  • Ramana Fortress

    Azerbaijan

    On a rocky outcrop at Ramana, this fortress tower is one of the Abşeron's most dramatic castles, but adding to the interest of the visit is the view of…

  • History Museum

    Azerbaijan

    A facade like a stylised castle lures visitors to investigate this unusually professional regional museum, whose main appeal is the fine collection of…

  • Viewpoint

    Azerbaijan

    In and around Lerik there are numerous points from which to savour wide panoramas over highland fields and serrated crags. One relatively central option…

  • Clock Pylon

    Baku

    Looking somewhere between an electricity pylon and an oil derrick, this digital clock forms a central Bulvar landmark.

  • Ali Şamsi’s Studio

    Baku

    Shoes walk across this gallery's fascinatingly off-beat front wall, whose centrepiece is a huge lion's face. Inside are paint splattered shirts and a…

  • Cümə Məscid

    Azerbaijan

    This octagonal mosque is Quba’s most-distinctive historic building. Painted a dull red and topped with a metallic dome forming a central point like a…

  • Heydar Əliyev Mərkəzi

    Azerbaijan

    Pop into this refreshingly air-conditioned centre to peruse the photographic exhibition on the life and times of the 'National Leader'. Or simply to cool…

  • Dili Qala

    Azerbaijan

    There's nothing historic about this curious castle-like folly, an intriguing landmark on the ridge above town. It was designed to be a hotel but so poorly…

  • Vahid Gardens

    Baku

    An arched gateway in the Old City wall leads from İçerişəhər metro station to a pretty handkerchief of garden. It's dominated by the superbly imaginative…

  • Fisherman's Beach

    Azerbaijan

    Lənkəran's grey-sand beaches aren't a big attraction if you want to swim and many are dotted with debris. Nonetheless, the coastal area around 1km north…

  • Baku Eye

    Baku

    This 60m big wheel performs attractive light shows after dark. It spins very slowly, so a ride takes nearly 15 minutes including stops. Should you tire of…

  • Funicular

    Baku

    The snazzy little funicular whisks you up from near the restaurant Chinar to the Flame Towers area in just three minutes. Time between departures can vary…

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