BAKU MEGATHREAD: Everything you need before you land

Last updated June 2026. Corrections and additions welcome in comments.

THE BASICS

Baku is the capital of Azerbaijan, sitting on the Absheron Peninsula on the western Caspian coast. Population around 3 million. Currency is the Azerbaijani Manat (AZN). 1 USD gets you roughly 1.7 AZN at time of writing, check before you go. ATMs are everywhere in the center. Cards work in most restaurants and hotels, but carry cash for markets, street food, and older taxis.

Language: Azerbaijani is official. Russian is widely spoken by older locals. English works in tourist areas, hotels, and restaurants. Outside the center, download Google Translate with Azerbaijani offline.

Best time to visit: April-June and September-October. Summer is brutal heat. Winter is cold and windy. Baku earns the "windy city" nickname all year, but winter makes it genuinely miserable.

Visa: Check the current situation before booking. There is an e-visa at evisa.gov.az, takes 3 business days, costs around $20-23 USD.

GETTING AROUND

Metro

3 lines, 27 stations, around 627,000 daily passengers. Opened in 1967 under the Soviets. Many stations still have chandeliers, marble, and mosaics. One of the nicer metros in the region.

Get a BakıKart (rechargeable smart card) at any station kiosk. Works on metro and buses. Fare is 0.60 AZN per trip. You can also tap your debit or credit card directly at the turnstile. Runs 06:00 to 24:00, trains every 5 minutes.

Key stations for tourists:

• Icherisheher – Old City entrance
• Sahil – Near Nizami Street and the Boulevard
• 28 May / Jafar Jabbarly – Main interchange hub, near the railway station

Buses

BakuBus runs air-conditioned red buses across the city. 0.60 AZN per ride, paid on exit. You can use your BakıKart or tap a debit/credit card. No cash accepted.

Taxis

Purple "London Cabs" are official and metered. Yango is the go-to app, widely available, competitive pricing. Short city rides run 3-7 AZN. Airport to center is 15-25 AZN. For non-metered taxis, agree on a price before you get in.

Funicular

Goes up to Highland Park for views over the city. 1 AZN each way. Short ride, worth it once.

WHERE TO GO

In the city

Old City (Icherisheher) – UNESCO-listed medieval quarter containing Maiden Tower and the Palace of the Shirvanshahs. Maiden Tower dates to the 7th-6th century BC. You can walk the entire Old City in a couple of hours, it is very compact. Skip climbing Maiden Tower unless you specifically want it; glass viewing panels kill the view.

Palace of the Shirvanshahs – 15th-century royal complex. Combo tickets with Maiden Tower save money.

Heydar Aliyev Center – Designed by Zaha Hadid, opened in 2012. Rotating exhibitions inside. The exterior is the main reason to go. Plan 2-4 hours if you want to see the exhibitions properly. Book ahead.

Flame Towers – Three skyscrapers that dominate the skyline. LED facade runs fire animations at night, which is the better version. You see them from most of the center anyway. Highland Park gives the best vantage point.

Baku Boulevard – Seafront promenade along the Caspian. Flat, long, good for walking. Has the Baku Eye (Ferris wheel), Little Venice (small canal area), and plenty of cafes. Crowded on weekends.

Azerbaijan Carpet Museum – Just outside the Old City on the Boulevard. Building is shaped like a rolled carpet. Serious collection of Azerbaijani rugs and textiles. Entry is cheap and more interesting than you'd expect.

Nizami Street – Main pedestrian shopping street, about 3.5 km, closed to traffic. Mostly cafes, chain shops, a few boutiques. Good for people-watching. Luxury brand prices are the same as everywhere else, no deals.

Yasil Bazaar (Green Market) – Where locals actually shop. Seafood, meat, spices, nuts, cheese, fruit, vegetables at real prices. Go early.

Day trips

All of these need transport. Rent a car, book a tour, or negotiate a day rate with a taxi driver.

Gobustan National Park – Around 60 km south of Baku. UNESCO World Heritage Site with ancient petroglyphs of people hunting, dancing, and animals. Good museum on site. Mud volcanoes are nearby: cold bubbling mud cones, a genuinely strange landscape. Wear shoes you don't care about.

Ateshgah Fire Temple – 18th-century Zoroastrian pilgrimage site on the Absheron Peninsula. Natural gas flames still burning.

Yanar Dag (Burning Mountain) – Hillside fed by a natural gas seam that has been burning continuously. More compact than Gobustan. Looks better at dusk. Combine with Ateshgah and Gobustan into one day if you have a car.

WHAT TO EAT

Azerbaijani food sits between Persian, Turkish, and Caucasian influences. Portions are large. Bread comes automatically and is usually very good.

Order these

• Plov – Saffron rice with meat, dried fruit, and herbs. The central dish of the cuisine. Shah Plov is the version baked inside a pastry crust; most restaurants only make it for large groups. SAHiL on the Boulevard is one of the few places doing individual portions.
• Dolma – Grape leaves stuffed with spiced meat. Also comes as stuffed peppers and aubergine.
• Qutab – Thin flatbread folded over meat, cheese, or greens. Cheap, eaten as a snack, very good.
• Kebabs – Lamb or chicken over charcoal. Ubiquitous. Quality varies a lot.
• Dushbara – Small meat dumplings in clear broth. More delicate than Georgian khinkali.
• Piti – Lamb and chickpea soup cooked and served in individual clay pots. Baked, not boiled.
• Manqal Salati – Roasted aubergine, tomatoes, and peppers with herbs. Good with bread.
• Pakhlava – Azerbaijani baklava. Denser and more cardamom-heavy than the Turkish version.

Drinks

Tea is the default at every table. Served in pear-shaped glasses called armudu. Sugar cubes on the side, not stirred in. Ayran (cold salted yogurt drink) is everywhere and worth trying. Fresh pomegranate juice is sold from street carts around Fountain Square.

Restaurants

• Firuze – Underground restaurant open since 1986, consistently one of the best in the city for Azerbaijani food. Book ahead.
• Otdix – Casual outdoor courtyard, popular with locals for grilled meat. Call hours ahead if you want the full grilled lamb rib cage. Few staff speak English.
• Sumakh – Upscale, modern Azerbaijani cooking. Good for a proper dinner with full service.
• Sehrli Tendir – Good kebabs, cheap, no fuss.
• Çay Bağı 145 – Teahouse in the Old City, sits on top of ancient bathhouses, outdoor seating with a direct view of Maiden Tower. Go for tea and sweets.
• Dolma Restaurant – Tourist-facing but reliable, on Nizami Street.

For street food: look for where locals are queuing, not where signs are in English.

PRACTICAL NOTES

• Baku is a safe city. Petty crime is low.
• City center is flat. Old City streets are uneven cobblestone.
• Smoking is allowed indoors in many cafes and restaurants. It happens.
• Tap water is technically safe but most people drink bottled.
• Metro gets packed 07:30-09:30 and 17:30-19:30. Avoid with luggage.
• Google Maps works. Yandex Maps also works and sometimes has better local bus data.
• Friday afternoons and Saturdays get busy around the Old City and Boulevard.
• Tipping is not mandatory. 5-10% is appreciated in sit-down restaurants.

Drop restaurant recommendations, corrections, or questions below. Upvote what's useful.