Baku
Baku is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region.
Baku is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is 28 metres (92 ft) below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world and the largest city in the world below sea level. Baku lies on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, along the Bay of Baku. Baku's urban population is estimated at over two million people. Baku is the primate city of Azerbaijan. It is the sole metropolis in the country, and about 25% of all inhabitants of the country live in Baku's metropolitan area.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Worth seeing in and around Baku
10 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.
- 01Baku State University
Baku State University is a public university located in Baku, Azerbaijan. Established on 1 September 1919 by the Parliament of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, the university started with faculties of history and philology, physics and mathematics, and law and medicine, with an initial enrollment of 1094.
1.8 km · state-owned technical university in Baku, Azerbaijan, founded in 1919 · Wikipedia - 02National Library of Azerbaijan
The National Library of Azerbaijan, officially named the Mirza Fatali Akhundov National Library of Azerbaijan after Mirza Fatali Akhundov, is the national library of the Republic of Azerbaijan, located in Baku and founded in 1923. It is named after Mirza Fatali Akhundov, an Azerbaijani dramatist and philosopher.
1.1 km · national library and archive in Baku · Wikipedia - 03Palace of the Shirvanshahs
The Palace of the Shirvanshahs is a 15th-century palace built by the Shirvanshahs and described by UNESCO as "one of the pearls of Azerbaijan's architecture". It is located in the Inner City of Baku, Azerbaijan and, together with the Maiden Tower, forms an ensemble of historic monuments inscribed under the UNESCO World Heritage List of Historical Monuments.
1.1 km · palace in Azerbaijan · Wikipedia - 04Old City of Baku
Old City or Inner City is the historical core of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. The Old City is the most ancient part of Baku, which is surrounded by walls.
1.2 km · the historical core of Baku, World Heritage Site · Wikipedia - 05Maiden Tower
The Maiden Tower is a 12th-century monument in the Old City, Baku, Azerbaijan. Along with the Shirvanshahs' Palace, dated to the 15th century, it forms a group of historic monuments listed in 2001 under the UNESCO World Heritage List of Historical Monuments as cultural property, Category III. It was built, like most buildings in the Old City, by the Shirvanshahs, and is one of Azerbaijan's most distinctive national emblems, and is thus featured on Azerbaijani currency notes and official letterheads.
1.1 km · 12th-century monument in the Old City, Baku, Azerbaijan · Wikipedia - 06National Art Museum of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan National Museum of Art is the biggest art museum of Azerbaijan. It was founded in 1936 in Baku and in 1943 was named after Rustam Mustafayev, a prominent Azerbaijani scenic designer and theater artist.
1.4 km · аrt museum in Baku · Wikipedia - 07Baku Olympic Stadium
Baku Olympic Stadium is a stadium, designed and constructed to meet the international standards for stadiums set by the Union of European Football Associations, the International Federation of Association Football and the World Athletics. Having seating capacity for 69,870 people, it is the largest stadium in Azerbaijan.
9.5 km · sports stadium in Baku, Azerbaijan · Wikipedia - 08National Museum of History of Azerbaijan
The National Museum of History of Azerbaijan is the largest museum in Azerbaijan. It is located in Baku, in the former residential house of Azerbaijani oil magnate and philanthropist Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev.
900 m · museum in Baku, Azerbaijan · Wikipedia - 09Baku TV Tower
The Baku TV Tower, built in 1996, is a free standing concrete telecommunications tower in Baku, Azerbaijan. With a height of 310 metres, it is the second tallest structure in Azerbaijan after the chimneys of Azerbaijan Thermal Power Plant and the tallest reinforced concrete building in Caucasus.
2.8 km · a free standing concrete telecommunications tower in Baku, Azerbaijan · Wikipedia - 10Baku Crystal Hall
Baku Crystal Hall is an indoor arena in Baku, Azerbaijan. It is located on the coast of Baku near National Flag Square.
3.8 km · indoor arena in Baku, Azerbaijan · Wikipedia
Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.
What Wikivoyage says to see
There are a number of interesting sites within Baku's walled fortress, the Old City (a UNESCO World Heritage site), which can all be seen on foot in one day:
- 01The Palace of the Shirvan Shahs
- 02Saray Mosque
- 03Maiden's Tower
- 04Bukhara Caravanserai
- 05Multani Caravanserai
- 06Hajji Gayyib
From Wikivoyage: Baku, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Things to do
In the evening, go to the national opera on Nizami street. Otherwise, go to the rooftop bar at Sultan Inn in the Old City for a drink and excellent views of the Maiden Tower, Caspian sea and the TV tower. Boat tours of Baku. Offered from the Baku Blvd. Lasts 40 minutes. 6 manat.
- 01Pantomima
- 02National Opera and Ballet
- 03Baku Funicular Railroad
Runs from the square on Neftchilar Avenue up to the Alley of the Marytrs.
- 04Aqua Park Baku
Rashid Behbudov, 59,.
- 05Baku Entertainment Center
- 06Mini-Venice
A charming little complex of man-made waterways accessible on a boat.
From Wikivoyage: Baku, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Where to eat
There are many restaurants in Baku and kebab shops can be found easily for a quick meal. = =
- 01Half Way Inn
6, 28 May St (Bus 2, 61, 85, 88, 90, 95 to Milli Bank),.
- 02Nergiz Restaurant
Fountain Square, 9 Tərlan.
- 03Bizim Ev Restaurant & Cafe
7 Khagani Street.
- 04Doner House
16/21 Azadliq Ave.
- 05Lavas Bistro / Fasali Cafe
From Wikivoyage: Baku, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Baku
- Airports
- Heydar Aliyev (GYD), 21 km · Ganja (GNJ), 299 km
- Stations
- Baku railway station, 1.6 km · Icheri Sheher, 1.1 km · Sahil, 1.1 km · Nariman Narimanov, 4.4 km · Bakmil, 5.8 km
- Ganja → Baku300 km · quickest by air, 4h 28m · $160–230
- Nakhchivan → Baku404 km · quickest by air, 6h 11m · $160–240
- Makhachkala → Baku351 km · quickest by air, 8h 4m · ₽7,230–11,200
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.
No local-transport research exists yet for Baku
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Baku. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Get inAlong with trains and ferries, international bus routes have dried up since the border's closure.
- Get aroundBuses and minibuses cost 0.60 manat (July 2026) per person and can take you to almost any place within Baku.
- Get aroundThe Baku funicular is a great way of getting to the Viewpoint and Flame Towers.
From Wikivoyage: Baku, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
- 01241 km
- 02389 km
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If you know how people move in Baku – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.
Next door to Baku
Baku is 28 km from Sumgayit, the nearest large city, whose note carries the wider picture.