Baku - Modern to Medieval

Day 1 : Baku

On arrival into Baku, you will be met and transferred to your hotel. This evening is at leisure.

Day 2 : Baku

Meet your guide after breakfast to visit the Old City. Start at the gates of Baku Fortress before heading to the legendary Zoroastrian Maiden Tower. Visit the Haji Banu Hamam, now a gift shop, a favoured meeting place for tired travellers and merchants since the 15^th century. See the Juma Mosque (exterior only), as well as the Shirvanshahs’ Palace, a striking example of a medieval palace.

After a stop for lunch (own expense), tour the house museum of the Nobel brothers (Villa Petrolia). The brothers made a significant contribution to the development of oil industry in Azerbaijan and thus to its economic, scientific and cultural rise at the end of 19^th century. The villa has been restored to its former glory by the Baku Nobel Heritage Fund and serves as a museum that preserves and promotes the Nobel heritage.

End the day by strolling about pedestrian Fountain Square, a place to sit and relax, and a great vantage point from which to people-watch.

Day 3 : Baku > Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape > Baku

Meet your guide after breakfast and drive approx. 60kms to the Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape. Start at the museum which has a fascinating collection of bones and work tools from the Mesolithic Period. Head out into the open air museum of the Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape. This plateau of rocky boulders rising out of the semi-desert has a collection of more than 6,000 rock engravings going back 40,000 years. The site also features the remains of inhabited caves, settlements and burials, all reflecting an intensive human use by the inhabitants of the area during the wet period that followed the last Ice Age, from the Upper Paleolithic to the Middle Ages. The site, which covers an area of 537 ha, is part of the larger protected Gobustan Reservation. You will also get a chance to marvel at the mud volcanoes in the Gobustan Reserve, which is home to almost half of the world’s mud volcanoes.

Day 4 : Baku > Ramana > Mardakan > Absheron > Baku

Meet your guide and start at the local bazaar. Like many Middle Eastern cultures, the bazaar is the place where the best seasonal and fresh local produce is offered. Visit the 12^th century Ramana Tower, built for defense and used as a castle during the Shirvanshahs’ reign. Take one of two staircases up onto the tower walls to overlook Ramana Village. Continue to the historic Quadrangular castle of Mardakan with its inner courtyard and observation tower.

Later this afternoon visit the Baku Fire Temple, known locally as the Atashgah. This castle-like Hindu temple and monastery complex in Surakhani is no longer used as a place of worship. Finish the day by visiting Yanardagh, the Burning Mountain on the Absheron Peninsula.  YanarDag is a natural gas fire which blazes continuously on a hillside – flames jet out into the air 3 metres from a thin, porous sandstone layer.

Day 5 : Baku

Azerbaijan’s capital feels airy with long straight boulevards, low-level buildings and lots of open spaces. Start the day at Dagustu Park, sitting at the top of the Baku Funicular with some of the best views of the city’s skyline. Take the funicular to the Baku Boulevard, a favorite place of rest for Baku residents with its gardens, fountains, Mini-Venice and the Baku Eye.

Tour the Contemporary Art Center – YARAT. YARAT is a not-for-profit organization, showcasing temporary exhibitions by leading international artists, highlighting emerging movements and new commissions.

Carpet weaving in Azerbaijan dates back more than 3,000 years and plays a huge part in the local identity. Each region produces their own patterns and designs in a tradition passed down through generations. The Azerbaijan Carpet Museum along Baku Boulevard has two claims to fame: its architecture and its displays. From the outside, the building looks like a rolled-up carpet, while the exhibits show visitors the importance of carpet weaving, displaying more than 10,000 items including medieval ceramics and jewellery.

Continue to the development of Baku White City and the Museum of Modern Art, displaying more than 800 paintings and sculptures by Azerbaijani artists from the 1960s and 1970s. Other exhibits include pieces from Picasso and Dali donated by private collectors and a section dedicated to local photographers.

This afternoon visit the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center, noted for its distinctive architecture and flowing, curved style that eschews sharp angles.

Day 6 : Baku

Check out after breakfast and transfer to the airport.