Azerbaijan Group Trip
Looking for a special, out-of-the-box travel destination? Some great stories to tell? Maybe try China. Or Tuvalu. Or what about Azerbaijan?
I do bet this country has not been on your radar yet. And I bet it definitely will after you have read this article. You might be in for an pioneer-like experience to see what some already call the “second Dubai”. But it’s so much more than that.
Naming ancient mosques and vintage villages, local food markets, mountains that actually burn, the Caspian Sea, mud volcanoes (that unlike in Iceland, can be approached quite closely), flushing nature, canyons, waterfalls, even snow-capped mountains, beautiful animals everywhere meeting a vibrant, still low-cost city with numerous shopping options and cultural sights, hip cocktail bars, a little Venice, a seafront boulevard with a stunning skyline view, just to call out a few highlights.
Ever been surprised how diverse the nature can be in places like New Zealand, South Africa or Madeira? Well, you will be surprised again. Since Matt (from Nomadic Matt) covers all important information pretty well already, I am only going to specify the things I haven't found in most common blogs along with our personal tips and experience.
Food & Drinks
To all meat-lovers out there - you will definitely get your fair food share in Azerbaijan, the country of Kebabs! Most traditional dishes included lamp, veal, chicken and such. And the Azerbaijanis love their black tea, white bread and sugar. You will barely find any meat without some of the local candies on the side!
If you are vegetarians or vegan, or even worse, health-addicted like me, things can get complicated at times. Yes, fruits are available everywhere and you will find vegetable bbqs and salads at most places though. But your diet will definitely be less diverse than usual. Also, other teas than black and green tea are not really available outside of Baku.
Keep in mind though, that locals treat tourists very highly. They really did their best to always fulfill my special requests.
Surprisingly, alcohol is also available on most places. There are not many bars and clubs where you can drink in good company, though. So most evenings, we would just sit in our guests houses and hotels and enjoy our drinks there (no one really cared).
Be aware, that in most restaurants you will get a “tourist menu” whereas locals get a different one with lower prices. Don’t be surprised if you have to wait looooooong for your food. We calculated around 2 hours of wait for a group of 9 people. But - it will usually be worth it. Locals really take their time to cook, but oh my! It tastes so fresh and well-made once it has finally made the way to your table! Also count on drinks coming at the same time as food, I have no idea why. So maybe don’t wait too long to go to the restaurant when you’re already hungry. Check for service charge which is often included in the meals and if not, leave a little tip (5-10%), if you liked your food and service.
Accomodation
The most expensive part of our trip was the hotels and guests houses we stayed at. If you want to get something rather fancy (and especially clean) you need to dig a bit deeper. The lower priced accommodations are often a bit messy or dirty (at least for Central Western European Standards). It’s also very common for hosts to ask you to cancel the booking after you have checked in so they won’t have to pay commission fees to online travel agencies like booking.com. Also expect even receptionists in Baku not to speak English, have your (preferably offline) google translator ready for use upon check-in. Or take your Russian or Turkish speaking Buddy with you ;) (Many people in Azerbaijan actually know these languages). Often the exact locations of the accommodations we booked where a bit off or totally wrong. I generally do recommend to copy the phone number of the host and to ask him about the actual locations.
Female Safety
When it comes to female safety and the suitability for solo female traveler, I have to mention that I am positively surprised on how suitable this country can be for our ladies out there! I have never been approached in an uncomfortable way nor have I felt specifically unsafe compared to some typical European country (I often feel more unsafe in major cities in Germany than I felt in Azerbaijan). Albeit of being a muslim country, women do not dress too strictly. Yes, you should put a scarf on your head when you enter a mosque, but you definitely do not need to cover yourself fully on the street or anywhere in public. Actually, to my surprise, women in Baku were dressed quite fashioned and didn’t mind going out with short dresses and high heels. Of course, the countryside was more traditional as in most places. On hot days, I walked around with a tanktop and occasionally put a scarf around my shoulders e.g. while strolling to the small shops of Sheki old town.
The traces of muslim culture having an impact on women’s rights can still be felt though. The majority of people outside, in the restaurants and on the streets were men, women were supposedly inside looking after the household and children. I often heard girls getting married in their early 20ies as if it was still the most normal thing to do.
Also, although being the trip leader of our group of 4 guys and 5 girls, whenever an issue had to be solved, an order had to be taken or a room had to be booked (basically WHENEVER), the locals would usually always approach the men (usually the tallest man :D) in our group. If I then answered their questions, they would still keep talking to the men as if I was just not there. They really often gave me the feeling that I am not competent enough of talking to them because I am a woman. That’s pretty sad and I hope it will change in the years to come.
Hiking
For all hiking and adventure in nature lovers (like we are), Azerbaijan was a more advanced country in terms of evolved hiking routes and general information around possible adventure trips in nature.
To my surprise, the open-source app I am usually using in many other countries (mapy.cz) wasn’t as resourceful and informative and had lots of paths missing. If you’d like to explore paths in the mountains, it would be best to book a local guide or to have a look on maps.me (offline maps for hiking is generally recommended). While in Qabala (Gebele), we did our best and took the time to extensively plan a hike to a viewpoint and waterfall which we coundn’t find any online information for. Please click here for a detailed hiking and route guide.
Roadtripping
It is very much recommended to get a rental car because of the unreachability of many of the most beautiful places in the country. We felt quite safe whilst driving (even in Baku and the most remote places), it is to be mentioned though that the streets outside of Baku on the way to the North were sometimes a bit bumpy and with little wholes here and there (so don’t expect to be able to drive fast). In any way, I recommend to get a full insurance with waived excess fees.
It is very important to note that there are speed cameras (often above the road) quite everywhere. They even detected us overpassing a very slow car at night in the middle of nowhere in an area where you were not supposed to. Hello, speed tickets! Be aware of police often randomly checking you at the side of the street. Have your papers and license ready and be very friendly. I advice everyone to use the navigation app “Waze” which - most of the time - shows you very accurately where the next police or speed camera is waiting for you.
Personal Highlights
If you had only one place to choose from in Azerbaijan, I would recommend you to go to the pretty and very ancient cultural town of Sheki which lies in the west of the country surrounded by beautiful mountains and forests. Not only is the nature around Sheki breathtaking and wild, the people are amongst the loveliest and most welcoming I have met during our entire stay. Sheki also surprised us very positively with is numerous hidden coffeeshops and restaurants, interesting and low-priced shops, wonderful animals and historic architecture (e.g. the ruins of Sheki). Please plan enough time in this wonderful city!
Important Infos
* If you are an avid videographer: Be aware not to take any drones with you, it is generally forbidden to do so.
* The land borders are still closed as of now (End of 2022). Even though you might find some information about trains going from Georgia to Azerbaijan, they are still not operating (since the beginning of the pandemic). So you will have to fly to Azerbaijan even if you are in some nearby country. (If you fly from Georgia for example, book your flights as early as possible as prices from the only airline operating go up the later you book).
* If you visit Armenia first, you won’t get into Azerbaijan. Check the official e-Visa page of Azerbaijan for entry information to Azerbaijan (you will need to apply for a e-Visa along with following some general Covid entry rules before you jump on your flight to Azerbaijan).
* Be careful with political topics, especially about the current conflicts between Armenia and Azerbaijan. You are best off to just avoid the topic. Make sure to inform yourself first, especially in terms of travel destinations. There might be conflicts in the area that you are planning to visit. We visited during some major conflicts in September 2020, but since we were not close to the Armenian border in the west, it was totally fine and we felt very safe.
* Be prepared to be stopped by the police or even the military (it could be Russian military also) at any time. Stay friendly and calm and have your documents ready and you will be fine :)
* Be aware that all over the country, there are many many speed cameras (they all seem to work). We also got fined for overtaking another car somewhere on the countryside where we weren’t supposed to. Our fines were between 10-50€ each. You can use the app “Waze”. It works very well and tells you if there are cameras or police ahead on the road.
* If you rent a car, get full insurance with zero excess fees. Roads can be bumpy and a scratch on your car happens faster than you might guess. It’s really worth it :)
* Best is to buy your SIM-card in one of the dedicated stores in any city (I chose an Azercell shop and they gave me a good deal for the SIM card including lots of Data and installation service). You can also get SIM cards at the airport but it is much more expensive. In addition to that, Azercell has good coverage all over the country. Yet, you might not have reception if you are somewhere in the mountains or forests. So it is always recommenced to download offline maps (available on e.g. google maps and maps.me) and offline translator (available on the google translator app). Since many people don’t speak English, this is an absolute must for you to communicate outside of Baku :)
Having all that in mind, I am sure you will have an amazing time enjoying this super interesting and beautiful country! Have fun :)
