Date: 9-10th May 2026
Travelled: Around Baku in Azerbaijan
Visited: Baku
Stayed: Sapphire Bayil Hotel, Baku, Azerbaijan
Our Sapphire Bayil Hotel has large spacious rooms with odd plumbing. The underfloor heating in the bathroom is stuck on and the air-conditioning doesnโt work. Luckily I bolted down and complained shortly after arrival and they gave us a fan for the room. Other campers in our group were less lucky.
The hotelโs restaurant was very good and the food and drink reasonably priced. The other offerings near the hotel were pretty basic, no decent coffee either.
Anyway back to our tour. The Azerbaijani love their flag ๐ฆ๐ฟ itโs everywhere reminding us of our tour of Turkey because they have the same strong cultural allegiance to their country. Second only to the flag are pictures of Heydar Aliyev, they are literally on every billboard across Baku. Most interesting is he was Azerbaijanโs third president and heโs been dead for 20 years ?
Anyway we arrive at Bakuโs most impressive building the Heydar Aliyev Center which amongst many other things is an art exhibition space.
A large area is set aside for Gillie and Marc, pictured above.
We spend a couple of hours enjoying the various exhibitions before going on to walk the waterfront precinct, pictured below. The Azerbaijan Grande Prix is being prepared and thatโs pit lane in front of the Old Congress building.
Whilst we would rather spend another day in the city, today we are travelling firstly south then north of the city, about an hour each way. Azerbaijan has extensive oil and gas reserves and within a couple of kilometre of Baku we can see oil pumps literary hundreds of then slowly rising and falling.
Our guide tells us the majority of the oil processed come from the Caspian Sea and looking out we can see the platforms at work. He states there are 5,000 people working out on the rigs in the Caspian on a given day.
Anyway our first stop is the mud volcano at Gobustan. We transfer to some local taxis for the 5 km drive off the highway to the volcanos. They are in fact created by water forced up by natural gas which literally leaks from the ground.
Frankly itโs a little underwhelming and we look around at all the people smoking and wonder whether thatโs unwise.
Our next stop is far more interesting, the Gobustan Archaeological Reserve. A series of Neolithic period (Stone Age) caves and rock outcrops covered with etchings of animals and people. Lots of other local tourist make it slow going.
In the final photo above you may be able to see the numerous oil platforms standing off shore.
Back on the bus we turn north to the Fire Worshippers Temple of Ateshgah. Now on the northern side of Baku once again we are surrounded by oil pumps churning up and down bring up black gold.
Ateshgah.was the most interesting stop of our day in our opinion. Situated on the Silk Road Ateshgah was a way-point (caravan park) where traders would meet the camel trains from the east. Surrounding the temple, rooms for sleeping, trading and stables for camels.
Our final stop is Yanardag (or fire mountain), a tourist trap if Iโve ever seen one. The video shows the mountain burning.
Another day done, we head off for Sheki tomorrow.
Michael and Pam