Must see attractions in Azerbaijan

Vast and jaw-droppingly original, this Zaha Hadid building is a majestic statement of fluid 21st-century architecture forming abstract waves and peaks…

This tapering 29m stone tower is Baku’s foremost historical icon, with rooftop views surveying Baku Bay and the Old City. Possibly millennia old, its…

For those prepared to climb over 1500 steps up a mountain crag, one of Naxçivan's great highlights is the magnificent view from the sparse medieval ruins…

This ornate 1762 palace building features vivid murals and dazzling coloured light streaming through şəbəkə (stained-glass windows), making it Şəki’s…

Perfectly proportioned, if gently leaning, Naxçivan’s architectural icon is a 26m brick tower dating from 1186. It’s decorated with geometric patterns and…

Yarat means 'create', a spirit that's in ample evidence in this centre's many thought-provoking installations that don't shy away from sociopolitical…

One of Azerbaijan's most impressive Islamic structures, the İmamzadə is a masterpiece of brickwork and Central Asian–style blue majolica tiles on the…

Completed in 2012, this trio of sinuous blue-glass skyscrapers forms contemporary Baku's architectural signature. The three towers range from 28 to 33…

Lənkəran’s sprawling bazaar area is centred on an architecturally drab concrete hangar, but it’s loaded with colourful produce and equally colourful local…

This splendid confection of sandstone walls and domes was the seat of northeastern Azerbaijan’s ruling dynasty during the Middle Ages. Mostly 15th century…

Ever-popular with strollers, this leafy piazza forms Central Baku’s natural focus. The fountains for which it is named include one topped by shiny…

Probably the most important structure in Karabakh, the Gandzasar Monastery signifies the millennia-old Armenian presence in Karabakh to locals. Dating…

This overgrown masterpiece has a bell tower, fine khachkars and monastic cells around the main 13th-century Surp Dadi church. Watch out for holes into…

The Unesco-listed Qobustan Petroglyph Reserve protects thousands of stick-figure stone engravings dating back up to 12,000 years. Themes include livestock…

The unique Ateşgah is an 18th-century fire temple whose centrepiece is a flaming hearth. Arching above is a four-pillared stone dome with side flues which…

On top of utterly unpromising little Daşgil Hill is a weird collection of baby mud volcanoes, a whole family of ‘geologically flatulent’ little conical…

The brilliantly renovated round-towered 'temple' in pretty Kiş village has been lovingly converted into a very well-presented trilingual museum. It’s the…

This joyous tailor-made gallery uses struts and tubing to create a wide variety of intimate viewing spaces, in many of which you can recline on bean-bag…

Laza is a diffuse scattering of houses encircled by soaring mountains with grass-clad slopes and ribbon waterfalls cascading over perilous cliff edges. A…

For a surreal slice of transplanted Teutonic history, drive around half an hour south of Gəncə to this agreeable small town founded as Helenendorf by…