AllandAbout 48 Hours in Baku, Azerbaijan | All & About

Vacation in Baku

I decided to spend the Eid Al-Adha weekend in Baku, which has been on my travel list for a while now. I embarked on my trip to the largest city on the Caspian Sea, with minimal expectations about the Land of Fire (as the locals call it), although I was quiet excited about it.

After a short flight of 3 hours, I arrived at a cozy Baku Airport, where I had to spend only 20 min to clear immigration and get my luggage. The airport was fairly close to the city as it took me only 30 mins to reach my weekend accommodation – the Hilton Baku, which I picked because of its central location and medium price range.

The way into the city was a scenic surprise as it looked a lot like a city in Europe with lots of greenery, walk ways, street life and old western architecture. After a quick check-in, I had my first meal in Baku based on tips from a local friend. I relished the meal at the centrally located Chinar Lounge where you can get Asian fusion food in a very trendy atmosphere. The food was great and very affordable at 65 AZN (QR 145) for two people with drinks. It was definitely a great start to my Baku weekend!

After a long and restful sleep, I had breakfast at 10:30am at the Hilton (the Big Plus breakfast is served until 11 am by the way)!! The welcoming interiors had something for everyone from western to Arabic to local breakfast specialties.

A 3 minute walk from the hotel will take you to the historical part of the city, which is under UNESCO protection and a must for every visitor. Embedded into the historical buildings, you have a lot of cafes, small restaurants and tourist hot spots, which one should not miss. I took advantage of a guided tour for 2 hours to get a better idea of the history of Baku which has Arab, Persian, Turkish and Russian influences. Since I’m not the biggest history fan, the 2 hours was just right for me.

However, you can spend days consuming the rich history of Azerbaijan. I finished my tour with a late delicious lunch at the Art Lounge in the center of the historical part of the city with traditional Azari food. Although it wasn’t complex, it turned out to be a treat in terms of taste, owing to its organic nature since most of the ingredients are sourced from local farms just outside Baku city.

The second night out was after a brief walk at the never-ending promenade with an amazing LED show at the Flame towers, followed by a visit to the Buddha Bar at the JW Marriot across the Hilton. The crowd was a mix of locals and expats. It was a bit more upscale in terms of pricing with good music, entertainment and live performances. After a while we moved to the Shisha bar at the first floor where we enjoyed the pleasant outdoors and the beautiful breeze in Baku, which is also called the ‘City of Wind’.

To sweat out the drinks from the night before, I went for a run the next morning along the 16 km long promenade facing the water side, followed by a visit to the Carpet Museum which was an eye catching building surrounded by a little gondolania area for friends of the Villaggio (Qatar). As learnt in Qatar, brunch is a must and the 4 Seasons brunch from 12 to 3 pm for less than QR 100 including drinks was a bargain not to be missed.

I set out in the afternoon to explore the last point on my to do list – the Heydar Aliyev Center designed by the British Iraqi architect, Zaha Habib. The centre featured various exhibitions, galleries and a large auditorium.

My Baku weekend was much better than expected. It has nothing to do with old communist City and is currently trending as one of the top tourist destinations for great food at very affordable prices, especially for the GCC expats and locals. The flight times are great from Doha as it takes less than 3 hours if you hop on to a direct flight. I will definitely come back to visit the beaches which are only 30 mins from the city, the country side and/or one of the skiing resorts during the Winter season!