Caspian Pearl Tour

Tour will start from the main entrance of the Icheri Sheher(Old City) called Double Gates. During the tour you will be able to see the Chain, Sailor and Cat Houses, Bukhara and Multani Caravanserais, Juma Mosque, Maiden Tower. Guide will explain to you the history of the icheri Sheher, and its buildings mentioned above. Shirvanshah Palace – the pearl of the architectural heritage of Azerbaijan, the former residence of the rulers of Shirvan, located in the heart of Baku. In addition to the palace, the amazingly beautiful complex includes the Divan-Khan courtyard, tomb, mosque in 1441, as well as the bathhouse and mausoleum of court scholar Seyid Yahya Bakuvi. Later, Bukhara caravanserai constructed in late 15th century over the trade highway of Icherisheher in Baku. The caravanserai has a quadratic shape and salient portal and, its yard is octagonal. Caravanserai surrounded by balconies and personal premises – chapels along the perimeter. The octagonal comfortable yard was a special hall under open sky. There travellers and merchants were gathering after daily commercial operations. The crossing arch connected in general style along the full perimeter of the internal space of the yard within direct frame aggregates the main part of the architectural composition. The restoration works implemented in 1964 completely discharged the caravansaray building from the constructions and layers added later and it promoted to discover its large-scale structure on the background of the surrounding buildings. Maiden Tower is an Eiffel Tower of Baku.In 12th century it was used as a fortress of Shirvanshahs for defensive causes.Maiden Tower's architectural plan, seemingly so simple, consists of walls which at the base are extraordinarily thick, beginning at five meters in depth and gradually narrowing to four meters at the top. Today, the interior contains an interesting display of old photographs and a souvenir shop, but the highlight is the superb rooftop viewpoint surveying Baku Bay and the Old City. The views from the top are worth the climb, with a sweeping panorama of the Old City, the new skyscrappers on the hills and the Caspian Sea.

Highland park, well known as ‘’Viewing Square’’, and earlier in Soviet era as ‘’Sergei Kirov park’’ is one of the most favourite places in Baku to have walk, rest, and enjoy the sea view. There you can take rest by breathing fresh air, viewing the city, drinking tea in the Highland Park Café , while listening to the classic lounge music. It’s the best place to relax, that is located right in the heart of Baku.We suggest you to visit this park at night time, because of the amazing lighting on the stairs to the Highland park! And also on hot summer days and nights you can feel there cool, and a bit windy.

Baku Boulevard, also known as the National Seaside Park in Baku, Azerbaijan is the favorite promenade of many city residents and visitors and the second largest in Europe after the park on the banks of the River Seine in Paris. Its establishment goes back to more than 100 years, to a time when Baku’s oil barons built their mansions along the Caspian shore, and the seafront was gradually built up.Today, the National Seaside Park in Baku covers an area of 3,750 meters, and is located on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea. It starts at the National Flag Square and ends at Freedom Square.The Boulevard area includes a number of museums, cultural facilities, malls and entertainment centres, including the modern panoramic amusement ride – the Devil’s Wheel, which has a beautiful view over Baku Bay.

Little Venice” in Baku Boulevard is a small town built in 1960. It was expanded up to 10.000 sq.m. now. The town has two large and several small islands. The redevelopment of the “Small Venetian town” saw the expansion of the existing channels and the construction of additional bridges and two restaurants, one offering Western cuisine and the other Eastern. Boats are provided for 4 people: one is designed for guide and the rest – for passengers.Located nearby the Caspian seashore you will feel yourself as in Venice by visiting ‘Small Town of Venice’. The restaurants located in the ‘islands’ offer various meals of the different cuisine, including Azerbaijanian tasty dishes. It will be interesting firstly to observe around in gondola, later to have a great lunch or dinner in the ‘islands’. Currently Mini Venice has several islands which are divided by pristine water channels. Beautiful ornate bridges connect these islands. You can hire a 4 seater Gondola for a ride around these islands. There is one Eastern and one Western restaurant in this complex.

The Azerbaijan Carpet Museum presents different schools and techniques from around the entire country, as well as covering various historical states and the development of carpet weaving. In August 2014, the museum got a luxurious new building, which itself is in the shape of a rolled carpet. The new Azerbaijan Carpet Museum was designed by the Austrian architects Franz Janz and Walter Mari. Today, there are more than 14,000 exhibits, including rare carpets, exquisite jewelry, clothing, embroidery, delicate glass pieces, wood and felt. The first floor of the museum has flat-weave carpets and various examples of applied arts, including bags and saddles for horses. The second floor is pile carpets from the different regions in Azerbaijan, showing off the unique patterns and designs of this country. The third floor is all about modern designers, the history of the Carpet Museum, and a children’s room. The Carpet Museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00-18:00, and on Saturday and Sunday from 10:00-20:00. The museum is closed on Mondays.

On the way to Khinalig (Khinalug) Village, you will be able to stop for the pictures inside of the Qecresh forest. In the forest you will see the local people, they will offer to ride the horse. Qechresh is one of the largest villages in the Guba region. It is located 12 km from the district center. There are many recreation centers in the village. The area is covered with forest on all sides. Qechresh is famous for its natural springs and plants. The wild walnuts, hazelnuts, cranberry, hawthorn, hips, apples, pears and pine trees grown there. As for the animal world, the village is a home for gazelles, wolves, bears, foxes and other animals. It is also possible to catch fish in Gudjalchay, which gives a special beauty to the village.

Khinalug is among the oldest continuously inhabited places in the world, with a history spanning over 5,000 years. Because of its high altitude and remoteness, Khinalug managed to survive and withstand many invasions. There are also some other historical places such as a 12th-century mosque, a 15th-century mosque, and several ancient cemeteries between the mountains. There are also many ancient holy caves of early humans.

On the way you will visit to Guba Genocide Memorial Complex. Thousands of Azerbaijanis have marched to Guba Genocide Memorial Complex to commemorate the centenary of the Genocide of Azerbaijanis of March, 1918. The Guba burial site of genocide victims was found during excavations on April 1, 2007. In 2009, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the "Action Plan to perpetuate the victims of mass murder in Guba", decided to create a memorial and conduct landscaping and improvement on the site of the mass graves. The research established that the burial is related to the genocide committed by the Armenians against the local civilian population in 1918. The research also discovered the remains of more than 400 people belonging to different age groups in the grave. It was established that along with Azerbaijanis the mass grave contains the remains of brutally murdered Lezgins, Jews, Tats and other ethnic groups living in Guba.

On the way from Baku to Gabala we visit Juma Mosque in Shamakhi (or Friday Mosque) is one of the tourist attractions often visited by travellers. It is included into our Shamakhi and Gabala tour. Unlike many mosques, entrance to Juma Mosque of Shamakhi is permitted even to non-Muslims. To enter, you need to remove your shoes, but walking barefoot is not a problem, because the floor is covered with thick carpets. In addition, women must cover their heads in order to enter the mosque, so they provide free head cover at the entrance, which is required to be returned at the exit.

Nohur Lake within the populated area near Gabala-Ismayilli-Baku motorway is one of the natural attractions in Azerbaijan visited by international and local tourists. It is located in 5 km East of Gabala city, about 200 km away from Baku. The lake is surrounded by the mountains called Yumuru, Goydag, and Gulluburun. The length of Nohur lake at present time is 1925 m, width is 1355 m and its total area is 240 ha. Maximum depth reaches 24 m and volume of the water is about 16 million m3. It is situated in 700 meters above sea level.

This mountainous waterfall flowing from the highest peaks of the Caucasus Mountains and locates in Vandam village of Gabala. The name of the Seven Beauties (Yeddi Gozal) Waterfall originates from the name of the 7 mountain roads that should pass to reach the waterfall. As the waterfall is completely frozen in the winter, it gets harder to get here. But in spring and summer, tea houses are available on every mountain road, where the guests are offered a tea set with traditional types of Gabala jam. At the highest point of the waterfall there is a tea house with a special wooden mattress where you can drink tea with the pleasant sound and scenery of the waterfall in the background. The water of the tea is taken from the waterfall and gives a unique taste to it.

Tufandag Winter-Summer Tourist Complex is located 4 kilometers far from Gabala city. The resort allows visitors to enjoy different extreme sports and tourism activities in the harmony with nature. Tufandag complex provides skiing in winter, going up to the mountains by cable cars in summer, mountain climbing by ATV quad bikes and other types of entertainment. The ski slopes of the Tufandag complex provide visitors with unforgettable moments with its a 1000-meter vertical downhill, 15-kilometer ski slopes and 4 rope lines. Here are green and blue ski slopes for beginners and moderate skiers, and red and black ski slopes for professional skiers. Along with the natural snow, there are snowmobiles that provide unforgettable skiing experience in snow-covered slopes throughout the season. It is possible to rent the skiing equipment of the skiing center inside the resort. It is also possible to take ski lessons from professional instructors

On the way, visit the first Albanian church in Caucasus, dating back to the 1st century AD. Kish Albanian Church - The brilliantly renovated round-towered Albanian church in pretty Kish village has been lovingly converted into a very well-presented trilingual museum. It’s the best place anywhere to learn about mysterious Caucasian Albania, the Christian nation that once covered most of northern Azerbaijan.

The most outstanding and valuable monument from the 18th century in Azerbaijan is the Sheki Khans’ Palace. The basic material for building the palace was raw bricks, river stones, plane trees and oaks. The most amazing is that not a single nail or glue drop was used for the construction! Everything is in place due to special craftsmanship, the secret of which was lost and is now being brought back to life by local artisans. There are only 6 rooms, 4 corridors and 2 mirrored balconies in the Sheki Khans’ Palace. All the windows and doors of the palace were skillfully assembled from pieces of wood and colored Venetian glass. All of the light that filters in to the palace is rich in colors of the rainbow, from the red, yellow, blue purple and green colored glass. Each room of the palace differs from one another and each is skillfully decorated. All the walls and ceilings are painted with miniatures: mythical birds in a garden of paradise, with unusual flowers and animals.

. “Caravanserai” historical complex in Sheki is two magnificent caravanserai which reached present days and traditionally named “Yukhari” and “Ashaghi” caravanserai, which means “Upper” and “Lower” Caravanserai in translation from Azerbaijani into English. Construction of these caravanserai is dated back to the 18th-19th centuries AD. “Lower” caravanserai has a rectangular shape with a large inner yard in the centre of which is located a pool. Total area of the caravanserai is 8000 m2 and dimensions are 55x85 meters. Four entries led to the yard from all four corners of the buildings. There are 242 rooms in the lower caravanserai. Earlier there were merchant stores and storage rooms in the coaching inn, but the first floor was intended for guests whom the rooms were leased. Each room had a manhole which was connected to the ground floor with a stepladder and it was very comfortable for merchants who wanted control the safety of their products at any time. Since 1988, the lower caravanserai is used as a hotel complex for tourists, guests of the city and local residents. There is a restaurant of national cuisine with 100 places functioning in the territory of the complex. There are luxury suits in compliance with international standards in the hotel.

Your tour will start with the car picking you up from the hotel. First destination will be the Gobustan- The Archeological monument is located in 56 km from the capital city, Baku. The artifacts and rock carvings were discovered in 1939 – 1940 years. As a result of the researchers, more than 3,500 human and animal paintings and various markings – petroglyphs were recorded and 20 suburban shelters have been identified in this place. Mesolithic monuments (medieval stone) are mostly exhibited in the reserve. There are many caves, springs, carved by primitive men on walls of caves, rocks, and stony lumps. You will visit the Gobustan Museum to get the better insights to the history of the area then you will go by car to the Rock Mountain to see the real carvings.

After the Rock Mountain, you will visit the Mud  Volcanoes. That is why the Transportation will be changed to the Soviet Lada Cars. Whoever wants can bring some strong plastic bags with them to collect some of the mud from there which has been said is good for the skin. Spending 10 minutes around Volcanoes you will be transferred back to your car.

The Bibi-Heybat Mosque includes the tomb of Ukeyma Khanum (a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad), and today is the spiritual center for the Muslims of the region and one of the major monuments of Islamic architecture in Azerbaijan. It's locally known as "the mosque of Fatima" which Alexandre Dumas using the same name, described the mosque during his visit in the 1840s. The old mosque was located in the southern part of the tomb, while there was a 20 meter high minaret in the west part of the mosque. Later a crypt and two niches were added to the mosque to the south of the minaret. On the niches there were inscriptions containing the name Fatali Khan, whose tombstone marble slab is now in the State Museum of History.

Driver and Guide will pick you up from the hotel in specified time and directly drive to the Fire Temple. The temple is located in the south-eastern part of the Surakhani settlement of the Absheron peninsula, 30 km away from Baku. Ateshgah is a fire temple built in the 17th-18th centuries in the place of the eternal flames of natural gas. The earliest building of the temple belongs to the 1713 year, and the central temple was built in 1810 by merchant Kanchanagara funds.It was sanctified by Zoroastrians, Hindus, and Sikhs at different times. . Zoroastrians from India traveled thousands of kilometers to Ateshgah to worship the fire coming out of the earth.

After The Fire Temple, your last destination will be the Fire Mountain. This natural burning flame became as a result of the emergence of natural gas at the foot of the hill. A hill that burning approximately 4 millenniums nonstop even in times of raining and snowing roots of the gas going as far as to Caspian Sea.

Today your tour adventures come to an end. Breakfast at the hotel After breakfast at the hotel in Baku, check-out from the hotel & you will be transferred to the Heydar Aliyev International Airport.