Azerbaijan Silk Road Tour

In the antiquity and in the Middle Ages one of the most brisk lines of the Great Silk Road crossed the territory of Azerbaijan as from the East to the West, as from the South to the North. It has made possible an active participation of Azerbaijan in the trade and the information exchange with many countries throughout the world. It is symbolical that even in the remote antiquity, alongside with other goods, petroleum was exported from here, known worldwide as "the midian oil". Here you can find more information about Great Silk Road and Azerbaijan's place in it.

TOUR PROGRAM

1-st day - Baku

Transfer from airport. Settlement in hotel.
Breakfast, lunch or dinner depending on time of arrival.
Free time.

2-nd day - Baku

During two days of Baku tour you will have an opportunity to visit the most interesting places of the Azeri capital and will be introduced with its history and current life of the city. You will note the mingling of ancient architecture, traditions with the modern buildings and life style. You will visit ancient Maiden Tower which according to the latest researches is the largest Zoroastrian temple in the world, the old city which is the highly picturesque core of Baku, Zoroastrian temple "Ateshgah" and medieval castles of Apsheron. And on the other hand the most modern signs of the city will also be a part of our program.

Baku was an important stop on an ancient Great Silk Route and a number of its places of interest connected with this remarkable stage in the mankind history. Obviously the most important one is an "Icheri Sheher" (The Inner City, or Old City) which is also the heart of the historic city. This is one of the oldest continuously inhabited spots in the country - and in the Middle East. Archaeological digs have revealed Bronze Age burial chambers. When the Greeks and Romans wrote about Baku, they were writing about the Inner City.

There is a number of small cosy shops in the Old City where you can buy souvenirs or even hand made carpets. The most impressive museum is the Museum of Carpets & Applied Art in the old Lenin Museum where one of the best collections of local and Persian carpets will be presented to your attention. It has a brilliant display of woven and knotted Azerbaijani carpets, plus jewellery, embroidery, metalwork and carved wood.

Secondly the program includes a walk along Baku Boulevard, the second largest one in the Europe. On Boulevard you'll get a boat and make trip on it along Baku Bay .

This trip will provide you with an opportunity to observe a panoramic view of Baku Bay and nearly located area of the city. Also during the trip you will be introduced with the interesting facts and legends of the lake better known as Caspian Sea

To night you will have a dinner in the traditional restaurant with music program and belly dance.

Those who interested can be transferred to nightclubs and places of interest.

3-rd Day - Ateshgyah

Next point of your tour will be the Ateshgyah. The Ateshgyah Fire-Worshippers' Temple is located within Greater Baku in the village of Surakhany (15 km from Baku). This place known as the Temple of the Fireworshippers, has been a centre of worship for thousands of years and was used by traders of Great Silk Route as a caravanserai or as an important place to visit.

Also this day you will visit well preserved ancient castles of Apsheron Peninsula dated XII-XIII AD.

Dinner in the local restaurant with local food, caviar and sturgeon.

Those who interested can be transferred to nightclubs and places of interest.

4-th day - Baku-Shamakha-Lahij-Pirkuli

Ancient city Shamakha is situated in 180 km from Baku and located at the foothills of the Big Caucasus Mountains Chain. The general elevation of Shemakha is 800 meters over the sea level. One of the most ancient oriental trading cities, it claims to be the city of Kmakhia mentioned by the ancient Greek geographer Ptolomy in his book 'Geography'.

High in the Pirgulu mountains, 13 km from Shemakha, 1.400m above seal level, is located the Tusi astronomic observatory, built in the 1960s named after the 13-th century Azeri astronomer, it has the biggest mirror telescope in the CIS.
Pirgulu mountains can be recommended as a good skiing spot, but there are no lifts, so all you can do is cross-country skiing - scandinavian style! Mild climate of this temperate zone, rich soil, abundant forests, alpine meadows are distinctive features of this part of Azerbaijan.
The wine tradition is quite old and the area even has its own grape variety, Matrassa used for excellent dry red wines. Local legend claims that the first French vines came from Shemakha! In fact the wine produced along the western Caucasus came a long way. As early as the late 15th century wines from this area were bought by some of the more demanding wine connoisseurs in western Europe: the Portuguese. Scores of traders, soldiers, priests and adventurers followed Portuguese expansion in Asia, creating a local market for the caucasian wines. A few bottles even reached the Shores of Portugal itself.

In Shemakha you will visit two-storied Deri Baba mausoleum (15th century), have a brief tour to Shamakha itself, visit historic-architectural monumental resort of Lahij, built in the 5th century. There you will have an opportunity to admire ancient mosques and bath-houses, medieval water-supply and sewage systems. The program includes attendance of number of workshops where you can purchase different kinds of artifacts which will always remind you of an ancient area named Shamakha.

And the last point of Shamakha tour is Pirkuli resort where you will be provided with an opportunity to taste a local wine and cognac known as the best in Azerbaijan. You will visit the space observatory with the largest mirror telescope in the CIS.
You will be settled for the night in this resort area in the comfortable cottages.

5-th day - Shamakha - Sheki

 Sheki  is one of the most famous and ancient places of Azerbaijan. Situated 700m above sea level like an amphitheatre surrounded by mountains and forests of oak trees this ancient city was long famed as a silk centre and an important stop on the Great Silk Route. There is an assumption that the name of the town goes back to the ethnonim of the Saks, who reached the territory of Azerbaijan in the 7th century BC.

Sheki is long famed as a silk centre and an important stop on the Silk Road. Sheki still has the site of a huge factory that was once the Soviet Union's largest silk plant (such a big factory was naturally named after Lenin...).

On arrival to Sheki you will be settled in "Yuhari Karavansaray" the hotel which was used by Great Silk Route travelers on their way to Europe. After lunch in the hotel you will start your Sheki tour from visiting 18th century Khan's summer palace with magnificent frescos (one 24 m long) and exquisite stained glass work (northern part of the city).
Sheki History museum with artifacts from several periods, but notorious for pieces relating to silk manufacturing and trade.
Also you will visit Royal Palace of Sheki Khans (Kings) and Sheki fortress an impressive structure with the total length of 1300m, the northern wall is 4m high, the southern wall is 8m high. The wall thickness is 2,2 m.
Certainly we won't miss an opportunity to visit one of a silk workshops as even now silk is one of the important matter of business in Azerbaijan and Sheki is its center. You will visit one of the local workshops where it is possible to buy a silk souvenirs.
After your return in hotel and having a local style dinner you will have a free time with an opportunity to enjoy a scenic view of Caucasus mountains

6-th Day - Sheki - Baku

Return to Baku and free time till dinner in the traditional restaurant.

7-th day - Baku

You will finish your Azeri tour by visiting the Gobustan reserve which is located about 70km from Baku. It is worldwide known for its archaeological monuments. There are more than 4,000 rock drawings carved by people of the Neolithic period and also a number of Latin inscriptions left more than 2,000 years ago.