Azerbaijan Walking Tours: Baku and Sheki

October 18, 2026

Travel advice. The UK FCDO advises against all travel within 5 km of Azerbaijan’s border with Armenia and against all but essential travel to the south-western districts affected by the 2020 and 2023 conflicts, where landmines and unexploded ordnance remain. The US State Department lists Level 3, Reconsider Travel. The Armenia and Russia land borders are closed, so visitors arrive by air. Every walk below is in Baku, Sheki or Lahij, outside those districts. Check the UK advice and the US advisory before you travel.

The best walking in Azerbaijan is urban and short: the walled Old City of Baku, the seafront, one pedestrian street, and the old quarters of Sheki and Lahij. Wear shoes with grip for stone lanes, and carry water and a hat in summer. Fees are in manat (AZN), about 1.70 to the US dollar.

Old City loop

Start at the Tourist Information Center at Boyuk Qala Street 55, open daily from 10:00 to 19:00. From there, walk to the Double Gates, then to the Juma and Mohammed mosques, the Bukhara and Multani caravanserais, the Shirvanshahs’ Palace Complex, the Siratagli complex and finally the Maiden Tower. The streets cost nothing, and only the museums charge: 24 AZN for the Palace Complex and 19 AZN for the Maiden Tower for a foreign adult. The Siratagli complex and the Tea Treasury Museum are free. Allow half a day, longer if you go inside. The official tariff table lists fees and hours.

Baku Boulevard

The seafront promenade is free and follows the water past the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum and the International Mugham Center, with Little Venice and the Baku Eye Ferris wheel along the way. Sources give very different lengths for the promenade, so plan by time rather than distance. It is flat and easy, and busiest in the evening. The metro costs 0.60 AZN a ride if you want to cut it short.

Nizami Street

This pedestrian street in central Baku, named after the poet Nizami Ganjavi, is lined with shops and cafes. It is a good place to end a day on foot, and card payments work widely in Baku.

Sheki old quarter

In Sheki, the Yukhari Bash old quarter surrounds the Khan’s Palace and the Yukhari Karavansaray. The palace costs 15 AZN for a foreign adult and restricts interior photography. Sheki is about 6 to 6.5 hours from Baku by bus, so plan a night. The lanes suit an unhurried morning.

Lahij main street

Lahij, in the Ismayilli district, has a cobbled main street with copper workshops on the ground floors. Lahij copper craftsmanship is on UNESCO’s intangible list. The cobbles are narrow and uneven, so the street is hard going with limited mobility. Ask before photographing people at work.

Guided walks

For a guided walk or a walking tour of Baku, browse Azerbaijan walking tours and confirm the route and the language.

A note on Martyrs’ Lane

Martyrs’ Lane (Shehidler Khiyabani) at Highland Park is the national cemetery for victims of the January 1990 crackdown and soldiers killed in the Karabakh wars. It is not a leisure route and does not belong in a walking plan. If you visit to pay respects, dress quietly and ask before photographing. The FCDO warns that conduct there can bring police action.