Azerbaijan Culture & Hiking Tour: Baku & Griz Village

Breakfast at the hotel.

• At 10:00, the tour starts with a visit to the Highland Park. Highland Park is located on a hill in the western part of the city. This is the best place to see the city and Baku Bay.
• Next, the guests will visit the Old City - with its fortified walls, historic buildings and narrow cobbled streets. Guests will appreciate the main attractions of the Old Town, including the Palace of the Shirvanshahs and the famous Maiden Tower. Just imagine that the stones under your feet keep the history of this ancient city - its honor and glory, misfortunes and sorrows.
• During the walk, you will definitely feel that the air here smells like magic - the sea air, smelling of salt and oil, is mixed with the aromas of oriental spices and kebabs, flowing from numerous restaurants. Baku is like a young girl, full of energy, beautiful, bright, and full of life. It is ready to change, but follows the precepts of the ancestors. Behind the walls, the city life rages, and in the Old City everything is quiet and decorous, as it has been for centuries. Baku citizens do not like to live in a hurry.
• 13:00 Lunch (for an additional charge).
• 14:00 Our tour goes on with a visit to the Heydar Aliyev Center. The Heydar Aliyev Center was built by world-famous architect Zaha Hadid. An internationally recognized architectural work, the building of the Heydar Aliyev Center has become a signature landmark of modern Baku due to its innovative and cutting-edge design. The Center achieved a famous «Design of the Year Award» back in 2014. Extending on eight floor levels, the center accommodates a 1000-seat auditorium, temporary exhibition spaces, a conference center, workshops, and a museum.
• 17:00 Return to the hotel and leisure time.

Overnight in Baku.

• 07:00 – Departure from Baku. Drive to Guba region.
• 09:30 – Arrival in Guba. Short stop for coffee/tea and last preparations before the mountain road.
• 10:00 – Drive to Griz village. Scenic mountain road.
• 11:30 – Arrival in Griz village. Meet local guide, preparation for trekking. (Difficulty: Moderate).
• 12:00 – Start trekking from Griz. Trek through mountain trails, valleys and pastures. 14:00 – Picnic lunch on the route.
• 15:00 – Continue trekking towards mountain refuge/guesthouse. 17:00 – Arrival at guesthouse/homestay.
• Check-in, rest.
• 19:00 – Dinner with local family. Overnight in mountain guesthouse.

• 08:00 – Breakfast.
• 09:00 – Start trekking towards Laza village. One of the most scenic trekking routes in the region. 12:30 –
• Arrival in Laza village. Rest and lunch in a local house.
• 14:00 – Explore Laza waterfalls and village. 15:30 – Departure from Laza to Baku
• 19:30 – Arrival in Baku. Check-in and leisure time.

Notes:

• The timing on the hiking day is approximate and depends on the actual group size and pace.
• To ensure the safety of tourists, the itinerary is subject to change due to the remote accessibility of certain locations and may be modified in accordance with weather conditions or other force majeure circumstances

09:00 Breakfast at the hotel

• 10:00 Departure for an excursion to the historical and archaeological reserve of Gobustan. The archaeological reserve of Gobustan, an open-air museum located in the south-east of the Great Caucasus. Gobustan petroglyphs, dating back to 5,000-20,000 years, are perfectly preserved rock carvings and are a kind of artistic archive of human evolution on planet Earth. They reflect the history of this region for almost 15 thousand years -rom the end of the Upper Paleolithic era to the Middle Ages. They reflect the history of this region for almost 15 thousand years - from the end of the Upper Paleolithic age to the Middle Ages. Today, Azerbaijani scientists have identified, described, and studied more than 4,000 petroglyphs (rock paintings in stone carving techniques), and this important work still continues. Before starting a Gobustan tour, guests will visit the interactive museum, where they can get information about the history and nature of Gobustan using special multimedia programs and touch screens.
• The next point of the tour is the area of Mud volcanoes, a rare natural phenomenon that appeared in Azerbaijan 25 million years ago (visiting mud volcanoes depends on the season and condition of roads). Azerbaijan has nearly 400 mud volcanoes on its territory. They occur where tectonic movement allows subterranean gases to escape to the surface. A few of these gas leaks are constantly on fire, shooting small perpetual flames into the air, however, mud volcanoes never grow to the size of a normal volcano.
• 14:00 Excursion to the Temple of Fire Worshipers «Ateshgah» and burning hill «Yanardag» The tour goes on with the ancient legacy of Zoroastrianism. Located 30 km away from Baku, there is one of the most mysterious sights of Azerbaijan - Ateshgah, the Temple of Fire Worshippers. Part caravanserai, part fire temple, it stands on the site of natural gas burning from the earth's crust. It is called «the eternal fire». In ancient time Ateshgah was a sacred place to Zoroastrians. The temple’s current incarnation was built by 18th-century Indian Shiva devotees. Next on our tour is a magically attractive site, the burning hill of Yanardag. Yanardag is a hillside with a continuously burning natural fire described by Marco Polo back in the 13th century during his visit to the Persian city of Baku.
• 18:00 Return to the hotel and leisure time.

Overnight in Baku.

Breakfast. Check-out from the hotel and transfer to Baku Airport for your departure flight.