Useful information for Azerbaijan

There are many ways to come to Azerbaijan: by airplane, by car, by train or by boat.

1. FLY

There are 3 international airports in Azerbaijan:

• Heydar Aliyev International Airport
• Ganja International Airport
• Qabala International Airport
• Nakhchivan International Airport

Different air companies from all around the world have direct flights to the Heydar Aliyev International Airport (GYD), which is located 16km from the city center of Baku, capital of Azerbaijan.

Regarding your flight schedule or flight ticket booking, do not hesitate to contact us.

2. TRAIN

It is possible to enter in Azerbaijan by train from Russia and from Georgia:

Tbilisi (Georgia) – Baku (Azerbaidjan) – every day – 20:35 – 08:50
Baku (Azerbaidjan) – Tbilisi (Georgia) – every day – 20:40 – 08:55

Moscow (Russia) – Baku (Azerbaidjan) – Moscow (Russia) – Travel time is about 52 hours

Train schedule is not guaranteed, it might change. Regarding your train schedule or reservation of tickets, do not hesitate to contact us.

3. CAR

You can come to Azerbaijan by car/coach from all the neighbor countries crossing the borders:

From Russia
Border SDK (220 km from Baku)

From Georgia
Border Balakan/Lagodekhi (415 km from Baku)
Border Red bridge (555 km from Baku)

From Iran
Border Astara (280 km from Baku)
Border Bilosovar (180 km from Baku)

Regarding all kind of transports reservation, do not hesitate to contact us.

4. SEA

It is also possible to enter in Azerbaijan by Caspian Sea, to the Baku Sea Port from Kazakstan and Turkmenistan.
The schedule of ferry ships changes often. Do not hesitate to contact us for all types of information.

In Azerbaijan there is a lot of possibility to move, both by the public and the private transport.

TRANSFER TO / FROM THE AIRPORT
Transfer from the airport to the city center (Baku) is possible with public transport (bus (Aero Express) and taxi) as well as with private transport. We remain in your disposal in case you choose private transport.

TRANSPORT BETWEEN CITY
Train
The ferrous network binds the different cities of Azerbaijan. Contact us for more information.

Minibus 
Minibuses connect almost every point of Azerbaijan. It is a public transport less comfortable than train but practical. Several minibus stations exist in Baku and in each city.

Car
Car rental is possible in Azerbaijan.
Do not hesitate to contact us for information and for car rental.

Important! acceptable limit of blood alcohol content: 0.0 ppm. In case of any accident, report to police.

Taxi
Taxi is also possible to use taxi for travel between cities. Payment for taxi service is possible by cash or by credit card in case of using some taxi applications.

Persons wishing to visit Azerbaijan can obtain an electronic visa (“E-Visa”) online via the Azerbaijan institutional portal “ASAN VIZA”.

We are at your disposal to assist you in your efforts.

Warning! Entry into Azerbaijan is strictly prohibited for persons holding a visa issued by the de facto authorities of Nagorno-Karabakh or a stamp indicating a stay in Nagorno-Karabakh or in one of the seven occupied regions of Azerbaijan. These people face the risk of immediate arrest for illegal entry into the country.

Immunizations
There are no mandatory vacines for Azerbaijna.
For recommended vaccinations, visit the Institut Pasteur web page.

Emergency medical service: 103

Exchange rate
1 AZN (Azerbaijani manat) = 100 qəpik
1 EURO = 1.0959 AZN  (25/09/2020)
1 USD = 0.7939 AZN (25/09/2020)

Exchange
Many exchange is very easy in many exchange offices located in big cities.
Attention: only bring tickets in good condition, otherwise they can be refused.
There are also many distributors in which you can directly withdraw cash.
Exchange offices are working 24/7 at airports.

Banks
Banks operate in Azerbaijan from Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 18:00 and Saturday from 10:00 to 14:00. Each bank has at least one branch that works 24 hours / 7 days. Phone/online consultation is possible also 24/7.

Azerbaijan is in the GMT zone + 4h.
Compared to Europe there is the difference + 2 hours.

Opening time: Official working hours in Azerbaijan are from 10:00 to 18:00, from Monday to Friday.

Police: 102
Emergency medical service: 103
Fire and rescue service: 101

Phone calls
To call Azerbaijan from abroad:
1 – dial the country code + 994
2 – dial the city codes (12 for Baku, for example) or the mobile operator (55 Bakcel, etc.)
3 – dial the number of your correspondent

Code of Major Cities in Azerbaijan:

• Baku : 12
• Gobustan : 150
• Guba : 169
• Nakhichevan : 136
• Shamaha : 176
• Sheki : 177

To call abroad from Azerbaijan:
1 – dial the number for international calls (00)
2 – dial the country code (33 for France, for example)

Internet

In hotels and restaurants there is in general a high-quality internet connection. In the street (in parks and in tourist areas) of Baku there is free public Wi-Fi, which can be used in case of emergency.
The domain of the country is .az.

The official language in Azerbaijan is Azeri. The lanRussian language is also widely spoken in the country.

Demography
Total population of Azerbaijan is 9,981,000 (2019).
The majority are Azerbaijanis (91.6%), Lezgins (2%), Russians (1.3%), Armenians (1.3%), Talysh (1.3%) and others (2.4%).

Tips

In many restaurants, customers are expected to leave 5-10% of the sum; if this is not indicated in the menu, you can add 10% to the bill (doing so in advance may sometimes speed up the service).

You can give porters at the airport and in the hotel 5-10 manats, depending on the amount of your baggage.

Passengers are not expected to tip the taxi drivers, and it is recommended to negotiate the fare in advance (taxi drivers do not generally accept foreign currency).

Bargaining can be useful anywhere, especially in private stores and at markers – with good bargaining skills it should not be too hard to reduce the price by half.

Voltage

Utility-supplied voltage is 220/240 V/60 Hz. Standard sockets are Type C sockets with two pins. The system of measurement is the metric system.

Clothing 

Women will need head scarves for visiting of mosques in Azerbaijan and knees covered.

Other information

Azerbaijani tend to be somewhat reserved and soft-spoken. They are warm and friendly and will open up the more you get to know them. Though they tend to get straight to the point, Azerbaijani will always ask about your family and health first; this is because the family is a very important part of Azerbaijani social structure, even in the 21st century. Elders are respected for their wisdom and experience and women are treated with gallantry. Having said that, the family structure is still very traditional, with men supporting the family and women taking care of the home, although this is not necessarily so in cosmopolitan Baku. Though they are a friendly and good-natured people, there are certain things that the Azerbaijani tend to avoid in conversation. The country is largely an agnostic and non-religious state, even though 95% of the population is officially Shiite Muslim; therefore, religion tends to be a private affair, and open display of faith is frowned upon.

For COVID-19 restrictions & advisory, please visit the official site.