Getting around Azerbaijan: transport and apps

In Baku

• The metro is cheap, clean and useful, and runs on the BakiKart - the same card as the buses and the airport express. Buy one on arrival and load it; nothing takes cash.
• Bolt works and is very cheap. Uber does not operate.
• The old city (Icherisheher) and the Boulevard are walkable, and that is where most of Baku's sights are.

Around the country

• Buses and shared taxis run from Baku's international bus terminal to Sheki, Quba, Lankaran and Ganja.
• Trains connect Baku to Ganja and Sheki and are comfortable and slow.
• Hiring a driver for a day is affordable and is how most visitors do Gobustan and the mud volcanoes.

Driving yourself

• You need an international driving permit as well as your own licence.
• Driving standards are poor and accidents are frequent - the FCDO's assessment.
• There is no permitted level of alcohol. Any alcohol detected risks severe fines or imprisonment.

Where not to go

• The FCDO advises against all but essential travel to twelve districts in the south-west: Kelbajar, Lachin, Qubadli, Zengilan, Jabrayil, Fuzuli, Khojavand, Shusha, Khojali, Khankendi, Aghdam and Tartar - because of mines and unexploded ordnance left by the 2020 and 2023 conflicts.
• Also against all travel within 5 km of the Armenian border.
• This is not a bureaucratic restriction. These are genuinely mined areas and clearance is ongoing.

Worth having

• Bolt - the ride-hailing app, cheap and reliable in Baku. No Uber here.
• BakiKart - the physical transport card for the metro, buses and the airport express. Not an app, but the thing you cannot travel without.
• ASAN Visa - the official eVisa portal, and the only one to use. There is a substantial reseller industry charging a multiple of the government fee.
• The State Migration Service site for the registration, if you are staying over 15 days and your accommodation is not doing it.

A warning about cards

• Card fraud is a concern in Azerbaijan, the FCDO says directly, advising caution at cash machines and with card details.
• Use machines inside bank branches, cover the keypad, and check statements while you are still there.

Language

• Azerbaijani is Turkic and written in Latin script, so signs are at least readable even when they are not comprehensible - a real relief after Armenia's alphabet next door.
• Russian is widely understood and English is common among young people in Baku.