Baku enjoys all the mystique of an ancient Silk Road entrepot but it’s also a well-organized modern-day transport hub that dominates the eastern Caucasus region. Azerbaijan’s great emphasis on developing excellent domestic and international transport infrastructure is most visible at Heydar Aliyev International Airport. The main air-gateway for Azerbaijan’s capital, it is an aesthetic delight of great architectural ingenuity and has been recognized as the best airport in the CIS for both facilities and service. New multi-lane highways mean that driving into the city is easy in barely 25 minutes. Air links are especially numerous to European, Turkish, CIS and Middle-Eastern destinations, but direct flights go as far as New York and Beijing. There are also inexpensive overnight sleeper train services to Tbilisi, Georgia, a few more to Russia and the construction and implementation of new direct rail links to Iran and Turkey are nearing completion. Long distance buses also connect to neighboring countries.
Baku is one of Eurasia’s biggest air traffic hubs, but there are also international rail, ferry and bus connections.
Azerbaijan’s main travel gateway is Baku’s Heydar Aliyev International Airport, 25km from the city centre.
Baku has railway connections to number of CIS cities. You can travel to Baku and back by train from such cities as Tbilisi, Makhachkala, Moscow, Tyumen, Rostov, Kharkov etc. Railway connections to Iran and to Turkey (via Georgia) are under construction.
Azerbaijan has passenger bus services to cities in the Russian Federation, Georgia, Turkey and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Moreover, you can cross the border of Azerbaijan with Russia, Georgia, Iran and Turkey by personal vehicle. It is easy to travel across Azerbaijan by car if you hold an international driver’s license.
Public transport in Baku includes the metro, buses and taxis.
only the capital, Baku, has a metro system, which operates between 06:00 and 24:00. Stations, trains and facilities are clean and safe, with trains running every two to three minutes. There are two lines, the Red Line, which goes from Icharishahar to Hazi Aslanov, and the Green Line, which runs from Khatai to Darnagul.
buses are an inexpensive way to travel in Baku. Bus schedules are generally available at bus stops. Passengers pay the driver for their journey when they board, however the sleek new red buses only accept prepaid BakıKart credit.
to date, Baku offers 61 licensed taxi services stands across the city. The majority of taxis, that wait street corners are not metered, many demanding around AZN5 minimum fare. However, the metered London-style cabs have very sensible kilometer rates. For longer rides, there is a need to preorder taxi by phone and the quote for the total fare will be provided in advance.
There are two ways to get from the airport to the city center.
the easiest way to get from the airport to the city center and the hotels is the taxi which is situated at the main entrance of the airport. A taxi journey to the city centre should cost no more than 25-30AZN.
another good option is to use Airport Express Bus service. ‘BakuBus’ company has launched express bus service to Baku airport from the city center (28 May metro station). Modern comfortable buses run mainly from 06:00 to 00:00 every 30 minutes.
