How to get to Khinalig from Baku

by Javid Asadov (Azerbaijan)

A leap into the unknown Azerbaijan

Khinalig is the dwelling place on the high hill, surrounded by the mountains, near the Shahdagh, at the bottom between the Main Caucasian and Arm ridge of the Great Caucasus. This village is located at 2350 m, 57 km south-west of the center of Guba, and 225 km away from the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku. Khinalig is the highest and most remote dwelling place of Azerbaijan. At the same time, Khinalig is considered one of the highest settlements in Europe and the world. Although the date of establishment of this settlement is unknown, the history of the village is estimated to be around 5000 years. The village population is a little over 2,000 people. The people living here are distinguished for their ethnographic features among the minority of Azerbaijan's aboriginals. The Khinalugs are thought to be one of the 26 Albanian tribes living in Caucasian Albania. The Khinalugs are known in the ancient and ethnographic literature under the name of "Peoples of the Shahdag." If you plan your trip independently, you can go 167km to Guba city, the central town of Guba region where Khinalig village is located, just for 4 AZN (2 euro) by bus from Baku International Bus Station running every thirty-minute from 7:30 am to 06:00 pm every day of the week. It is also possible to get a taxi for 10 AZN (5 Euro) to Guba city at any time of the day near the January 20 Metro station located in Baku. You can return to Baku by the same route. The absence of public transport within 57 km from Guba to Khinalig Village makes this trip a bit more adventurous and more enjoyable, mainly because of the asphalt-covered mountain road. There are several ways to go by this route that I want to share with you. So, you can go to Khinalig village by taxi for about 40 AZN (20 Euro) from the "Old bus station" (so-called by the locals) in Heydar Aliyev Avenue in the city of Guba. However, it can be a little challenging to find a taxi to get to this village, at 2,350 meters, especially in cold, windy, and snowy weather. At the same time, you can go directly to Khinalig from Baku by using the services of numerous tourism companies based in Baku, for example, Backpack Azerbaijan. However, it is vital to plan your trip well in advance. You can also order a taxi directly from Baku to Khinalig village, which will be a little expensive. During my first trip to Khinalig, I traveled to Guba by bus from the Baku International Bus Station, and from there, I went to the village with local Khinaligans who came to the city for the market. One advantage of this way was that I spent less money, and the other was I got acquainted with locals, had an exciting talk on the road, and learned many new things. I will not be mistaken if I say that my way back to Baku from Khinalig was much more interesting than my trip to Khinalig. So, after two days in Khinalig, I was sitting in the village center, watching it and memorizing the beauty here. In the meantime, of course, I was thinking about how to go back. I didn't even think of calling a taxi. When I saw a Niva car moving from the center, I approached and asked if he was going to the city. He said yes and gave me a ride. Along the way, it turned out that this man was a government official who came to collect a fee for the power in the village. In short, if you are a pedestrian, anyone can bring you back from Khinalig for free. It can even be a tourist who came to Khinalig. If you are lucky, you can also come to Baku. It should be noted that the construction of a new highway from Guba to these villages has been started due to the increased interest of tourists to Khinalig and Gryz. I am not a professional blogger but sometimes I write blogs. The full version of this blog is published on this site (https://pickvisa.com/az/bloger/javid-asadov) and protected by copyright.