Azerbaijan
Even if you don't eat here, it's worth a quick stop to photograph this restaurant, which takes the form of a fantasy castle built within crenellated dark stone walls and full of quirky oddities. The menu is mostly kebabs but also offers trout, stroganoff, and some pre-orderable specials like wild boar (AZN18). Beer from AZN3.
The new hotel (s/d AZN70/98) section continues the pseudo-medieval theme and has a pretty good indoor pool and spa. Səngər Qala is 1km south of İlisu.
19.76 MILES
This ornate 1762 palace building features vivid murals and dazzling coloured light streaming through şəbəkə (stained-glass windows), making it Şəki’s…
16.92 MILES
The brilliantly renovated round-towered 'temple' in pretty Kiş village has been lovingly converted into a very well-presented trilingual museum. It’s the…
0.83 MILES
Two beautiful high-altitude valleys meet at charming little İlisu. Amazingly this diminutive village of photogenic old homes was once the capital of a…
18.49 MILES
High above the city, a plateau of summer pastures known as Xan Yaylağı offers truly superb viewpoints back over the valley and northwards towards high…
19.73 MILES
The Şəki Khans' little-publicised 'other' palace is a slightly smaller, older version of the Xan Sarayı set in its own rose garden. While five of the six…
19.89 MILES
Even if you don’t stay here, do peep inside this historic caravanserai whose twin-level arcade of sturdy arches enclose a sizeable central courtyard…
23.08 MILES
Car is a chocolate-box village half-hidden in blossoms and greenery. Picturesque houses are tucked away behind mossy dry-stone walls in abundant orchards…
23.29 MILES
Zaqatala’s Russian fortress is a sprawling affair whose grey stone walls are sturdy but not really imposing. Built between 1830 and 1860, it originally…
0.83 MILES
Two beautiful high-altitude valleys meet at charming little İlisu. Amazingly this diminutive village of photogenic old homes was once the capital of a…
6.53 MILES
Old Town Qax is centred on cobbled İçəri Bazar, a streetscape where older houses have been given a faux-antique look on a lane guarded by castle-style…
6.91 MILES
This engrossing little museum is wonderfully old-fashioned and has very little in English, but photos show regional historical places, there's a mockup of…
16.92 MILES
The brilliantly renovated round-towered 'temple' in pretty Kiş village has been lovingly converted into a very well-presented trilingual museum. It’s the…
18.49 MILES
High above the city, a plateau of summer pastures known as Xan Yaylağı offers truly superb viewpoints back over the valley and northwards towards high…
19.55 MILES
Şәki's foremost mosque dates from the 18th century and sports a standalone 28m brick minaret with a metal tulip-shaped point.
19.73 MILES
The Şəki Khans' little-publicised 'other' palace is a slightly smaller, older version of the Xan Sarayı set in its own rose garden. While five of the six…
19.75 MILES
The şəbəkə (stained-glass windows) featured at Xan Sarayı are laboriously made by slotting together hundreds of hand-carved wooden pieces to create…