Gobustan & Mud Volcanoes Tour: Burning Mountain & Fire Temple

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/12

Duration7h

GroupUp to 18

LanguagesEN · RU +1

PickupAt your hotel

Step into history at Azerbaijan’s first oil well and sacred fire temple.

A 7-hour guided tour from Baku through four sites: the Bibi-Heybat Mosque and oil well heritage, Gobustan National Park's UNESCO rock art from the Stone Age, Azerbaijan's mud volcanoes (the world's largest concentration), and the Absheron Peninsula's Yanar Dag and Ateshgah Fire Temple. Hotel pickup is included in some options; entrance fees are optional at checkout. The guide speaks English, Russian or Turkish.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Azerbaijan's history and nature

Start tour at Baku City Tours office
Visit Bibi-Heybat Mosque
Change to Soviet SUV Lada
Explore Gobustan National Park
Have buffet lunch
Visit Ateshgah Fire Temple
Visit Yanar Dag (Burning Mountain)

The Experience

The tour starts at 9:00 AM from the Baku City Tours office with hotel pickup if you book that option. You'll begin at Bibi-Heybat, where the world's first industrial oil well once operated and the Bibi-Heybat Mosque stands as a regional landmark. From there, the route heads southwest toward Gobustan National Park, about 40 miles from central Baku, where ancient carvings from the Stone Age cover the rock faces — the site was declared a national historical landmark in 1966 to preserve the petroglyphs, mud volcanoes and gas-stones scattered across the reserve.

At Gobustan, you'll switch into a Soviet-era Lada SUV to reach the mud volcanoes themselves. These natural formations are Azerbaijan's most distinctive geological feature; the country holds the world's largest concentration of them. The terrain and the vehicle change the experience — you're no longer on a standard minivan route but crossing the landscape where these phenomena actually occur. Lunch happens at a buffet-style restaurant along the way (meals are not included, and typically cost around 8–12 USD).

The afternoon moves to the Absheron Peninsula, where Yanar Dag — Burning Mountain — has burned naturally for centuries, fed by underground gas reserves. The fire is visible year-round, a phenomenon few places on earth sustain. Nearby stands the Ateshgah Fire Temple, a castle-like structure in the Surakhani suburb that served as an ancient site of fire worship. The tour wraps by late afternoon, with return transport to your hotel if you booked pickup. Weather can affect access to the mud volcanoes, so the guide will adjust the route if conditions don't permit that stop.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and drop-off (if selected at checkout).
professional guide in English, Russian or Turkish.
transport by air-conditioned minivan to Gobustan and the Absheron Peninsula.
a Soviet SUV for access to the mud volcanoes.
entrance fees to Gobustan National Park, the Ateshgah Fire Temple and Yanar Dag (if the tickets option is selected).

Good to know

Moderate physical levelInfant seats availablePets welcomePublic transport nearbyNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Baku City Tours

Is this one for you?Book the private option if you want a dedicated group and all fees settled upfront; choose the small-group option if you prefer to pay entry fees on site and travel with fewer people. Either way, the Soviet Lada for the mud volcanoes is what makes that stop possible — a standard minivan can't reach them, so you get a vehicle and a landscape most Baku tours don't access.