Over 12,000 Qataris visited Azerbaijan last year

More than 12,000 Qataris visited Azerbaijan last year due to many facilities provided to them to visit the country including on arrival visa facility, said a senior official at State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan. 

“Citizens of Qatar can get visa for 30 days upon arrival and we are planning it for Qatar’s residents as well. We will send recommendation to the authorities concerned in this regard,” said Kanan Guluzada, Head of Media and Public Relations Services at State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan.

“In 2017, about 8,000 Qatari citizens visited Azerbaijan and this number increased to 12,458 in 2018. Qatar Airways operates between Doha and Baku and has two flights daily,” he said. Guluzada pointed out that tourism was not a priority for the government before but three years ago Azerbaijan government started to develop this sector and “we have seen a great development as we started to build many facilities that attract tourists and we have about 600 hotels to welcome tourists from 3 to 5 stars”. 

As for Qatar, he said, Azerbaijan government was organizing many activities through government’s representative in the Middle East and ‘will do more to make them know more about Azerbaijan because relations between the two countries are strong’. 

Azerbaijan is a beautiful country and has many natural tourist destinations as well as rich cultural heritage. Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, is one of the most beautiful tourist destinations, where modern monuments are combined with historical and archeological parts.

The buildings of Azerbaijan are a glorious mixture of style, reflecting the cultural shifts and changing trends of hundreds of years. From minarets to mosaics, medieval to modern, every corner reveals something different.

Among the most important tourist attractions in the city that The Peninsula visited is Heydar Aliyev Center (Museum) which is considered as one of the main attractive places for tourists and has also become a symbol of modern Azerbaijan and modern Baku. The Center was designed by Zaha Hadid (an Iraqi-British architect), and the overall shape of the building resembles a wave-like ascension from the ground towards the sky followed by gradual descent down to the earth.

The Museum presents the information regarding the life and activities of Azerbaijan’s national leader Heydar Aliyev, who is one of the most important figures in the history of Azerbaijan and ruled the country from 1993 to 2003. 

The Center was opened in 2013 after the construction work lasted about seven years and the total area of the center is about 57,000 square meters and the height up to 80 meters.

Another important feature in Azerbaijan is the Old City built inside a wall dating back to the pre-Christmas period. It has a mosque that is built around 1076 and has been frequently visited by many tourists, especially from the Gulf countries. 

Inside the Old City,  the Maiden Tower is the symbol of Azerbaijan’s capital city Baku. It is considered a magnificent architectural monument. The Maiden Tower is 28 meters high on its northern side and 31 meters on the southern side while the walls are 5 meters. 

Throughout the centuries, The Maiden Tower has suffered the effects of both natural and human attrition. Thus, restoration works have been performed on it from time to time. 

As for the new city (new Baku), it was built after 2004, where the country witnessed an important economic renaissance. The infrastructure was developed and many of the country’s old tourist areas were reconstructed and renovated, characterized by its clean and beautiful streets and its infrastructure, which mostly mimics European architectural grace.

Among the landmarks in the Baku also is The Flame Towers which are a trio of skyscrapers that dominates the skyline of Baku.  The Flame Towers symbolize the long historic logo of the capital. They are completely covered with LED screens, and at night they light up with a display of fire that can seen from anywhere in the city.