Icherisheher, the walled Old City, holds the Maiden Tower and Palace of the Shirvanshahs that earned Azerbaijan's first UNESCO listing in 2000. By 1901 the oil fields ringing Baku supplied roughly half the world's crude, a boom that funded the boulevards and mansions still standing behind the Flame Towers' glass. The capital sits 28 metres below sea level, the lowest of any national capital, and its khazri wind can reach 144 km/h, the reason locals call it the City of Winds. Oil revenue still underwrites a state that keeps a tight hold on the press — Reporters Without Borders ranked Azerbaijan 171st of 180 countries in 2026.
Nights sit around 18°C and afternoons around 27°C, though some days reach 31°C.
Baku has real seasons: summer afternoons sit around 31°C, winter ones around 10°C.
Some summer days reach 36°C, and some winter nights drop below freezing.
Rain is hardly part of the picture: about 210 mm a year, with November the wettest month at just 30 mm. Dry, bright months are the norm.
Wind is a factor: February averages 21 km/h, enough to notice on a terrace or a bike. Air quality is worth watching: August averages an AQI of 60, while December clears to 43.
Days stretch to about 14.9 hours of light in June and shrink to 9.1 in December — something to weigh if you work to a fixed timezone.
For what you're after, the best months in Baku are June – September. Expect fast internet (147 Mbps) and a moderate cost of living (about €1050 a month).
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