Travel back towards Baku, stopping at the remarkable Gobustan National Park which is rich in archaeological monuments. The expansive site features over 6,000 petroglyphs, covering some 40,000 years of rock art. The engravings depict scenes of the daily lives of the local inhabitants of the time, animals, battle-scenes, ritual ceremonies, bullfights, naval ships, camel caravans, images of the sun and stars. The site also contains once inhabited caves, settlements and burials, illustrating the intensive human habitation of the area during the wet period that followed the last Ice Age, from the Upper Paleolithic to the Middle Ages. Home to nearly a third of the world’s mud volcanoes, Gobustan is also famous for the bizarre mud volcanoes which bubble and erupt, sometimes in flames across the landscape. Many locals believe the mud has a special healing quality and it is common practice to apply the mud to the skin. Afterwards we continue onto Baku for dinner and overnight.
Overnight: Midtown Hotel or similar
Meals: B,D