Walled City of Baku with the Shirvanshah's Palace and Maiden Tower

The Walled City of Baku with the Shirvanshah’s Palace and Maiden Tower is the historic core of Baku, Azerbaijan, combining medieval defensive walls, a 12th-century tower and a 15th-century palace complex; it is a UNESCO World Heritage site inscribed in 2000.

The Maiden Tower is a freestanding cylindrical tower about 29.5 metres high and is one of the Old City’s most recognisable landmarks. The Palace of the Shirvanshahs is a compact royal complex from the 15th century that includes ceremonial halls, a mosque and a royal mausoleum; both structures form the cultural heart of the walled layout.

The Old City preserves narrow alleys, defensive walls and merchant buildings that reflect Baku’s role as a regional trading and administrative centre over several centuries. The urban fabric concentrates medieval stone architecture within a relatively small, walkable area between the Caspian shoreline and later city expansions.

The complex was developed and expanded under the Shirvanshah dynasty and later rulers from the medieval period onward, with surviving monuments dating mainly to the 12th to 15th centuries. Over time the Old City has been repaired and adapted for modern use while retaining its historic plan and key monuments.

Geographically the Walled City sits on the southern edge of downtown Baku on the Caspian Sea coast. It occupies a hill and adjacent lowland that transition into Baku’s modern centre; the site is in central Baku and is immediately accessible from the city’s main roads and waterfront promenade.

• Best viewpoint: Climb the Maiden Tower rooftop for compact panoramic views across Baku's Old City and the nearby Caspian shoreline; early morning and late afternoon offer the best light for photography.
• Practical tip: Parts of the Old City are pedestrianised and compact; wear comfortable shoes for cobbled alleys and steep ramps in the palace complex.

What to See #

• Maiden Tower (Giz Galasi): A stone tower rising from the Old City to about 29.5 metres, historically opaque in origin and now a major museum and viewing point with a circular interior ramp leading to rooftop views of Baku.
• Palace of the Shirvanshahs: A compact palace complex largely dating to the 15th century that served as the seat of the Shirvan rulers; the ensemble includes a main palace, a mosque, a mausoleum and the Divankhana audience hall.
• Old City walls and gates: Sections of medieval city walls and surviving gates that once enclosed the core of Baku; much of the surviving fabric dates from the 12th and 13th centuries and defines the Old City plan.
• Medieval caravanserais and merchant buildings: A cluster of historic caravanserais and merchant houses in the Old City that served traders and craftsmen, retaining narrow courtyards and vaulted structures from the medieval and early modern periods.