Photograph of İçərişəhər — Baku Old City — to be added
İçərişəhər — Baku Old City
The walled medieval core of Baku, a UNESCO World Heritage Site enclosing the Maiden Tower and the Palace of the Shirvanshahs.
Included in 4 tours
Baku
Heydar Aliyev Museum
The museum inside the Heydar Aliyev Center, covering the life of modern Azerbaijan's defining political figure.
Photograph of Heydar Aliyev Museum — to be added
The Heydar Aliyev Museum occupies part of the Heydar Aliyev Center, Zaha Hadid's landmark building on the eastern side of the city. It documents the life and career of the man modern Azerbaijan is largely built around.
Whatever view you take of the politics, the museum is useful context: Heydar Aliyev led Soviet Azerbaijan from 1969, returned as president in 1993 after the country's chaotic first years of independence, and shaped the state that exists today.
The collection
The displays run chronologically through his career, using personal effects, documents, photographs and state gifts. The gift collection is unintentionally revealing about Azerbaijan's diplomatic relationships across several decades.
The presentation is official rather than critical, and it is worth going in aware of that. Read as a curated national narrative rather than an independent history, it is genuinely informative about how the country understands itself.
The classic car collection
Housed in the same complex is a collection of restored classic vehicles, including a strong run of Soviet-era marques — the cars that actually drove on these roads — alongside Western classics.
It is a popular section and works well for visitors with limited appetite for political history.
The building
Most people come for the architecture. The Heydar Aliyev Center is Zaha Hadid's best-known work in the Caucasus, a continuous white shell with no straight lines, and it won the London Design Museum's Design of the Year in 2014.
The exterior and plaza are free to visit, and the building is a fixed stop on our Baku city tour. The museum inside is a separate ticketed addition.
Highlights
- Zaha Hadid's landmark building — the reason most visitors come
- Chronological displays on Azerbaijan's modern political history
- State gifts spanning several decades of diplomacy
- Restored classic and Soviet-era car collection
Frequently asked questions
Is the Heydar Aliyev Center free?
The exterior and the surrounding plaza are free to visit, and for many people that is the main attraction. The museum and exhibition halls inside are ticketed separately.
Is the Heydar Aliyev Center on your tours?
Yes — it is a fixed stop on the Baku city tour and appears in several multi-day packages. Entry tickets for the interior exhibitions are paid on-site and are not included.
More to see in Baku
Photograph of Maiden Tower — to be added
Maiden Tower
The enigmatic stone tower at the edge of the Old City — Baku's oldest and least explained monument.
Included in 3 tours
Photograph of Palace of the Shirvanshahs — to be added
Palace of the Shirvanshahs
The 15th-century seat of the Shirvan rulers, and the largest surviving monument of the Shirvan-Absheron architectural school.
Included in 3 tours
Photograph of Flame Towers — to be added
Flame Towers
Three flame-shaped towers above the city, screened with LEDs that turn the skyline into a fire display after dark.
Included in 3 tours
Photograph of Highland Park & Martyrs' Lane — to be added
Highland Park & Martyrs' Lane
The hilltop terrace with the best panorama over Baku bay, reached by funicular.
Included in 1 tour
Photograph of Baku Boulevard & Mini Venice — to be added
Baku Boulevard & Mini Venice
The Caspian seafront promenade — parkland, canals, Flag Square and the Baku Eye.
Included in 1 tour
Want Heydar Aliyev Museum on your itinerary?
We build private itineraries around the places you actually want to see. Tell us what interests you and we will price it per vehicle.
Or call +994 51 887 98 55 — 08:00 – 20:00, 7 days a week