Things to Do in Baku in April
April weather, activities, events & insider tips
April Weather in Baku
Is April Right for You?
Advantages
- Novruz spring festival transforms the entire city during late March through early April - you'll catch the tail end with outdoor celebrations, traditional games in parks, and locals genuinely excited to share their culture. The energy is completely different from typical tourist months.
- Temperatures sit in that perfect 9-17°C (48-62°F) range where you can comfortably walk the Old City's steep cobblestone streets for hours without overheating. The Caspian wind keeps things fresh rather than oppressive, and you'll actually want to explore outdoor sites like Gobustan without melting.
- Hotel prices drop 30-40% compared to May-September peak season, while restaurants and attractions aren't crowded yet. You can book quality accommodations 2-3 weeks out instead of the 2-3 months ahead you'd need for summer. The city feels like it belongs to locals, not tour groups.
- Spring greenery briefly transforms the normally arid landscape around Baku - the hills behind the city actually look green for maybe 6 weeks total per year, and April is prime time. If you're planning day trips to Quba, Lahij, or the Caucasus foothills, this is genuinely the best month visually.
Considerations
- The Caspian wind (called Khazri locally) blows hard and unpredictably in April - we're talking sustained 40-50 km/h (25-31 mph) gusts that make the Flame Towers viewing platform genuinely unpleasant and can shut down the Baku Eye ferris wheel for hours. Pack layers because 17°C (62°F) feels like 10°C (50°F) when wind whips off the water.
- Rain comes in short, intense bursts rather than gentle drizzles - those 10 rainy days mean sudden downpours that flood the Old City's drainage system within 20 minutes. The cobblestones get legitimately slippery, and you'll see locals just waiting it out in cafes rather than fighting through it.
- Some mountain road day trips remain sketchy or closed - the Caucasus passes to places like Xinaliq village often don't fully open until late April or early May depending on snowmelt. If highland trekking is your main goal, you might catch the tail end of inaccessibility and find yourself limited to lower elevation sites.
Best Activities in April
Old City walking exploration and palace tours
April weather is actually ideal for spending 3-4 hours wandering Icherisheher's maze of alleyways - cool enough that the stone walls feel refreshing rather than heat-trapping, and the occasional rain clears out day-trippers so you get the Maiden Tower and Shirvanshahs Palace practically to yourself. The 70% humidity sounds high but feels comfortable at these temperatures. Morning light (8-10am) is spectacular for photography as sun hits the beige stone at low angles.
Gobustan petroglyphs and mud volcano day trips
April is one of maybe three months where Gobustan is actually pleasant - summer heat makes the exposed rock carvings brutal (no shade whatsoever), and winter mud makes the volcano fields treacherous. Right now the desert landscape is briefly green, temperatures stay comfortable even at midday, and the mud volcanoes are active but accessible. The 60 km (37 mile) drive takes about an hour through increasingly stark terrain that's weirdly beautiful in spring.
Caspian Boulevard cycling and waterfront cafes
The 25 km (15.5 mile) Seaside Boulevard is Baku's social hub, and April afternoons see locals out cycling, rollerblading, and cafe-hopping as winter hibernation ends. Rent bikes near the Carpet Museum area (10-15 AZN for 3-4 hours) and ride the entire length - it's flat, paved, and you'll pass everything from Soviet-era parks to ultra-modern Little Venice. Wind can be fierce but you're riding at sea level, so it's manageable. Evening (6-8pm) is prime people-watching time.
Quba and Caucasus foothills village tours
April is transition season for mountain access - lower villages like Quba, Khinalug, and the red village Qirmizi Qasaba are fully accessible with green hillsides and rushing streams from snowmelt, while higher passes might still be sketchy. The 170 km (105 mile) drive to Quba takes 3 hours through landscapes that shift from semi-desert to alpine forest. You'll see shepherd camps setting up for spring grazing season, and village guesthouses are open but not yet crowded.
Ateshgah Fire Temple and Yanar Dag eternal flame evening visits
These Zoroastrian fire sites sit 25-30 km (15.5-18.6 miles) from central Baku and work perfectly as an afternoon-evening combo trip. April sunset around 7:30pm means you can visit Ateshgah's temple complex in afternoon light (the architecture photographs beautifully), then catch Yanar Dag's natural gas flames against twilight sky - they're more dramatic after dark. Temperatures drop quickly after sunset though, so bring a jacket for the 9°C (48°F) evening chill.
Azerbaijan carpet museum and traditional craft workshops
Perfect backup for those 10 rainy days - the Carpet Museum's distinctive rolled-rug architecture houses genuinely world-class collections spanning 400+ years of weaving tradition. Budget 2-3 hours for the main collection (15 AZN entry), and April sees occasional craft demonstrations where you can watch weavers work on traditional looms. The building itself stays comfortable regardless of weather, and the cafe overlooks the boulevard. Some workshops in the Old City offer 2-3 hour introductory weaving sessions (60-80 AZN) if you want hands-on experience.
April Events & Festivals
Novruz spring festival aftermath and celebrations
While the main Novruz holiday falls March 20-21, celebrations continue through early April with neighborhood gatherings, traditional games in parks, and families visiting relatives. You'll see remains of the ritual bonfires, smell holiday pastries (shekerbura and pakhlava) still being made, and catch spontaneous music performances. It's not organized tourism - just locals enjoying spring's arrival - which makes it more authentic than staged festival events.
Baku International Film Festival
This increasingly prominent festival typically runs in mid-April, bringing international and regional filmmakers to venues across the city including the Modern Art Museum and various cinemas. Screenings are often open to public with advance tickets (20-40 AZN), and you'll see red carpet events around Fountain Square. Even if you're not a film buff, the festival adds energy to the cultural scene with pop-up events and increased cafe activity.