Paying for Things in Baku During the Grand Prix

Azerbaijan uses the manat, written AZN. Prices are quoted in it, and that is what you should plan to pay with.

Central Baku is a card city for anything of size. It is still a cash city for small things, and race weekend sharpens both halves of that.

Where cards work

Hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, pharmacies and larger shops take cards without a problem. Contactless is normal.

The pattern is the same as most European capitals. If the place has a till, it probably has a card machine.

Where cash still wins

Small kiosks, market stalls, some cafes and many street-hailed taxis prefer cash. So do small purchases like water and fruit.

Carry a modest amount in small notes. Trying to pay for a bottle of water with a large note is the everyday version of an awkward conversation.

Getting your first manat

You can change money at the airport, at a bank, or at an exchange office in the city. Airport rates are rarely the best, so change a small amount there and do the rest later if you care about the difference.

ATMs are common in the centre. Use machines attached to a bank branch where you can. Check whether your own bank charges a foreign withdrawal fee, because that fee usually costs more than any rate difference.

What race weekend changes

Nothing about the system changes. What changes is the queue.

Thirty thousand extra people in a small central area means busy machines, especially in the evening and especially near the circuit. Take out what you need earlier in the day.

Prices in some places rise for the weekend, which is normal for any host city. That makes it worth checking the bill rather than assuming last month’s number.

Dynamic currency conversion

A card machine may offer to charge you in your home currency instead of manat. Decline it.

Paying in the local currency is almost always cheaper. The conversion offered at the terminal carries a markup, and it is presented as a convenience.

The metro is a separate system

The metro does not take cash or a bank card at the gate. It uses BakiKart, the city transport card, bought and topped up at stations.

Buy it on arrival day. On race mornings the queue for a first card is longer than the wait for a train.

Tipping

Tipping is normal but not compulsory. Rounding up, or leaving about ten per cent when the service was good, is the usual habit in a restaurant.

Check the bill first. Some restaurants add a service charge, and in that case tipping again is your choice rather than an expectation.

Drivers do not expect a tip on a fixed-price transfer. People do appreciate it when there is luggage and an early start.

Keeping your money safe

Baku is a comfortable city to walk around, including at night in the centre. The ordinary rules still apply in a crowd.

Split your money. Carry one card and some cash, and leave a second card at the hotel. A crowd leaving a session is exactly the environment where a wallet in a back pocket becomes a lesson.

A simple plan

Arrive with a small amount of manat or get some at the airport. Use a card for anything over a few manat. Keep small notes for kiosks and taxis. Buy a BakiKart on the first day.

Take cash out in the afternoon rather than at midnight, and always pay in manat when a terminal asks.