A Self-Drive Road Trip in Azerbaijan: Rules and Routes

Yes, you can drive yourself around Azerbaijan. The main roads to Shamakhi, Gabala and Sheki are ordinary surfaced roads, and a normal car does them.

The hard part is not the law, and it is not the main roads. It is the high village roads, the weather on them, and the light at the end of the day.

So here is our honest position. We sell cars with drivers, and we will not pretend you need one for every leg. Drive the easy roads yourself if you like. Hand us the mountain legs. Send your route on WhatsApp and we will tell you which legs need a driver.

The road rules, from the law itself

We took these from Azerbaijan’s Road Traffic Law, in the official legal database. We checked it on 24 September 2026. Laws change, so check again close to your trip.

Rule	What the law says	Where
Side of the road	Keep to the right-hand edge	Article 49
Speed in towns	60 km/h, or more where signed, never above 90	Article 50
Speed in living zones and courtyards	20 km/h	Article 50
Car speed outside towns	90 km/h	Article 50
Car speed on motorways	110 km/h	Article 50
Car speed on toll motorways, where the law applies it	130 km/h	Article 50
Seat belts	Driver and passengers, with a few exceptions	Article 37
Phone	No phone held in the hand while moving	Article 37
Alcohol	No driving while drunk	Article 37
Papers in the car	Licence, registration, compulsory insurance	Article 37
Foreign licence	Valid if issued under agreements Azerbaijan has joined	Article 35-1

The car limits above are for cars and for light vans up to 3.5 tonnes. Towing a trailer brings lower limits. Road signs can also set a lower limit on any stretch, so read the signs first.

Your licence, and what to ask before you fly

The law lets a visitor drive on a valid foreign licence. There is one condition. The licence must be issued under the international road-traffic agreements Azerbaijan has joined.

The law does not print a list of countries. So we will not tell you, for your passport, that your licence is enough.

Ask two questions before you book a car. First, ask the rental company what papers it needs from you. Second, ask the body that issued your licence whether you need an International Driving Permit for Azerbaijan. Their answer is worth more than ours.

How far things really are

These are road distances from Baku, from our own route records. A figure marked “about” is an estimate, because there is more than one road.

From Baku to	Distance	What the road is like
Shamakhi	123 km	Main road
Guba	About 170 km	Main road north
Lahij	180 km	Main road, then a narrow mountain road after Ismayilli
Gusar	About 185 km	Main road north
Shahdag	212 km, the resort’s own figure	Main road, then a mountain section
Gabala	About 225 km	Main road
Khinalug	230 km	Main road, then a real mountain road
Sheki	330 km	Main road
Naftalan	340 km	A full driving day west
Ganja	360 km	A full driving day west

Distance is only half of it. A climbing road with bends takes far longer per kilometre than the flat road out of Baku.

Routes that join up without going back to Baku

Azerbaijan has two arms, and they do not join neatly.

The northwest chain runs through Shamakhi, Ismayilli, Gabala, Sheki and Zagatala. They sit roughly in a line, so each drive is short and each morning starts somewhere new. Our page on western Azerbaijan in three days follows a version of it.

The northern arm is Guba, Gusar, Khinalug and the coast near Khachmaz. Our north in two days plan covers it.

Linking the two arms directly is a long day with little to see. For most trips, a night in Baku between them is the honest answer. Our page on moving between regions explains why.

Where driving yourself is easy

The roads to Gabala, Sheki, Shamakhi and Ismayilli are ordinary main roads for most of their length. They climb gently and they are surfaced. Here “mountain” describes the view, not the driving.

These are the legs where a hire car makes sense. You can stop for photographs, change lunch, and set your own pace. If you are torn between the two big western towns, our Sheki or Gabala page helps you choose.

Where we would hand over the wheel

The high village roads are a different kind of road. The climb to Khinalug is the best known. It has height, drops beside the road, and weather that changes the answer.

Our mountain roads page sorts the easy routes from the hard ones. On the hard ones, a driver who knows the road removes most of the risk. It also means you look at the view, not at the edge.

Light, weather and winter

Do not come down a mountain road in the dark. In winter that means an early start, because the day is short. Our daylight page shows how much light each month has.

Snow, fog and heavy rain all narrow what is sensible on the high roads. The lower main roads are usually open all year. The higher ones depend on snow, and that changes from year to year.

Driving in Baku itself

Baku is a busy capital, and the traffic is confident. Most visitors do not need a car inside the city at all. The centre is small, and the metro covers the rest.

So collect the car on the day you leave Baku, not on the day you land. Our getting around Baku page covers the city without one.

If the road police stop you

The law says what to do. When an officer stops the car, show your licence and the car’s papers. Step out of the car if the officer asks you to.

Keep the papers in one place, so the stop takes a minute. Our page on documents to carry covers your passport as well.

Do not plan across a land border

A road trip here should start and end inside Azerbaijan. When we last checked, on 19 August 2026, Azerbaijan’s land crossings were not open to ordinary tourist road travel.

That position can change, so check it again before you plan. Our Baku to Tbilisi page links the official customs source, and it explains what we arrange instead.

Mixing the two, which most people do

A common trip looks like this. Walk Baku with no car. Drive yourself west along the main road. Then book a driver for one mountain day, such as Khinalug or the road above Gusar.

Our page on travelling with a driver explains what a driver day includes and what to agree first. If you also want someone to explain what you are looking at, read guide or driver first.

Arranging it

Send us your route, your dates and how many people are travelling. Tell us which legs you want to drive yourself.

We will say which legs are easy, which ones we would drive for you, and what time to leave. If a leg does not work on your date, we will say so before you book anything.