Azernews.Az

By Amina Nazarli

Baku has turned out one of the Top 5 cities in terms of popularity of trips among Russian tourists on weekends.

Analytical agency TurStat identified cities that are popular for travel on weekends this summer.

Minsk, Prague, Tbilisi, Baku, Tallinn, Riga, Vilnius, Yerevan, Barcelona and Rome make up the Top 10 cities that are popular for trips this summer weekend.

The rating is based on the analysis of the online booking systems of hotels.

Russian tourists come for an average of 2.5 days on summer holidays in Baku and spend $85 per day on rest, according to TurStat.

Russian tourists are especially attracted by the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan, which will be held from June 23 to 25 in Baku, and the "Zhara" music festival scheduled for July 27-30.

The Top 5 Russian cities popular among tourists on weekends include St. Petersburg, Kazan, Moscow, Kaliningrad and Nizhny Novgorod.

Unique culture and history, delicious food and wine and plenty of adventures are awaiting travelers in Azerbaijan.

The capital Baku is on the Caspian Sea, but also home to oil drilling derricks and futuristic skyscrapers. The Caucasus Mountains are as earthy as you can get, peppered with traditional elevated villages such as Lahic, where subsistence farming and traditional art forms still alive. And then there is fire everywhere. From the permanently alight natural gas ‘flaming mountain’ of Yanardag to fire worshippers’ temple Ateshgah, both on the Absheron Peninsula. And as for air, just head to the omnipresent mountains, ideal for visiting any time of year, whether summer or winter.

But beyond its nature, which is key reason for the tourism, the people of Azerbaijan are wonderfully welcoming and hospitable.

Neighboring Russians choose Azerbaijan as their travel destination for many reasons. First of all the Land of Fire does not require visa for Russian tourists to enjoy the country.

Azerbaijan is also a perfect destination for Russian tourists, because of its people’s very friendly attitude towards Russia. Here Russian-speaking tourists have no problem with communication, as Azerbaijanis speak Russian well enough to help with any difficulties.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli

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