A Desert Excursion to the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex, Azerbaijan.
December 2024.
*Recently I collaborated with Bag Baku, one of Azerbaijan’s leading tour companies. The project was to experience some of Azerbaijan’s greatest natural, historical and cultural treasures before writing up honest, detailed accounts of my experience. Thanks to Bag Baku co-founder Sabina Gasimova for the opportunity*
The car pulled up outside our Baku base, The Zumrud Residence, at nine o’clock con the dot, just as agreed. There were two guys inside, one of whom quickly jumped out as we emerged from the entrance gates.
“Hello, I am Rajab!” said the man, a compact Azerbaijani with a tidy, closely cropped beard and moustache. “I’ll be your guide today. This is Emin” he smiled, pointing inside the car. “He’s gonna do the driving, keep us all safe”.
The Zumrud Residence in Baku.
With the journey underway, Rajab certainly wasted no time in laying out the day’s itinerary. Our destination was Gobustan State Historical and Cultural Reserve, Azerbaijan’s absorbing desert region located 64km southwest of the capital. Whizzing down the E119 highway, Baku soon melted away while Rajab supplied a potted history of the desert landscape as it unfurled from our windows.
A Desert Excursion to the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Gobustan whooshing by.
Inhabited since the Palaeolithic era, Gobustan stands as an open air museum of Azerbaijan’s prehistoric culture. Indeed it is home to the country’s UNESCO-stamped rock carvings and petroglyphs, some of which are forty thousand years old.
Gobustan National Park: en route to the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Moreover, the region boasts a treasure trove of archaeological finds as well as the highest concentration of mud volcanoes on earth. “You gonna see all this today” smiled Rajab, as we progressed deeper into the desert.
Emin doing his thing.
“Gobustan is beautiful, but the land is infertile” Rajab told us, explaining why the region is thinly populated. “You can’t grow much here, if you try and dig you’re just gonna hit clay”. This, in addition to a lack of fresh water and harsh weather conditions during the summer and winter, means that today Gobustan’s economic activity mostly revolves around tourism.
Gobustan: a majestic landscape. A Desert Excursion to the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
In recent years the Azerbaijani government has invested heavily in Gobustan, not least with its brand new exhibition centre, the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex. In fact, the facility had opened just five months earlier in the summer of 2024.
Touring Gobustan with Bag Baku Tours.
The Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Its crap name aside (could they have come up with anything more uninspiring?), the centre offers fabulous insight into Gobustan’s natural history, petrology, art and cultural impact. And while I’m excited to get into all that with you, there can be no doubt about what people really want to see when they come here. Yes, it’s the mud volcanoes themselves!
The Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
A boardwalk loop connecting two sides of the museum takes visitors outside into an arresting stretch of Gobustan desert. It doesn’t take longer than about ten minutes to complete the walk, but there are some magnificent mud volcanoes to stop and admire along the way.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
As Rajab enthusiastically explained, Azerbaijan has between 350-400 mud volcanoes, with the vast majority located in Gobustan. That’s approximately 30% of the world’s mud volcanoes. Thus one can consider Gobustan Planet Earth’s mud volcano capital!
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
As vessels of natural gas, methane and a cocktail of various hydrocarbons, mud volcanoes have long given geologists precious information about Earth; particularly how gases and oils are formed.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Baby volcano.
It was absolutely magical to see how the volcanoes gently bubbled away in front of us. Sometimes creating a gooey stream of mud extending out from the main pool towards the edge of the boardwalk.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Watching the volcanoes weave their magic, it was no surprise when Rajab revealed that for centuries Azerbaijanis have considered them mystical and sacred formations. What’s more, they are held in high regard by folk who suffer from skin complaints and joint disorders.
Healing powers?
As a result, thousands of people come to the region every year to receive volcano mud treatment against the likes of arthritis and rheumatism. The mud’s rich minerals, including sulfur and magnesium, help to sooth sore muscles, improve blood circulation and reduce stiffness, swelling and redness.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Regarding skin treatment, volcano mud is fantastic at combatting acne and eczema. Its texture acts as an effective exfoliant that removes dead skin cells. It’s a kick-ass deep cleanser too, drawing out toxins, excess oils and other impurities in the skin. Curious to see if this really works or is just hogwash? You can find out by picking up a bottle of volcano mud in the centre’s gift shop.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Mud… mud… get your mud right here.
It was bloody freezing out there on the boardwalk! Make no mistake, late December in Gobustan is no joke, with temperatures of just a few degrees and a cutting wind coming in off the Caspian Sea. One of us at least had clearly come prepared.
Nicely wrapped up.
In contrast, muggins here had foolishly left his jacket back in the car.
I’m crying inside.
Not that either of us were going to let the cold spoil the mood. Rather, we simply savoured the moment, realising that we were the only people there taking in this otherworldly desert and its frosted volcanoes.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Looking back, I definitely appreciate how Rajab left us to our own devices and didn’t rush us in any way as we took our time to soak up the atmosphere.
Volcanic shadows.
Volcanic selfie.
Keen to warm up, we headed into the centre where a small exhibition lays out everything one might want to know about the history of Azerbaijan’s mud volcanoes.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Furthermore, a photography exhibit shows off some of the most impressive mud volcanoes across the country.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
There’s also a collection of Gobustan’s most spectacular rock formations.
Gobustan Rocks.
Conglomerate (left) & amethyst (right).
In another room we came upon a fantastic gallery of local art. Depicting mud volcanoes, desert landscapes and traditional Azerbaijani architecture, Rajab proudly told us how several artists create their paintings using natural Gobustan oil.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Next we entered a giant hall home to a staggering collection of animal skeletons. Showcasing Gobustan’s rich biodiversity, there are around one hundred reconstructed skeletons on display.
Impressive: No “bones” about it.
One of the most fascinating is the remains of the now extinct Azerbaijani Giant Binagadi rhinoceros. According to the accompanying blurb, it lived around 55000 years ago and was a close relative to the wooly rhino. Scientists discovered this beast’s skeleton near Baku in 1938 at the village of Binagadi.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
However, the prize for Best Skeleton goes to a certain movie star lion. You see, this is the skeleton of the world famous lion owned by the eccentric Berberov family of Baku. Lev Lvovich Berberov, a renowned Soviet architect, adopted the lion from Baku Zoo in the Soviet Union during the summer of 1970.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
Having been horribly neglected at the zoo, they named their pet lion King, before nursing him back to full health in their apartment. Truly he became one of the family: eating at the dinner table, sleeping in their beds, going for walk in the park and joining his human friends on vacation. Soon, everyone in Baku was talking about the local lion.
King I Berberov. “Look Ma, no hands”.
Consequently media interest mushroomed, with journalists from all over the world coming to report on the unusual lives of The Berberovs and their adopted lion. Eventually, King became so popular he landed parts in numerous movies, such as Unbelievable Adventures of Italians in Russia.
I guess somebody thought it was a good idea at the time.
Unfortunately, the story of King and the Berberovs ended with multiple tragedies. In 1973 a police officer fatally shot King after he attacked a boy in Moscow. Later, the family bought another lion, whom they named King II.
But this new lion proved nowhere near as tame as its predecessor and in 1980 the beast was also shot after he mauled and killed the Berberovs’ 14 year old son Roman. Mama Nina Berberova, also caught up in the incident, luckily survived.
Nina Berberova.
Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex.
With our explorations of the complex done, Sladja and I joined Rajab and Emin in the onsite cafe. We had coffee, they drank tea as we all warmed up and a more informal chitchat broke out between us.
Rajab caught by my lens when he least expected it.
We’d certainly had a blast touring the centre and seeing its mud volcanoes. And yet… we both wanted to experience a more… shall we say… wild mud volcano adventure. Prior to arriving in Azerbaijan we’d excitedly read about such an opportunity. And that’s where we were heading next…
*This experience was part of Bag Baku’s private full day tour of the Gobustan Mud Volcanoes, Gobustan petroglyphs, Fire Temple and Burning Mountain*.
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65 Comments
I’ve never seen a mud volcano before, what a curious formation. The museum looks quite interesting and the pet lion story is mental. What were they thinking? Not once, but twice. The oil paintings are quite remarkable and a unique souvenir from Baku. I think I’m most impressed by this barren, windswept desert landscape. It look really really cold.
Hey Helena, thanks for kicking off today’s comment thread 🙂 They are indeed fascinating creations of Mother Nature eh? If we’d had deeper pockets and the space in our suitcases we might have been tempted by the Azerbaijani houses painting, but alas. The stupidity of the Berberovs is something hard to imagine, the term “playing with fire” doesn’t even begin to cover it. It was absolutely freezing on the boardwalk but as you will see in Sunday’s post things actually got worse in that regard.
What an awesome opportunity and due to the December cold, you appear to have had the whole place to yourself. While we have seen a lot of boiling mud pots in New Zealand, we apparently missed their mud volcano in the North—something for next time. The story about the lion(s) has a moral in there somewhere, I am sure. Have a great Sunday Leighton. Allan
Hey Allan, happy Sunday. It was a wonderful opportunity and yes, due to the time of the year, there were very few other visitors around. I didn’t know New Zealand has a few mud volcanoes too, do you think you might get back there again someday?
Ok, pretty cool place Leighton, a very unique place to take a date!
Hmm, perhaps an option if you are Azerbaijani yes. “My love for you is like a mud volcano…. bubbling over baby!” Thanks for checking in, Chuckster.
“A mud pack can’t keep the two of us apart!’
what a great opportunity leighton no wonder you embraced it. i know i am biased but they couldn’t have chosen a more skilled and conscientious blogger. gobustan looks like an intriguing part of the country thank you for giving me my first lesson in the mud volcano (how did i not know about this before?) your bag baku guides clearly took good care of you a whole lot better than the idiotic berberovs with their own children! you now have me itching to see that ludicrous italians in russia film. the cliffhanger about an additional mud volcano experience makes me even more keen than usual to read your next post
Such kind words Stan. To be honest I wasn’t all that familiar with mud volcanoes before coming to Azerbaijan so the whole shebang was quite enlightening. We were expecting good things from Bag Baku, who are generally considered to be the best tour operator in town and featured in a clutch of top blogs such as Wanderlush etc. Happily it was a really memorable day with Rajab and Emin as the next articles will hopefully show. The Berberovs? I’d be “lion” if I said I understood why they adopted those beasts.
What a bizarre landscape. I’ve seen mud pots before, I’m not sure of the difference between them and mud volcanoes. We have this spot on our list for Azerbaijan this spring. Is it worth a trip from Baku? It looks like it from your description. Maggie
Hey Maggie! As far as I can tell there are some distinct aspects to pick out between mud pots and volcanoes. Mud pots tend to be hot, mud volcanoes cold (or warm at best). While the pots are made up of steam, hydrogen and sulphide, volcanoes methane (eww) and hydrocarbons. I would say that the Gobustan day trip is definitely worth it, as my next three posts hopefully show! Please do drop us an email (could even do a video call) about Georgia / Azerbaijan / Armenia if there’s anything you want to chew the fat about. Your travels for the upcoming spring sound really exciting.
Nice to see something so recent in your travel diary. I wasn’t really aware that mud volcanoes were a thing so that’s pretty cool. The skeletons seem incredibly well preserved as well.
I think quite a few people on the thread (as well as myself before planning our trip to Azerbaijan) are gonna be hearing about mud volcanoes for the first time. It was a great trip, thanks for checking in.
This is the kind of stuff that always fascinates me. Thanks for sharing.
Glad Azerbaijan’s mud volcanoes were of interest Mallee. There will be an additional mud volcano post out next Sunday.
Look forward to it
What an absolutely incredible landscape, and I’m so enjoying learning a bit more about Azerbaijan via your posts. “I’m dying inside” made me chuckle, I’m glad you survived the cold – it looks bitter in that wind!
Azerbaijan was full of surprises over the course of our two weeks based in Baku. Would’ve liked to stay longer but alas two weeks is all the visa allows (without applying for an official extension which we couldn’t be bothered with). Thanks for checking in Hannah, there’ll be more mud volcanoes next weekend.
Amazing opportunity Leighton, you’ve now got me thinking on what other cultural treasures you experienced with Rajab and co. The landscape is hypnotic I think, the volcanoes themselves unworldly. As a sufferer of eczema I would be interested in trying out a bottle of the mud did you buy any?
Hey James, glad you enjoyed the article. This is the first of five posts on my adventures with Bag Baku, so plenty more to come over the next month. Hypnotic is a good word to describe the Gobustan desert, you could lose yourself staring into its expanse with the gentle slopes of the mud volcanoes. I did not buy a bottle of the mud and immediately regretted it after leaving the complex. You see, I suffer from patches of eczema too! I had meant to grab a bottle but in the excitement of the day it slipped my mind.
What an otherworldly landscape! Who would’ve thought that Azerbaijan is the mud volcano capital of the world? I’ve yet to touch down in Azerbaijan (I’d hoped to go whilst in Georgia a few years prior, but Azerbaijan required a visa, and I was on a time crunch), but now I really need to go now! Thanks for sharing, Leighton 🙂
Thanks for joining me on the start of this Azerbaijan series Rebecca. Yes the visa is a little annoying, as is the two-week validity. We were hoping to stay for at least a month but had to make do with the fortnight on offer.
What a fascinating experience Leighton and worth shivering for!
Thanks Marion, it was indeed worth all those chattered teeth.
What an amazing, intriguing, unique place. That would absolutely definitely be on our agenda if and when we ever visit Azerbaijan. We’d love it. Love places like this, where reminders of the power and mystique of the natural world really hit home. As for the Lion….well, don’t mess with that power of nature huh. Terrific place, very interested to read what the next step is, alluded to in your last paragraph.
Thanks Phil, I mentioned to Sladja that this would be right up your street (along with Maggie and Richard from Monkey’s Tale who I believe are heading out that way in the spring). This day tour will be covered in full over the next four articles, so plenty more to come ahead of next week’s second piece on the mud volcanoes.
Thanks for bringing back great memories. Wish the museum was there when we visited.
Steve.
Thank you Steven, I appreciate the read and the comment. The complex is well laid-out and a great introduction to the delights of Azerbaijani mud volcanoes. But I’m perhaps more excited about sharing next week’s post which was definitely more of a wild adventure. Perhaps that will resonate more with your own experiences, not sure.
Leighton, I second Steven’s comment about your post bringing back some great memories. Also interesting to see that a tourist complex was built to draw in more tourists and magnify the experience.
Here’s a link to what I posted about our 2018 visit as I think you might enjoy seeing what the area looked like then. https://bergersadventures6.blogspot.com/search/label/Baku
Hey Annie, thanks so much for reading and sharing the link. I really enjoyed reading your account, seeing how your experience was different and noticing some similarities. 90 minutes driving around the city picking people would have p-d me off too. Although you went to a different stretch of the Gobustan desert I’d say my next post (out on Sunday) was a bit more like your experience compared to the official complex.
“Muggins” 🤣🤣🤣 You do look like you were crying on the inside. We’ve all been there! Haha. Such a fascinating landscape. I remember buying mud from the Dead Sea and using it at home for a while until I ran out – it did make the skin feel good. If I ever get here I’ll have to buy more mud supplies!
Love the idea of “Dead” Sea mud being a revitalising thing. More and more I’m thinking I should have grabbed a bottle of the mud. If you ever get there grab one for me, cheers Anna.
What a desolate but enchanting landscape. I’ve seen a mud volcano in Yellow Stone National Park. It had boiling mud/water. In Costa Rica I’ve also taken a bath in a muddy hot spring that was fed by a mud volcano. It was the always active real volcano, the Arenal volcano that was connected to all of that. However, I’ve never been to Gobustan State Historical and Cultural Reserve or Azerbaijan. It would be a very cool place to visit.
It would be cool to experience a sample of the world’s mud pots and volcanoes for sure. And just another excuse to visit Yellowstone, which is firmly on our list. Thanks for reading about our visit to the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex Thomas.
Let’s see. Inhospitable weather, infertile soil, can’t grow crops, clay subsoil. How ever can we make a living. I know – tourism. Your early photos certainly make the landscape look empty and windswept. The volcanoes are fascinating. I kept searching for visual clues to indicate relative size but must have missed them. The zoology section of the museum would have been worth a stop. Nothing like old bones. Glad to hear in the comment section that you will be devoting several installments to the all day tour. Sounds promising – just don’t forget your mittens (on a string so you don’t lose one.
I didn’t even have a ‘proper’ pair of gloves until we got to London, definitely underestimated the elements during our time in Azerbaijan. Thanks for checking in to this new series Memo, there are some grand adventures ahead.
It looks like a pretty interesting place, I’m sure seeing the mud volcanoes up close was pretty cool. I like that the complex also has others things to enjoy such as the photos, art and skeletons. Also those pesky blue skies can be very deceiving! Hopefully you remember a jacket next time you’re exploring in Azerbaijan in December 😉
Great to see the lesser-spotted Jason Likes to Travel back on comment threads. Are you back for the long haul? Glad you enjoyed this look at Azerbaijani mud volcanoes; I suspect you’ll also like Sunday’s concluding mud volcano post where our exploring was a bit risky. I can still feel how bloody biting that cold wind was as I wandered around jacketless.
That is the plan! Haha. I’ve started 2025 on the right track and hopefully I’ll be more active again this year. I’ll keep a lookout for the next part of the mud volcano adventure on Sunday!
There’s definitely some beauty in the rugged, otherworldly landscape of the mud volcanoes area. It reminds me a bit of the mud pots in Yellowstone National Park. I wonder if the claims of miracle cures for various ailments actually work. As for the lion – seriously? I appreciate their concern for the poor thing when it was neglected at the zoo, but bringing it into their home?? There’s no scenario where that could end well. Interesting post, Leighton!
You are the second reader to mention Yellowstone, I had no idea they have mud volcanoes there. People seem to swear by the healing effects volcano mud has on the skin. But then again… people… so I understand and share your cynicism. I really should have picked up a bottle so I could’ve provided a first hand account. Thanks for checking in at the start of this new series Tricia.
Interesting. I have never been but added it to my bucket list.
Thanks for reading!
Everything seems well organised, perhaps a little too well.
“too organised” ha ha. In that case I suspect you may prefer the mud volcano experience detailed in my post out this coming Sunday. I’m not sure which one I actually preferred but as experiences they were definitely chalk and cheese.
How cool! I’ve seen mud volcanoes in Yellowstone National Park but I didn’t know where else in the world they were located. And these ones definitely look different from the ones in Yellowstone.
A third mention for Yellowstone! Mud volcanoes seem to be positioned in such curiously disparate locations around the world. If we ever make it to Yellowstone (and I feel we must) I would be really interested to see how they compare. Thanks for your comment Diana!
I’m typically not a fan of mud while hiking, but I must say, mud volcanoes are pretty cool. And I love how there’s a boardwalk so you don’t even have to get muddy to enjoy the bubbling mud. Beautiful captures of the terrain. It looks otherworldly.
Not a fan of getting muddy while hiking eh? I’m looking forward to your reaction to my next post. The boardwalk definitely offers a sense of protection to both visitors and the volcanoes themselves. Next week’s mud volcano post shows a um…. different setup. Otherworldly describes it well, we both loved Gobustan’s unusual landscapes.
I’m intrigued!! Looking forward to hearing about what you mean by a wild mud volcano adventure!
What an incredible tour to get to be a part of! It is so interesting to read about the mud volcanoes and how they have created such a dynamic landscape. I don’t know if I would be brave enough to get in one for a spa day, but I could happily wander around that area marveling at the volcanoes. I am like others who have commented that it put me in mind of Yellowstone and the mud pot area there. Great post Leighton 🙂
I’m also not sure about bathing in a mud volcano. Maybe if it was just Sladja and I and we could chill for a bit rather than the usual “whoo hoo!” vibe with alcohol, blasting music and all the usual crap that has to be put alongside these things. Damn, gotta get to Yellowstone one day, thanks for reading Meg!
This sounds like a fascinating day out, especially seeing that other-world-like landscape of mud volcanoes! I wasn’t really aware of that term before reading this. I see others have likened it to Yellowstone and I can see the resemblance too 🙂
Thanks for reading about Azerbaijan’s mud volcanoes Sarah. This was very much the “official” view, next week’s post looks at some remote volcanoes and the shenanigans involved in seeking them out.
Such an interesting landscape and a unique day out in Baku. The pet lion story is wild! No pun intended. I checked out the linked site for other photos. Really crazy
Thanks for checking this post out Amarachi, I’m sure there is a stretch of Gobustan desert that has you and a well-chosen dress written all over it!
Haha! You’re not wrong! I can see it too!
Wow, this area sounds really interesting, and the mud volcanoes look beautiful. I am impressed at the health benefits they provide as well, very neat!
So glad you enjoyed the post Allie, thanks for reading and commenting.
I’ve seen a few deserts before (mostly with sand dunes), but this desert is quite unique. I assume the mud volcanoes are cold mud – one would involuntarily think it must be hot. As I read about the thousands of people who come especially for the healing mud – it reminds me of the elephants in the Addo National Park that we visited last year and throw mud over their bodies with their trunks to serve as protection from the hot sun. So, maybe there is some truth in of the healing powers of mud.
Ha 😁, it definitely looks like Sladja came a little more prepared for the cold (maybe because she knows about cold weather?). The story of the lion is very interesting – but just another proof that wild animals belong where they are supposed to be – in the wild.
You are spot on about the mud being cold Corna. Quite a few people assume they must be warm or hot, but it’s not the case. I have also witnessed the joyful sight of an elephant spraying themselves with mud, if it’s good enough for them… As for #jacketgate I simply left it in the car by mistake, so had to suffer the consequences ha. Wild animals should be in the wild yes, the Berberovs were playing with fire from day one.
Good timing, since the complex just opened. I didn’t know much about Azerbaijan so this was quite interesting. The mud volcanoes reminded me of the mudpots in Yellowstone (U.S.), but those were not on mountains! The pet lions story was creepy.
Before these comment threads I didn’t know about the Yellowstone mud pots. Surely one to add to our list. It was cool to be amid the first wave of visitors to the centre, everything still had that fresh shiny feel to it. Moral of the story: leave lions in the wild!
wow.. this is beautiful ..
Thanks.