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Maiden Tower, Baku

The round stone Maiden Tower in Baku’s Old City at blue hour, above the excavated domed bathhouse and arcades at its foot
Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The essentials in 10 seconds

Ticket (foreign visitors)
Adult 19 AZN, child 5–17 9 AZN
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Opening hours
Every day, 10:00–19:00
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Time on site
A typical visit without queueing. In high season add 15–30 minutes.
45 min
With kids
Fine with kids
Azerbaijani citizens
Adult 5 AZN, student 2.50 AZN, child 5–17 2 AZN
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Under 5s
Not on the price list — unofficially free
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Address
99 Neftchilar Avenue, Icherisheher
officialConfirmed by an official source: the venue, a ministry or the operator.
Coordinates
40.36617, 49.83725YesGo MapGoogleApple
Nearest metro
İçərişəhər, then ≈ 10 minutes’ walk through the Old City
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Access
Stone stairs only — no lift
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.
Payment
Visa and Mastercard widely accepted in Baku; carry some manat cash
verifyingFrom reliable travel sources; we are still checking it against an official one. Double-check before you go.

Key facts

≈ 28 mtall — 28 m on one side and 31 m on the other, as it stands on a rock ledge
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationRussian Wikipedia (English Wikipedia gives 29.5 m)
12th centurydate of the Kufic inscription “Tower of Masud, son of Davud”, 14 m up the wall
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationEnglish and Russian Wikipedia
2000listed by UNESCO with the Walled City and the Shirvanshahs’ Palace
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationEnglish Wikipedia
8 levelseach under a stone dome, linked by a stair inside the wall
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationRussian Wikipedia
16.5 mdiameter at the base
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationEnglish Wikipedia
5 mthick walls at the bottom, about 4 m near the top
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationRussian Wikipedia
1964the year it opened as a museum
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationRussian Wikipedia
21 mdeep well inside the tower, reached from the second level
2 sourcesEnglish WikipediaWhichMuseum
8th–7th c. BCthe earliest date one hypothesis gives for the lower part
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationEnglish Wikipedia
15th centuryKhoja Gayib bathhouse at the tower’s foot, its domes now excavated
2 sourcesIcherisheher Reserve AdministrationAZERTAC

Maiden Tower tickets and opening hours

Foreign adults pay 19 AZN and children aged 5–17 pay 9 AZN; Azerbaijani citizens have a separate, lower rate. The tower is open every day from 10:00 to 19:00, with no weekly closing day. Prices and hours are from the Icherisheher Reserve’s official museum price list.

Tickets are sold at the desk by the entrance — there is no need to book. Online resellers offer timed tickets, but their terms usually rule out cancellation. The Shirvanshahs’ Palace is a separate ticket (24 AZN for foreign visitors), while walking around the Old City itself is free.

Paying: Visa and Mastercard work widely in Baku, in shops, restaurants and ATMs. Carry a little manat cash anyway in case a card terminal is down, and get a BakıKart for the metro.

Is the Maiden Tower worth it?

Yes — for the roof. It is the best close-up view of the Old City you can get: minarets and flat roofs below you, the bay and the Boulevard in front, and the Flame Towers on the hill behind. The climb and the roof take about 45 minutes.

The exhibition on the way up is modest — a few panels and objects on each level. If museums bore you and the price feels steep, enjoy the tower from outside and from the Boulevard, which costs nothing. If you only pay for one Old City sight, choose between the view here and the carved stone of the Shirvanshahs’ Palace.

How to get to the Maiden Tower

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on footdestinationStreet view

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On foot

More tips

  1. Take the metro to İçərişəhər station, paying with a BakıKart.
  2. Cross to the Old City walls and go in through the Double Gates (Qoşa Qala), with the Shirvanshahs’ lions above the arch.
  3. Walk downhill through the lanes towards the sea, heading south-east — about 10 minutes; the tower is easy to spot.
  4. The entrance faces 99 Neftchilar Avenue, beside the excavated bathhouse at the tower’s foot.
  5. Coming from the Baku Boulevard? Cross Neftchilar Avenue — the tower stands right opposite, behind the city wall.

What’s inside the Maiden Tower

  • Eight levels under shallow stone domes, each with a small display on the tower, the Old City and its excavations.
  • The well — 21 m deep, opening from the second level; it let the tower hold out without going outside for water.
  • Slit windows that widen inwards, showing just how thick the walls are.
  • The stair — stone, steep and narrow in places, so you will wait for people coming down.
  • The roof — an open deck behind glass panels, with the bay, the Boulevard, the Old City’s minarets and the Flame Towers all around.
  • A gift shop with books and miniature towers.

How old is the Maiden Tower, and who built it?

Nobody knows for certain. A Kufic inscription 14 m up the wall reads “Tower of Masud, son of Davud”, and its lettering points to the 12th century. Whether Masud built the tower or only repaired it is disputed.

The upper part looks like the central tower of the 6th-century Chirag Gala fortress, so many scholars think the tower went up in two stages: a smooth lower section about 12 m high, possibly very ancient, and a later top above the stone belt. The boldest theory puts the lower part in the 8th–7th centuries BC. The Icherisheher Reserve presents both views, and so do we.

What it was for is just as unclear: fortress, fire temple, observatory, lighthouse or a Zoroastrian “tower of silence”. The 5 m walls and the internal well suggest defence; the awkward layout and the few, upward-facing windows do not. It has been a museum since 1964 and part of the UNESCO-listed Walled City since 2000.

Why is it called the Maiden Tower? The legend

The most likely explanation is plain: “maiden” (qız) was used for a fortress that had never been taken — untouched, impregnable. This is an unofficial explanation, but the most widely repeated one.

The legend everyone tells is more dramatic. A shah wanted to marry his daughter off to a man she did not love; she asked him first to build her a tower, and when it was finished and he would not relent, she climbed to the top and threw herself into the sea. The reserve also records versions about a girl with a fiery sword who saved the besieged city, and a shah’s daughter in love with a fisherman who walked across the waves to her.

All the stories put the sea at the foot of the tower, and the roof is still the best place in the Old City to look out over the Caspian. None of them can be proved — pick your favourite.

Best photo spots

For the whole tower, stand on the square at its foot, by the fence around the excavated domes of the Khoja Gayib bathhouse and the old arches — tower and domes fit in one frame. From the Boulevard across the avenue you get the tower rising above the city wall. At blue hour it is floodlit — the most striking shot of the day.

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Maiden Tower vs Shirvanshahs’ Palace vs an Old City walk

Maiden Toweryou are hereTower museum of disputed age19 AZN10:00–19:00 dailyThe rooftop view≈ 45 min
Shirvanshahs’ Palace15th-century palace complex24 AZN10:00–19:00 dailyStone carving, mausoleum, bathhouse1–1.5 h
Old City walkWalled town with lanes and mosquesFreeAlways openAtmosphere, gates, caravanserais2 h or more

Paying for just one? Pick the tower for the view, the palace for history and architecture. You will walk through the Old City either way — both are inside it.

Baku’s historic sights compared

Every historic sight in Baku rated by YesGo. Tap a column heading to sort.

Maiden Toweryou are here5245 min19 AZN for foreign visitors—
Old City (Icherisheher)513 hFree3 min walk
Palace of the Shirvanshahs451 h 15 min24 AZN for foreign visitors6 min walk
Flame Towers and Highland Park431 hFree21 min walk
Baku Boulevard421 h 30 minFree12 min walk
Heydar Aliyev Center411 h 30 min15 AZN; classic cars +10 AZN4.1 km
Azerbaijan Carpet Museum371 h 30 min10 AZN for foreigners, students 3 AZN12 min walk
Ateshgah Fire Temple281 h15 AZN for foreign visitors15.5 km
Gobustan rock art and mud volcanoes193 h≈ 10–15 AZN, volcanoes extra47.8 km

Old City and seafront in half a day

The Shirvanshahs’ Palace at the top of the Old City, downhill to the Maiden Tower, the Boulevard by the sea and the Carpet Museum in its rolled-carpet building. Add them in one tap — YesGo fits in the timing and transfers.

  1. Palace of the Shirvanshahs1 h 15 min · 24 AZN for foreign visitors
  2. 6 min walk from the previous stopMaiden Toweryou are here45 min · 19 AZN for foreign visitors
  3. 12 min walk from the previous stopBaku Boulevard1 h 30 min · Free
  4. 3 min walk from the previous stopAzerbaijan Carpet Museum1 h 30 min · 10 AZN for foreigners, students 3 AZN

4 places · about 5 h 21 min with walks · 21 min on foot in total

Go · my route

Nearby — add to your day

Old City (Icherisheher)

Baku, Azerbaijan

3 h · Free entry, museums from 10 ₼ · 3 min walk

Palace of the Shirvanshahs

Baku, Azerbaijan

1 h 15 min · 24 AZN for foreign visitors · 6 min walk

Baku Boulevard

Baku, Azerbaijan

1 h 30 min · Free · 12 min walk

Azerbaijan Carpet Museum

Baku, Azerbaijan

1 h 30 min · 10 AZN for foreigners, students 3 AZN · 12 min walk

How to do it right

  • Climb on a clear day — in haze the bay and the Flame Towers fade out.
  • Start at the Shirvanshahs’ Palace on the hilltop and walk down to the tower — it is downhill all the way.
  • If steep steps are hard for you, the outside and the view from the Boulevard are enough — there is no lift.
  • After dark, see the floodlit tower from the Baku Boulevard for free.
  • Children 5–17 need their own ticket; leave the pushchair at the bottom.
  • A guided Old City walk usually starts here and makes sense of the theories and legends.

Questions

How much is the Maiden Tower ticket?

19 AZN for foreign adults and 9 AZN for children aged 5–17. Azerbaijani citizens pay 5 AZN.

What are the Maiden Tower opening hours?

Every day from 10:00 to 19:00, with no weekly closing day.

Is the Maiden Tower in Baku worth visiting?

Yes, for the rooftop view over the Old City and the bay. The exhibition inside is small, so if you skip it, see the tower from outside for free.

How long do you need at the Maiden Tower?

About 45 minutes for the climb, the levels and the roof.

Can you go to the top of the Maiden Tower?

Yes, the roof is open to ticket holders. The only way up is a stone stair — there is no lift.

How old is the Maiden Tower?

Unknown. An inscription dates to the 12th century, but some scholars believe the lower part is much older, even 8th–7th century BC.

Why is it called the Maiden Tower?

Most likely because “maiden” meant a fortress never captured. The legend of a princess who jumped into the sea came later.

How do I get to the Maiden Tower?

Metro to İçərişəhər, enter the Old City through the Double Gates and walk downhill for about 10 minutes. From the Boulevard, just cross Neftchilar Avenue.

How tall is the Maiden Tower?

About 28 m — 31 m on the lower side of its rock ledge. The diameter is 16.5 m.

Have you been? Was it worth your time?

1 — no, 5 — absolutely

Your vote counts towards the YesGo score.

Sources and fact-check

  • Icherisheher State Historical-Architectural Reserve Administration: Museums — hours, address and price list, 02.11.2026
  • Icherisheher Reserve Administration: monument page “Qız qalası” — dimensions, dating, hypotheses and legends
  • English and Russian Wikipedia: Maiden Tower (Baku); Wikidata Q842822
  • WhichMuseum: Baku’s Maiden Tower: Azerbaijan’s Ancient Mystery on the Caspian
  • AZERTAC: on the Khoja Gayib bathhouse by the Maiden Tower
  • Travelto: How to pay in Baku in 2026
YesGo editorial team · facts checked 02.11.2026 ·
How we checkedPrices, hours and the address come from the official Icherisheher Reserve price list and museum page. Other facts are checked against at least two sources. The height differs — the reserve and Russian Wikipedia give 28 m (31 m on the other side of the ledge), English Wikipedia 29.5 m — so we say “about 28 m”. We show both dating theories, as the reserve does. Free entry for under-5s, the lack of a lift, card payment and the walk from the metro are marked “verifying”.

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