Karavan Rent A Car in Baku Publishes a Shirvan National Park Guide and Corrects a Common Error About the Distance

Karavan Rent A Car in Baku has published a detailed guide to Shirvan National Park in its Travelers Club section — one of the least covered natural sites near the capital, and home to the country’s largest goitered gazelle population.

The piece specifically corrects a widespread online inaccuracy: the phrase “gazelles an hour from Baku” is not accurate. The real distance to the park is 90 to 130 kilometres depending on the starting point and entrance used, and the drive takes an hour and a half to two hours. The company notes that for trips built around early-morning wildlife observation, this difference matters materially when planning the day.

The central part of the guide covers the population recovery story. In 1961, 77 gazelles remained across the entire Shirvan plain. By 1969 the number had grown to 400, and on 30 April that year the Shirvan State Reserve was established across 17,700 hectares. By 1986 the population had reached around 4,800, and on 5 July 2003 presidential decree No. 1298 converted the reserve into a national park covering 54,373.5 hectares. Today, population estimates within the park itself range from six to nine thousand animals.

The company highlights that Shirvan effectively functions as a donor herd: hundreds of gazelles from here have been resettled into Absheron and Ag-Gel National Parks, the Ajinohur steppe, the Ilisu and Korchay reserves, and Vashlovani National Park in Georgia.

The practical section includes details rarely found in tourist write-ups: gazelle observation works best at dawn, and in autumn the herding index runs 9 to 10 times higher than in spring and summer, with an average herd size of 15 to 17 animals. A national park ticket costs 2 manat per person, the same for Azerbaijani citizens and foreigners, and visitors can drive into the park in their own vehicle — this self-drive safari format is what the company cites as the main reason the trip requires your own car: there is no direct public transport, and no scheduled service arrives by sunrise.

Read the full guide, covering wildlife, seasons and practical advice, on the company’s website. Reach Karavan Rent A Car in Baku by phone, WhatsApp, or Telegram at +994-55-455-22-45.