Yanar Dag

Azerbaijan is the land of fire, and Yanar Dag is the literal version: a stretch of hillside where natural gas seeps up through porous sandstone and burns in a continuous wall of flame a couple of metres high, running along the base of the slope. It has reportedly burned without interruption for decades, and similar eternal fires across the Absheron peninsula fed Zoroastrian fire worship for centuries - the Ateshgah fire temple nearby was built around another such vent. The flames are most striking after dark, when the whole slope glows and the heat is felt from the viewing terrace.

What you actually see

• The burning hillside - the continuous wall of flame at the slope's base.
• Evening visits - the fire at its most dramatic after dark.
• The site museum - the geology and fire-worship history.
• Ateshgah fire temple - the Zoroastrian and Hindu temple nearby, built on another vent.

When to go

Year round, and best at dusk or after dark when the flames dominate. Winter adds drama with cold air and mist around the fire. Combine with Ateshgah in one half-day trip from Baku.

Honest expectations

It is small - a stretch of flame perhaps ten metres long, viewed from a terrace, and visitors expecting a volcanic spectacle are often deflated. The entry price feels steep for what it is. Going after dark roughly doubles the impression. The site is heavily developed now with a modern visitor centre, which some find removes the mystery.

Nearby

Ateshgah fire temple, the Absheron peninsula's mud volcanoes and Baku.