Attending any F1 race is a huge bucket-list item, and watching the Grand Prix in Baku, Azerbaijan, was no exception! This was the second race that I watched live, with the first being in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in 2024. We travelled to Baku in 2025 and stayed in the city for just about the full month of September. With Baku being a city circuit, it was cool to see the city transform throughout the month. We walked parts of the track, ventured through the general admission areas, and explored how to get to our seats in the couple of weeks before the race began! There are certainly a few things to keep in mind ahead of attending this F1 race. From getting your visa to watch the F1 race in Baku to local recommendations of things to do, this article is for you!
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Watching F1 in Baku: A Crucial Visa Guide for Travellers
After deciding that you want to attend the F1 race in Baku, your first step will be to apply for your visa. As we are Canadian, the e-Visa permitted a single entry with a maximum stay of 30 days. The visa was valid for use for 90 days after approval and was issued within approximately 3 working days of applying (standard e-Visa). Be sure to check your visa requirements ahead of time!
We paid $30.00 USD per person for each of our e-Visas in 2025, and they were both issued in 3 days. Applying for the visa was overall a smooth process. We applied online and received emails confirming our payment and again when the e-Visa was ready.
Now, a big lesson we learned almost by accident (because we failed to read the fine print on our e-Visas) was that if you stay longer than 15 days, you have to register your stay with the Migration Services Department. If you fail to do so, you will be fined upon leaving the country.
Since we were staying for almost a month, we needed to register our stay. Typically, your hotel will do this for you. As we were staying in an Airbnb, we contacted our host, who was able to complete this on our behalf before we reached 15 days. He sent us a picture of the documents that he completed, and this was sufficient for us.
We really only discovered this while talking with a tour operator in Baku city, who informed us about this when we were discussing our stay. We then double-checked our visas, and yup, it’s there! So lesson learned – be sure to read the fine print and talk with your hotel/accomdation host if you are staying more than 15 days.
NOTE: This might now be updated to 10 days. You should double check while arriving into immigration/contacting your accommodation regarding this.
My Honest Review of the F1 in Baku City Circuit
Watching an F1 race at the Baku City Circuit is simply an amazing experience. Since the race takes place in the city itself, we were easily able to walk to the track and our seats each day. It was only about a 30-minute walk from our apartment to our seats! There are plenty of signs around the city to help you navigate your way to the track, plus you’ll see tons of fans around the city walking in their fan gear.
We sat in the Sahil Grandstand and LOVED our view of the track. This location is unique as you see two different parts of the track at the same time! We saw turns 5 and 6, along with the straight part of the track leading up to turn 1. It’s a smaller seating stand, but it was packed. The seats are standard, and we had no covering over us. There was a large TV directly across the track, where you were able to watch the race.
The weather is great in September in Baku. The temperature is in the lower 20s, making it perfect to be comfortable outside for the weekend. It was cool enough outside to wear jeans and a light jacket. Wearing light layers is the way to go!
Pro Tip: If you want to wear some cool fan gear, then create your own! We made our race t-shirts at a local print shop called Print.az. We loved creating our t-shirts, and even another fan asked us where we got ours! They were quite affordable and only cost us about 15.00 CAD per custom t-shirt.
The general admission area is awesome in Baku, and if you didn’t have a seat, I would still highly recommend getting the GA ticket. There are large areas with screens and hundreds of bean bag chairs to sit on and enjoy the race. You can also stand right along the track next to the stands (for example, right next to the Sahil stand) and have an awesome view of the track.
Things to Do in Baku During the F1 Race Weekend
We really enjoyed the fan zone activities in Baku and truly tried to make the most of our time each day. Not to brag, but we were pit crew champs in the Pit Stop Challenge activity haha. You get to change a tire in a group of 3 and have a mini competition with 2 other groups. Since it was just Ru and me, one of the staff running the event joined us, and it was a really cool experience.
The fan zones also had things like a Blast Lane activity, Ninja Warrior circuit, mini zip line, F1 fan gear shops, stage areas with performing artists, food + drink areas and more! There are multiple fan zone areas, and while each one is generally similar in that they offer a food+drink area and a stage, the activities in each one do differ.
I would recommend heading to the track earlier to enjoy the fan zone for the activities. There is almost always a line for most activities, and the later on in the day, it just gets busier! We waited in line the longest for the Pit Stop Challenge activity – but that was also my favourite one to do!
We had the 3-day ticket (which also included the pit lane walk on the Thursday), and we tried to spread out the activities over the course of the weekend.
To be honest, if there was something that I would skip, it would be the pit lane walk on the Thursday. This was something that I hardly enjoyed as we were packed like sardines walking through the pit lane. Understandably, everyone is looking to get a close-up of a garage view, see the F1 cars, and the pit crew. While it is a neat experience, especially when we got close to the fence area, it was just so overcrowded that it really took away from my personal experience. I don’t think I’d do this again for the general pit lane walk, but maybe that’s just me.
One thing that I learned from attending the race in Saudi Arabia the year before, that was that there are concerts at the F1 races! There were two nights of concerts in Baku (Saturday & Sunday nights), and we had planned to go on the Sunday. The concerts are not held at the track, and instead were held at Baku Crystal Hall. We planned to arrive late and go there an hour before the Martin Garrix concert was to end. Unfortunately, we (along with other late arrivals) were not allowed in. It was not clear why this was, as it could have been because it was getting late in the evening. Had we known this, we would have arrived much earlier to enjoy the concert.
To top it off, it was pouring rain, and taxis were nowhere to be found (must have been booked up!). This ended up being kind of fun in the end, as we met another couple, got a ride in a golf cart from a kind person, and we walked the rest of the time in the rain back to the apartment. It ended up being a fun adventure in the end.
What to Expect: Staying in Baku Before and After the Grand Prix
Living in Baku for almost the full month of September was such a unique experience. We were able to walk along the track ahead of the race weekend and see the fan zone areas being built up and prepared ahead of time. It was open to walk around before the race weekend, and it was cool to see what kinds of things we could anticipate when the race weekend finally came!
We stayed in an Airbnb just a few minutes away from the city center. We stayed northeast of the Old Town area and just north of the famous Nizami Street. This street is a pedestrian walking street with tons of shops and restaurants. It’s certainly a place to check out while you are visiting there. As we were staying for about a month, having an apartment was perfect for us; otherwise, a hotel would be a great option for a shorter stay!
Baku is extremely walkable and easy to get around. We loved that the track is right in the city itself. There are plenty of amazing eats and activities to try while you are there. You’ll know when race weekend is arriving as you’ll see more and more people wearing fan gear walking around Baku.
Some of our favourite things to do outside of attending the F1 race were going to see the Heydar Aliyev Center, the Carpet Museum, exploring the Old Town, and seeing the iconic Flame Towers at night. I also went on two different tours to explore areas and sights outside of Baku. Although they were long full-day trips, it was really cool to see a different side of Azerbaijan. Highlights included seeing the Candy Cane Mountains, riding the coaster in Shahdag, and going to Gobustan National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site!
Both the week prior and after the Grand Prix were still a bit busier as lots of F1 attendees stayed to explore more of the city and Azerbaijan. I would absolutely recommend staying a few extra days as there is so much to see. There is even a go-kart track not too far from the city center. Although we didn’t actually go ourselves, it was something we had considered!
Final Thoughts: Is the Azerbaijan Grand Prix Worth It?
Without a doubt, it is 100% worth it to go to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Just even the fact that it is a street circuit makes it so unique. You get a chance to walk the track just days ahead of or after the race, which is so cool! It was so convenient to walk to our seats every day from our apartment stay. There is also so much to do in the fan zone. You’ll get a chance to enjoy all the experiences that F1 has to offer for fans, plus the bonus of already being in the heart of the city is amazing. Baku has lots to offer travellers, with day tours, museums, and amazing food!
If you are thinking about attending this Grand Prix, I highly recommend it. It was an incredible experience, and it was honestly such a fun F1 race weekend!
