Photograph of Sheki Khan's Palace — to be added
Sheki Khan's Palace
An 18th-century summer residence famous for shebeke — stained glass assembled without nails or glue.
Included in 2 tours
Sheki
Sheki Caravanserai
A surviving Silk Road merchants' inn, with stables and storerooms below and lodgings above.
Photograph of Sheki Caravanserai — to be added
Sheki sat on the Silk Road, and its caravanserais are the physical evidence of how that trade actually operated. The surviving Upper Caravanserai is a large fortified courtyard building from the eighteenth century, and it is one of the best-preserved examples anywhere in the Caucasus.
Unusually, part of it still functions as a hotel, so the courtyard remains in use rather than preserved as an empty monument.
How it worked
The layout answers a practical problem: how do you move high-value goods across hostile territory and sleep safely?
Ground level held stables and storerooms, where animals and merchandise were secured. Merchants slept in rooms on the floor above, directly over their own goods. Cellars below kept perishables cool. The whole complex could be locked behind heavy gates at nightfall.
Sheki's speciality was silk — the town was a major centre of sericulture, and the caravanserais existed to service that trade specifically.
Visiting
You can walk into the courtyard freely and get an immediate sense of the scale. Thick stone walls, deep arcades, and rooms opening off a single enclosed space.
Because part of it operates as a hotel, staying the night in a caravanserai is genuinely possible in Sheki and is one of the more memorable accommodation options in the country.
Thirty minutes covers a visit. It sits within walking distance of the Khan's Palace and the old bazaar.
Highlights
- An eighteenth-century Silk Road merchants' inn, largely intact
- Stables and storerooms below, lodgings above
- Still partly functioning as a hotel
- Walking distance from the Khan's Palace and old bazaar
Tours that visit Sheki Caravanserai
- Grand Azerbaijan Tour 5 Days / 4 Nights from 1060 AZN (≈ $624)
- Mountains, Fire & Silk Road 2 Days / 1 Night from 650 AZN (≈ $383)
Not included: Entry tickets to all attractions, museums, cable cars and activity venues · Hotel / accommodation · Meals & drinks. Entry tickets are set by government authorities or venue operators and are payable directly on-site.
Frequently asked questions
Can you stay in the Sheki Caravanserai?
Yes — part of the building operates as a hotel, so it is possible to stay overnight in an eighteenth-century Silk Road caravanserai. It is popular and worth booking well ahead.
What was a caravanserai used for?
It was a secure inn for merchant caravans. Animals and goods were stabled and stored at ground level, merchants slept directly above their own merchandise, and the whole complex was locked behind heavy gates at night.
More to see in Sheki
Want Sheki Caravanserai on your itinerary?
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