Difference between revisions of "Baku"

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There is an irregular ferry to Turkmenistan crossing the Caspian Sea. There is no schedule for this ferry and it is not sure if it can be [[hitchhike]]d.
 
There is an irregular ferry to Turkmenistan crossing the Caspian Sea. There is no schedule for this ferry and it is not sure if it can be [[hitchhike]]d.
 
=== To [[Kazakhstan]] ===
 
=== To [[Kazakhstan]] ===
There is an irregular cargo ship which accepts passengers to Kazakhstan crossing the Caspian Sea. There is no schedule for this ship and it is not sure if it can be hitchhiked. Even buying a ticket for this seems to be very hard and adventurous.
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There is an irregular cargo ship which accepts passengers to Kazakhstan crossing the Caspian Sea. There is no real schedule for this ship, but it usually leaves Baku every 7-14 days.
 +
On 16th December 2010, the standard price for the ticket to Aktau was 120 USD, but with little effort you could easily bargain the price down to 100 USD, or even 80 USD.
 +
 
 +
Hitchhiker [[Dargeron]] travelled in this ferry for free on the same date, so it is actually possible to hitchhike the trip. Still, it is not advisable unless you really haven't enough money to buy a ticket, because getting into the ship without one is an extremely difficult endeavor and, in case you are finally refused the entry, you will probably have to wait 10 days or more until the next ferry comes.
 +
 
 +
If you decide to purchase the ticket, here's some helpful information from a forum entry at [http://www.tripadvisor.com tripadvisor.com]:
 +
Not to miss the ferry, you have to go to Deniz Vokzal beforehand and put yourself down on a waiting list of passengers. Take the phone number of information bureau and call them every early morning to ask if the ferry is full. When the ferry will be full, they will tell you the exact time and date of ferry departure.On the date of departure in an hour-two beforehand, you have to be on Deniz Vokzal and buy the ticket. If you are late, they will not wait for you and the ferry will leave Baku without you, despite the fact that you have been on a waiting list. (+994 12) 4930868 (+994 12) 4939606
 +
 
 +
But if, on the other hand, you are determined to attempt to hitchhike the ship, there's also some advices that might help you to succeed.
 +
First of all, you should be aware that you will be asked for a ticket at four different places: the entrance of the port (by policeman), the entrance of the customs office (where you'll get the Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan passport stamps), the inside of the ferry, and the Kazakhstan customs after the trip. Bribing could probably get you through first two controls, but it is much easier to just befriend the policemans of the port in order to do so. After that, you will finally arrive the ferry, which ought to be the hardest part of your adventure. If you declare that you have no ticket outright, you will be inmediately kicked off from the boat, so your best option is to stall with some excuse in order to attempt to speak directly with the captain, who's the only one who might accept to take you aboard with no ticket. Once you've managed to stay on board after departure, the rest of the trip should be easy, and it is unlikely that you encounter any serious problems at the Kazakhstan border.
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[[Category:E60]]
 
[[Category:E60]]

Revision as of 11:24, 25 December 2010

Baku
<map lat='40.38' lng='49.8' zoom='10' view='3' />
Information
Country:
Flag of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Population: 1.194.524
Licence plate: 10
Major roads: M1, M2, M3
Meet fellow hitchhikers on Trustroots

Baku is the capital of Azerbaijan and a center of the world's oil industry. It has a port to the Caspian Sea.

Ferries

To Turkmenistan

There is an irregular ferry to Turkmenistan crossing the Caspian Sea. There is no schedule for this ferry and it is not sure if it can be hitchhiked.

To Kazakhstan

There is an irregular cargo ship which accepts passengers to Kazakhstan crossing the Caspian Sea. There is no real schedule for this ship, but it usually leaves Baku every 7-14 days. On 16th December 2010, the standard price for the ticket to Aktau was 120 USD, but with little effort you could easily bargain the price down to 100 USD, or even 80 USD.

Hitchhiker Dargeron travelled in this ferry for free on the same date, so it is actually possible to hitchhike the trip. Still, it is not advisable unless you really haven't enough money to buy a ticket, because getting into the ship without one is an extremely difficult endeavor and, in case you are finally refused the entry, you will probably have to wait 10 days or more until the next ferry comes.

If you decide to purchase the ticket, here's some helpful information from a forum entry at tripadvisor.com: Not to miss the ferry, you have to go to Deniz Vokzal beforehand and put yourself down on a waiting list of passengers. Take the phone number of information bureau and call them every early morning to ask if the ferry is full. When the ferry will be full, they will tell you the exact time and date of ferry departure.On the date of departure in an hour-two beforehand, you have to be on Deniz Vokzal and buy the ticket. If you are late, they will not wait for you and the ferry will leave Baku without you, despite the fact that you have been on a waiting list. (+994 12) 4930868 (+994 12) 4939606

But if, on the other hand, you are determined to attempt to hitchhike the ship, there's also some advices that might help you to succeed. First of all, you should be aware that you will be asked for a ticket at four different places: the entrance of the port (by policeman), the entrance of the customs office (where you'll get the Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan passport stamps), the inside of the ferry, and the Kazakhstan customs after the trip. Bribing could probably get you through first two controls, but it is much easier to just befriend the policemans of the port in order to do so. After that, you will finally arrive the ferry, which ought to be the hardest part of your adventure. If you declare that you have no ticket outright, you will be inmediately kicked off from the boat, so your best option is to stall with some excuse in order to attempt to speak directly with the captain, who's the only one who might accept to take you aboard with no ticket. Once you've managed to stay on board after departure, the rest of the trip should be easy, and it is unlikely that you encounter any serious problems at the Kazakhstan border.