A few years ago British comedian Eddie Izzard used to open his shows by simply walking on stage and intoning the word 'Azerbaijaaaaaaaaan'. Azerbaijan he claimed was 'the world's least known country'. The bemused crowd laughed, unsure whether he was making the whole place up. Was the Caspian Sea real or part of CS Lewis's fictional Narnia?

A mini oil boom and a James Bond film later, Azerbaijan is now slightly better known to the wider world. Thanks mainly to petroleum industry activity, the world is rediscovering the cosmopolitan capital city Baku and its UNESCO listed old town. Much grand if quirky architecture dates from the original 1890-1914 boom when, incredibly, Baku produced around half of the world's oil. The city's wide selection of stylish restaurants and numerous British pubs have grown up for the new boom that's just restarted. A few expats have discovered that there are fire temples, mud volcanoes and even a Roman centurion's graffiti all within an hour of the capital. However, few visitors have an idea just how beautiful and varied Azerbaijan's hinterland is.

Azeris are fond of mentioning that their relatively small country has more than nine climatic zones. In less scientific terms this means that within a few hours drive of Baku you'll find desert, steppe, marshland, forest, orchards, hills and the snow-topped spine of the great Caucasus mountains - the highest range in Europe.

Once one of Azerbaijan's independent XVIII century khanates, Sheki is gloriously set in the tree-carpeted foothills of those great Caucasus peaks. Locally famous for its halva confectionery it also retains several fine historical buildings. Surrounded by sturdy stone walls and ancient chinar (plane) trees, the Khansaray with its fine murals and intricate jigsaw-mosaic windows known as shebekewas was once the palace local ruler. Craftsmen in a nearby workshop still assemble these glass panes for the palace's on-going reconstruction and will sell examples to visitors. One of the great delights of visiting Sheki is the chance to stay in a unique hotel situated in one of two splendid IXX century caravanserais which lie at the base of Sheki's cobbled-street old town. It is one of the most atmospheric accommodations in the Caucasus yet rooms are available for as little as US$6 (albeit rather cold in winter).

Sheki is just the best known of several delightful stops that tempt travellers to dawdle along the very scenic 'alternative' road between Baku and the Georgian capital Tbilisi. Other very appealing alternatives include coppersmiths' village Lahic, pretty Car (pronunced Jar) near Zaqatala, and Ilisu, an idyllic summer getaway approached through a dramatically high-walled canyon near Qax (pronounced Gakh).

Azerbaijan's southern Talish region is remarkably lush with semi-tropical forest and coastal tea fields, nuzzling against the rice paddies of neighbouring Iran. In a country where hospitality is already overwhelming, the Talish are particularly welcoming to visitors and are famed for their longevity - the world's oldest man for millennia was reputedly Shiralev Muslimov from the Talish mountain-top village of Bazarvud near Lerik. He was reportedly 168 when he died in 1974.

The coastal road north of Baku takes visitors past the curious 'Five Finger Mountain' (Besh Barmak), an abrupt rocky outcrop on top of which are performed arcane fertility rituals: a curious blend of pious Islam with generous dashes of pre-Islamic animism and stone kissing.

Though popular with local holiday-makers, the much touted beaches at Nabran are somewhat dowdy. But inland, beyond the quaint little fruit-market town of Quba are some explorers' gems: a series of little-explored canyons and wide-open mountain trekking with a small scattering of tourist camps from which to visit them. As you head deeper into the mountainscape, you'll find villages so remote that they have retained languages all of their own. The classic example, and perhaps the most beautiful, is Xinaliq where stone homes are stacked so steeply that the roof of one is the front-yard for the one above. Hard to reach and cut off entirely for much of the winter, Xinaliq remains a place of almost mystic beauty. On a clear summer's day the village folk and rare tourists alike spend hours just gazing at the glorious clouds dancing to a timeless natural symphony above the 'royal' mountain, Shahdag.

Mark Elliott is author of
Azerbaijan with excursions to Georgia (Trailblazer)
the definitive travel guide to Azerbaijan
available through www.trailblazer-guides.com