Krasnaya Sloboda

Mountain Jewish town across the river from Quba, with synagogues and a dedicated heritage museum.

Krasnaya Sloboda sits on the northern bank of the Kudyal River gorge, directly facing Quba — you can walk between the two towns across the footbridge. The town is remarkable as one of the last surviving settlements of the Mountain Jews, a community that has lived in the eastern Caucasus for centuries.

Although emigration to Israel has reduced the population considerably, the Jewish heritage remains visible. The Six Dome Synagogue is the most striking building in town, and the Museum of Mountain Jews tells the story of the Juhuro people. The Jewish cemeteries spread up the hillside with headstones that span centuries. Houses throughout the town show signs of prosperity from remittances sent by family abroad. The overall atmosphere is quiet and very similar to Quba across the gorge.

Not far from town, Khinalig village is home to an ethnic group who have preserved their own distinct language, customs, and traditions — one of the most isolated communities in the Caucasus and well worth the rough drive up into the mountains.

Guide

Getting There

Krasnaya Sloboda is reached through Quba, which lies just across the Kudyal River gorge. From Baku, marshrutkas (shared minibuses) run regularly to Quba from the Avtovagzal bus terminal and take around two hours. The fare is low and the minibuses leave when full.

From Quba's bus terminal, Krasnaya Sloboda is a short taxi ride or a walk of about twenty minutes — cross the footbridge over the gorge and you are there. Most visitors base themselves in Quba and cross to Krasnaya Sloboda for the day.

There is no direct public transport from Baku to Krasnaya Sloboda itself. If you are driving, the road from Baku follows the A3 highway north; total distance is around 170 kilometres and the drive takes two to two and a half hours on clear roads.

Guide

Things to Do

Krasnaya Sloboda's identity is inseparable from its Mountain Jewish heritage, and the most rewarding way to spend time here is simply walking the streets and taking in the synagogues, cemeteries, and grand private houses that speak to a community that has endured for centuries in these mountains.

The Six Dome Synagogue is the architectural centrepiece — an unusually grand building for a town of this size. A short walk brings you to the Museum of Mountain Jews, which gives the historical background needed to make sense of what you are seeing. The old Jewish cemeteries, spread across the hillside, are worth a quiet hour.

The footbridge to Quba over the Kudyal River gorge is both practical and scenic — the view down into the gorge from the middle of the bridge is the best in town.

For a more ambitious excursion, the drive up to Khinalig village takes you into a different world entirely: a high Caucasus settlement where people speak their own language and where the outside world has arrived only recently.