Ganja, with a history of more than 2500 years, is the second largest city in the country, a monument to its ancient culture, the industrial center of western Azerbaijan and the House of the great Nizami. Ganja is surrounded by forests, vineyards, lakes, rivers and mountains. The region is famous for its numerous mineral water sources and its unique medicinal oil – naphthalane, extracted 48 km from Ganja, in the town of Naftalan.

In the neighbouring region of Goygol there is the Goygol Nature Reserve, which is the main reserve in Azerbaijan.

The Goygol, located in the west of Azerbaijan, is one of the most picturesque regions of the country. The Goygol State Reserve, created in 1925, is located on the banks of the famous Goygol lake, at an altitude of 1,600 meters. Lake Goygol is the cleanest mountain water reservoir in the Caucasus. The center of the district was formerly called Helenendorf. The settlement was founded by German settlers in August 1819 on the site of an old village, Hanlyglar, later the town of Hanlar. Today, the Goygol district is a symbol of the close friendship between Azerbaijan and the German nations. A lot of work has been done here to preserve the German heritage.