20 minutes or so down the Salyan Highway to the south east of Baku and, crucially, towards one of the main oil drilling areas of the region, The Ramada is a sleek and impressive looking wedge of modern architecture right on its own private Caspian beach. Facilities are, as one would expect, top-notch, with a gym, two restaurants, indoor and outdoor pool, tennis courts, and a sports bar with billiards as well as, of course, access to one of the few coastlines in the world where you can top up your tan in 40+ degrees with an oil rig shimmering on the horizon – a curious experience any self-respecting hedonist should be only too happy to notch up. Rooms are large and comfortable, if a little sparsely decorated. Do try and book a sea-view, however, as the inland version is dreary in the extreme.