Short break
The essential country in four days — Yerevan, the two great monasteries of the Azat valley, Ararat from the plain, and Lake Sevan.
Length
4 days
Route
5 regions
Stay
3★ central Yerevan
Season
All year. Best April–June and September–October.
YerevanGarni & GeghardKhor VirapAreniLake Sevan
Who this suitsA first visit, a long weekend, or a stopover on the way somewhere else.
Airport pickup at any hour and transfer to your hotel. If your flight lands early enough we walk the centre in the evening: Republic Square, the singing fountains, and Northern Avenue up to the Opera. Dinner is on us on the first night — it is the easiest way to answer your questions all at once.
East into the Azat valley. Garni, the only standing Greco-Roman colonnaded building in Armenia, then down into the gorge to the Symphony of Stones basalt columns. Lunch is lavash you bake yourself in a village tonir. Then Geghard, half-built and half-carved into solid rock, UNESCO-listed since 2000. Back in Yerevan for the evening, free.
South across the plain with Ararat filling the windscreen. Khor Virap, and the pit where Gregory the Illuminator was held for thirteen years. On to Noravank, gold-red against the cliffs of the Amaghu gorge. Lunch in the valley, then a tasting at an Areni cellar.
North to Sevanavank on its headland above the lake, founded in 874. Time by the water, lunch on the shore, and a transfer to the airport timed to your flight. If you have a late departure we add Echmiadzin on the way.
In the price
Not included
Every stop on the journey, in order. Distances are indicative, not a driving route.
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