Classic journey
A week from the Ararat plain to the Debed canyon, taking in all three of Armenia's UNESCO World Heritage properties and the cable car to Tatev.
Length
7 days
Route
7 regions
Stay
3★ hotels and one guesthouse
Season
April–November. The Tatev leg is possible all year.
YerevanKhor VirapTatevSevanDilijanHaghpatGyumri
Who this suitsAnyone who wants the whole country rather than a corner of it, without rushing.
Arrival, transfer, and an evening walk through the centre — Republic Square, the Cascade for the view over the city, and a welcome dinner with your guide and the rest of the group.
The mother church of the Armenian Apostolic Church, its treasury, and St Hripsime of 618 — then the ruins of Zvartnots, a 45-metre rotunda that stood three centuries before an earthquake took it down. Afternoon in Yerevan: the Matenadaran manuscripts and the brandy cellars.
The Azat valley in the morning — Garni, the basalt columns, lavash baking, and Geghard. Then the long, beautiful drive south through Vayots Dzor to Goris, with a stop at Zorats Karer on the plateau.
The cable car across the Vorotan gorge — 5.7 kilometres and about twelve minutes — to a ninth-century monastery that became one of the great medieval universities. In the afternoon, the cave village of Khndzoresk and its swinging bridge. North in the evening to Yeghegnadzor.
Noravank in its red gorge, then Areni for the cave and a cellar. Over the Vardenyats pass at 2,410 metres to the Selim caravanserai of 1332, and down to Lake Sevan for the night.
Sevanavank in the morning light, then through the tunnel into the forest. Haghartsin and its 1248 refectory, Sharambeyan Street in old Dilijan, and on to Lori for the night.
The two UNESCO monasteries facing each other across the Debed gorge, and Odzun's pink felsite basilica. West to Gyumri for the Kumayri district before the drive back to Yerevan, or a direct airport transfer if you are flying out.
In the price
Not included
Every stop on the journey, in order. Distances are indicative, not a driving route.
Other journeys
Best for a long weekendShort break
YerevanGarni & GeghardKhor VirapAreniLake Sevan
The essential country in four days — Yerevan, the two great monasteries of the Azat valley, Ararat from the plain, and Lake Sevan.
Grand tour
YerevanAragatsGyumriLoriDilijanSevanSyunikVayots Dzor
Ten days for people who would rather see six places properly than sixteen from a bus window — including the corners most itineraries skip.
Max 8 peopleWine & gastronomy
YerevanAreniVayots DzorAragatsotnArmavir
Six days through the oldest winemaking landscape on earth, cooking in village kitchens and drinking with the people who made the bottle.