Armenia. Part 1. How to go around the country in 7 days, but not in a hurry.
Only a few days have passed since my return from Armenia, but even so, little time was enough to miss this country again, its ancient monasteries, friendly people, delicious food, and clean mountain air. Armenia, unlike Georgia, has one feature — the country is far from being so well known in terms of tourism, however, it can offer tourists a lot of vivid impressions. Even I, who has already traveled to 35 countries, Armenia managed to pleasantly surprise and impress way more than I expected.
Through this article, I will begin a series of stories about this wonderful country and will focus on a practical guide for those people who want to discover Armenia and get the most pleasant experience in a short time and for an affordable price. So, let’s start!
What to see in Armenia
Armenia is a country in the Transcaucasus bordering Georgia in the north, Iran in the south, Turkey in the west, and Azerbaijan in the east. Being one of the oldest Christian countries, Armenia is famous for its ancient monasteries (many of which are located in mountains and gorges with stunning views), preserved monuments of ancient pagan culture, and fortresses. But this is not a complete list of what you can see in Armenia. The country can boast of its cuisine, winemaking (as well as cognac and vodka production), rich nature that changes rapidly as you move around the country, Lake Sevan, and, most importantly, very open and friendly people.
I planned a trip to Armenia, conventionally dividing it into several constituent parts, and making each of them more or less intense, depending on our interest in a particular attraction.
Part one — Yerevan. The capital of Armenia itself has a large number of attractions and definitely deserves to devote 1–2 days to it.
Part two — the outskirts of Yerevan, which include the pagan temple of Garni, the Geghard temple, the temples of Saghmosavank, Hovhannavank, Aruchavank, a monument to the Armenian alphabet, and other places.
Part three — southwest. This includes Khor Virap — a beautiful temple with a picturesque view of Mount Ararat, the center of winemaking — the village of Areni, the most beautiful temple of Noravank, the high-mountain fortress Smbataberd, and other points.
Part four — south. This part is full of interesting places. There is the abandoned temple of Vorotnavank, a thermal spring, and the cave city of Khndzoresk with a suspension bridge. There are lots of places to see, and in order to be on time for everything, you can stop for the night in nearby Goris or in beautiful places on the slope near it.
Part five is, of course, the northeast with Sevan, Sevanavank, the city of Dilazhan, and other attractions.
Below is a detailed map of all areas and points of interest (with the exception of Yerevan, to which a separate section will be devoted), visited by us. Beautiful places with abandoned objects are highlighted in yellow, where tourists are often not taken. The gray ones are potentially interesting places, which we decided to abandon since they did not fit into the time limits, and did not want to run at a gallop, quality is always more important than quantity!
Transport and logistic
Despite the fact that low-cost airlines from Europe (WizzAir, RyanAir) fly to Armenia, the cost of a flight from Budapest will still not be small and starts from $300 for round-trip tickets. And if you don’t want to spend half a day on the road, you will have to pay even more — $ 350–400. But, believe me, Armenia is worth it!
A taxi from Zvartnots airport to the center of Yerevan will cost 1800 drams ($3.7) for a Yandex taxi and up to 6000–7000 drams ($12–14) if you book it with a hotel or tour operator.
All the main attractions of Yerevan are within 2–2.5 km of the center and can be explored in a day on foot. If it is very hot, or you want to save time, you can take a taxi or the subway.
The most interesting part is traveling all over Armenia. Since the country is quite compact, it can be easily traveled around in a circle in 6–7 days. The ideal transport for this would be a car (of course, you can try to travel by bus or other means of intercity transport, but this is far from possible everywhere, and there were very few buses on the way during our trip).
You can rent a car in Armenia, but due to the mountainous terrain, not the best roads, and the specifics of local driving, only experienced drivers who sincerely love the driving process, and their families, will be able to enjoy driving during the trip. In addition, there are many high-altitude attractions in Armenia, which, in principle, cannot be reached without a full-fledged SUV and appropriate driving skills. Based on this, it is worth looking in the direction of renting a car immediately with a driver. In Armenia, this is standard practice and not a fad for the rich. Of course, it will cost more than just a car, but not radically (if you take into account the cost of fuel, insurance, and potential risks). There is more than such a method, in addition to the obvious convenience, carries other advantages, which are discussed below. For those who want to rent only a car, almost all known rental services are represented in Armenia. For cost fines and other information, you can read more detailed information, for example, here.
We decided to go for another option. About all the features of which now I want to tell.
The tourism services market in Armenia is well-developed. There are many companies and private individuals providing such services, and all of them can be conditionally divided into several categories:
- Conditionally large companies provide services for both drivers and guides separately. You can also choose a class of cars and apply for a tour program.
- Private drivers or small family companies — in most cases they are also guides.
- Just drivers. To be honest, I did not meet representatives of this category, choosing the best option and going through many offers, but, according to other travelers, representatives of this category can be found.
More details about the differences and nuances of these categories can be found in the next section. Here I will describe where we stopped and how the search process took place.
If you do not take into account ready-made travel programs (of which you can find a large number simply by entering the phrase “Tours in Armenia” into a search engine), then flagma.am, an Armenian ad site, will be an excellent source of search. Selecting “Locality” Armenia from the menu and entering the word “guide” in the search bar, I got a lot of options that differ very much in terms of prices, contact, and interest of the owners of these ads. Some responded very quickly but were eliminated due to being busy (this is especially true for private guides who have everything planned out 2 months in advance), some willingly took on our tour but as a result made a very expensive offer. After a long search, correspondence, and communication, I settled on these guys (Armer Realty & Tour): Instagram, Facebook. Looking at their Instagram, you might think that they are exclusively engaged in real estate, and what do the tours have to do with it? But such an opinion will be erroneous — the company has excellent experience as well as an established network of all necessary contacts and infrastructure throughout Armenia for organizing tours.
Here are the advantages of Armer Realty that made it possible to choose them among other companies:
- The company is interested in clients and organizing tours that fully meet their desires. Communication with the manager was extremely pleasant — he quickly answered all questions (even sometimes during the first hour of the night), did not bend his line along the route, but looked for options specifically for our request, offering adjustments only where there was absolutely no other way (for example — Armagan, I did not take into account that the car can not go there).
- They offered very reasonable prices, broken down by the class of cars and sections of our tour for each day (this is important since many consider a certain average cost of a day for the entire tour, which ends up being more expensive). For example, the cost of a comfort class car (Mazda 3, Mazda MPV, or similar cars) looked like this:
July 31–35.000 AMD (70$)
August 1–40.000 AMD (80$)
August 2–35.000 AMD (70$)
August 3–45.000 AMD ($90)
August 4–35.000 AMD (70$)
August 5–15.000 AMD (30$)
Guide price for the same dates:
July 31–25.000 AMD ($50)
August 1–20.000 AMD (40$)
August 2–15.000 AMD (30$)
August 3–20.000 AMD (40$)
August 4–20.000 AMD (40$)
August 5–10.000 AMD (20$)
All these figures could be corrected and changed. For example, a guide can be taken only on certain days. You can take a car sometimes comfortable sometimes economy.
- There is no need to pay for the overnight stay of drivers/guides. For many, this is an additional expense item that falls on the client — 10,000 AMD / night ($ 20).
- Special transport (like jeeps for climbing Smbataberd) is already included in the price.
- You can agree on changes to the plan on the go. If the deviations from the original route are not large, then it is free or for a small surcharge.
- All cars (at least in the comfort class) are comfortable, in good condition, and with air conditioning. Guides and drivers are also on the level. I liked some more than others, but these are personal preferences, in terms of competence, there are no questions for anyone.
Of the minuses, I note the following:
- As guides change, you never know if you’ll be comfortable with a new person once you’ve met the previous one.
- Due to personal preferences, I liked some guides more, but even despite their free schedule, it was not possible to leave them for the next days of the tour.
- Some drivers/guides honestly drove us from morning until late at night and even brought us to interesting places that were not originally in our plan. But others, although they completed the entire program, and were polite, created a certain feeling that they wanted to quickly finish the work and go about their own business.
In general, in terms of price/quality ratio, we were completely satisfied with the choice. And besides, thanks a lot to the guys who introduced us to such wonderful guides as Naira and Aznaur.
Naira was our guide on the first day we left Yerevan. A cheerful active woman who knows a lot about the culture, history, and especially the food of Armenia. Communicative, excellent conversation. She was with us in Goris, Geghard, Khor Virap, and Noravank. Near Areni, she ordered in advance and organized a lunch for us with a local family engaged in winemaking. We tried khashlama, cherry, strawberry, and raspberry wines and were very pleased. Naira knows how to convey her energy and left a pleasant impression.
Aznaur is our next driver guide with an interesting name. His father named him after Charles Aznavour, a French chansonnier, and composer. Aznaur was with us the longest (3 days, during which we traveled from Areni to Goris, and then back to Sevan through the Selim Pass), honestly skated from morning to evening, and even showed many interesting places that were not originally in our program. A very good, positive, and active person who does everything to show Armenia the best side (special thanks for stopping in beautiful places with cognac!). He knows his country very well and is always ready to offer interesting routes (for example, visiting thermal springs), the best places to eat, and no less excellent places to spend the night. He is a fan of his hometown of Jermuk (which, unfortunately, we did not have time to visit) and can show many interesting places (including thermal springs and a waterfall) there as well.
By the way, Aznaur also organizes individual tours, the cost is $ 100 / day per car (up to 6 people).
Driver, driver+guide, or driver-guide?
All options have their pros and cons.
The driver-guide is, in most cases, a private owner or a small family business. The services of a guide, in this case, are already included in the cost of the tour, so initially, it will be higher than if you take only the services of a driver from a large company. Companies, in turn, provide these services separately.
The guide automatically adds to the cost of a day trip either a fixed average daily amount for the tour (according to the above plan, this will be an average of +20,000 AMD / day ($ 40)) or an amount that is calculated based on the number of attractions planned to be visited for each day ( for example, one day it can be 10,000 drams ($20), the other day it can be 25,000 ($50)). On the other hand, a professional guide can tell in detail the history of all the places visited, help to get to know the culture of Armenia much better, and also, if desired, show the best places where to eat or stay overnight (although the driver can help with this point if you are lucky to get to an excellent man, how lucky we are).
The following features that I met when planning a trip and during the trip itself can help you choose what is best for you:
- It is worth considering what will be more comfortable for you — working with a large company (and, accordingly, the driver + guide scheme) or a private driver-guide. Here you need to understand that good prices can be found in both options, but private guides (especially popular ones) are usually busy and you need to contact them at least 2 months before the trip. It is also worth considering that the range of prices for both companies and private traders is very large. The price for the same tour can vary from $400–500 to $1000–1100. This is due to the different classes of cars provided for the trip, the class of guides, the popularity of the tour operator, additional services, and, possibly, some other factors.
I will just say that having gone through about 12 different options, as a result, I chose from 2 that were affordable, as well as contact and demonstrating an active desire to cooperate.
- Large companies, offering the services of a guide, showed great pliability and a desire to adapt to our route, correcting it only if something was really logistically bad. Private guides, on the other hand, insisted more on their tour options.
- If you work with a large company, then the guides will change depending on the region. We were lucky and all our guides were good, but it’s worth considering.
Important! For many private driver-guides, the cost of their accommodation must be paid separately. As a rule it is 10000 AMD/night ($20). But there are exceptions.
- Throughout the day we made stops for lunch. There are no rules and agreements to treat the driver or guide, but all our guides tried to make our tour as interesting as possible, so I thought it was good form to treat them as well. Considering that the cost of food in Armenia will pleasantly please the tourist of the CIS countries, not to mention the Europeans, the amount was not significant (+1500–2000 drams to the bill ($3–4)). In addition, the guides behaved modestly, often refusing or even, being good friends of the owners of the restaurants where we dined, agreed — and we were given free wine/chacha tastings or brought different dishes as a compliment. So there is still the question of who treated whom. But nevertheless — at will and such expenses can be taken into account.
- We were lucky with the guide and he showed us the most beautiful places that were not originally listed in the plan, for which special thanks to him and another plus in favor of choosing a guide.
So, once again, the key points: the guide is + an average of 20,000 AMD / day ($ 40) (or a more expensive original tour), the opportunity to see what, most likely, you would not see without him, to find out what you would not otherwise you will learn, try something that you just won’t try, as well as the opportunity to get acquainted with local hospitable families. Then the choice is yours.
A circular route in Armenia
Below is a travel itinerary for Armenia compiled by me. It’s not perfect, and after the trip, I realize there are a few changes that can be made. Nevertheless, we were completely satisfied with it, both in terms of the richness and tranquility of the trip. We were not in a hurry to go anywhere and everything was done at a calm pace.
The route starts from Yerevan and, broken down by day, looks like this:
- Day 1: Drive southwest. Garni, Geghard, Khor Virap, Noravank, overnight in Areni;
- Day 2: Drive south. Spandaryan Reservoir, Shaki Waterfall, Karahunj, “Wings of Tatev” cable car and Tatev itself, Khndzoresk cave city and a suspension bridge to it, an observation deck on Goris, overnight at a hotel on the slopes of Goris;
- Day 3: We return to the southwest. Abandoned temple Vorotnavank, thermal spring near the river Vorotan, mountain fortress Smbataberd, overnight in the village of Chacha, 16 km from Areni;
- Day 4: We drive to the northeast. Overcoming the Selim Pass, watching Caravan Saray Orbelyan, heading towards Sevan, watching the cemetery of khachkars Noranus, Hayravank, Sevanavank, having lunch at the restaurant U Semo, overnight near Sevanavank in a hotel on the shore of Sevan;
- Day 5: Drive north. Dilijan, Mimino monument, handicraft shops in Dilijan, Haghartsin monastery, lunch at the USemo restaurant. Then we move towards Yerevan, we look at Kecharis, we spend the night in Yerevan;
- Day 6: Surroundings of Yerevan. Amberd fortress and Vahramashen church, a monument to the Armenian alphabet, Saghmosavank, Hovhannavank, a beautiful abandoned temple of the 5th century (where, by the way, tourists are not taken) Aruchavank, we return to Yerevan and complete the tour.
I also note that in Armenia there are many beautiful, but, unfortunately, abandoned temples and other places where tourists are not taken. We were lucky with the guides, and we were shown two such places, I highly recommend visiting them! These are the Vorotnavank temple near Goris and the 5th-century church Aruchavank not far from Yerevan.
Hotels along the way
Armenia has a large number of hotels and guest houses at reasonable prices (usually 15,000–17,000 AMD per day ($30–35) with breakfast). If we add to this the universal hospitality of the hosts, who often give food and wine to drink (for free), then traveling around Armenia becomes even more enjoyable. If you are lucky with a guide, he will also suggest good places to stay and spend the night. For example, our guide Aznaur recommended us an option on the way from Goris to Areni, 16 kilometers from Areni, since it is not as hot there as in the valley itself. It turned out to be a comfortable guest house owned by a winemaking family. As a result, a hearty dinner was waiting for us for a symbolic price, a tasting of delicious wine, and an excursion to a mini winery right in the house.
Separately, I will say about Yerevan — due to the fact that it is a large city, the capital of the country, prices there will be higher (20,000–22,000 AMD ($40–45), with breakfast) and the service will be more familiar and standard. But even here we had a delicious breakfast and very friendly staff, ready to help with all questions.
Armenia has a large number of hotels and guest houses at affordable prices (usually 15,000–17,000 AMD per day ($30–35) with breakfast)
Below is a map of the hotels where we stayed and prices valid for July-August 2021.
Republic Square Butique Hotel (Yerevan) — 22000 AMD / day ($ 45), breakfast included. The hotel is very conveniently located, close to all attractions. Staff is ready to help with any questions. A clinic with the ability to undergo PCR testing right in the next building, which is not unimportant in our time.
Anna Home B&B (Areni) — 15000 AMD / day ($ 30), breakfast included. This is a whole house with a huge balcony, a vineyard, mountain views, and a friendly hostess. The only negative is that the house is located right in the Areni Valley, where the average daily temperature is significantly higher than at the foot of the mountains.
Zorats Akhbyur A V A G Y A N S Hotel (Mountain slopes near Goris) — 17000 AMD / day ($ 35), breakfast included. The peculiarity of this hotel with a difficult-to-pronounce name is that it is no less difficult to find. There are no signs, and even the locals do not know where it is, but the search is worth it! This hotel is a gem on the slopes of Goris with excellent views of the city and a beautiful restaurant right on the slope. The hosts, as in the previous versions, are friendly and happy to help with everything.
Noravank B&B (Chiva, 16 km from Areni) — 15,000 AMD / day ($ 30), breakfast included. The hotel is recommended by our guide. The owners are engaged in winemaking, they can treat you with their own wines and serve delicious food.
Nirvana Hotel (Sevan, near Sevanavank) — 15000 AMD / day ($ 30), breakfast included. This is perhaps the least pretentious hotel on the list. It consists of houses of an average level of comfort, as in many country tours. bases. Its main advantage is its location and its own beach on the shores of Sevan. In the morning here you can admire the magnificent glare of the sun on the water of the lake. Sevanavank is the main attraction of Sevan, just a 20-minute walk. And very close is an excellent fish restaurant — U Semo. Here you can eat local Sig fish and many other delicious dishes at affordable prices.
Yerevan itinerary
Yerevan is rich in its sights, and, which is very convenient, they are all located in the center or quite compactly around it. I will tell you more about what you should pay attention to in Yerevan in another article, but here I will focus on the financial and logistical aspects, as well as give a walking route around the city that I compiled for our trip.
So — most of the interesting places in the capital of Armenia are free. The exceptions are the brandy-wine factories Noy and Ararat. My wife and I visited Noah because, according to numerous reviews, the excursion and tasting set are more interesting there. But this opinion can be subjective. A tour of the factory costs 5000 AMD per person ($10). The tasting includes wine and cognac. There are 2 options — for 5000 ($10) and for 15000 ($30) AMD, depending on the brand and year of alcohol. There is also a store at the factory where all products can be bought at reasonable prices. For example, a classic 10-year-old cognac will cost 9800 AMD ($20). When planning a visit to the plant, keep in mind that the lunch break is there from one to two.
Another paid place is the Museum of Ancient Manuscripts (we did not visit). Ticket price — 1500 AMD ($ 3) per adult, excluding excursions.
Also paid is a pleasure train from the amusement park below the Kond district to the stadium (500 drams ($ 1)).
Most likely other museums are also paid, but our route did not include visiting them.
Meals, alcohol, souvenirs, and other expenses
The undoubted attraction of Armenia, in addition to its cultural and historical heritage, is its cuisine. Like many other cuisines of the people of the Caucasus, it is varied, full of meat and fish dishes, pastries, and sweets. The undoubted highlight is Armenian wines (both homemade and factory-made), which are less known in our country than Georgian ones, but no less tasty and full-bodied. And of course cognac! Who has not heard about the products of the Ararat plant? But the most remarkable thing about Armenian cuisine is its price. The average check can pleasantly surprise a tourist. For example, a full meal with several fish dishes, wine, cheese, side dishes, and salads for 3 people will cost 12,000–14,000 thousand drams ($25–30), and this is in a very popular place in Sevan. In less-known places, the price tag will be even lower — 6000–9000 drams ($12–18). In addition, many local family restaurants and guest houses will gladly treat you to something extra or offer a tasting for free. An exception to the general order of prices is perhaps trout (because of its small number) and prices inexpensive and popular restaurants in Yerevan.
Wine — there is a lot of it and it is very different in taste and price. We found the semi-dry wine of the local Areni factory (3000 AMD/liter ($6)) and various homemade fruit wines (1000–3000 AMD/liter ($2–6)) to be optimal for us.
Cognac is either Noah or Ararat, each has a lot of blends and series. Let me just say that 10-year-old Noah Classic (9800 AMD ($20)) is great.
A full meal with several fish dishes, wine, cheese, side dishes and salads for 3 people will cost 12,000–14,000 thousand drams ($25–30), and this is in a very popular place in Sevan. In lesser known places, the price tag will be even lower — 6000–9000 drams ($12–18).
Souvenirs — everything is very individual here. Someone does not buy anything, someone brings a whole bag of various examples of local crafts. I, as the experience of traveling and visiting more and more countries, began to belong to the first category. But this time he didn’t resist. Everything went according to plan — we drove through the Selim Pass and stopped to see the local Caravanserai. Nearby stood a small tent of the caretaker of the ancient structure and his wife. The friendly couple (like so many people we met in Armenia) greeted us and treated us to homemade wine, and then I noticed the trays on which there were all sorts of souvenir knick-knacks, and besides them, knives. Knives, the blades of which are made of obsidian and moonstone, and the handles are made of wood, deer antlers, and stone, painted with beautiful pictures. It is very rare to bring a truly interesting souvenir from a trip, which will not only gather dust on the shelf but delight the eyes and heart. And, just looking at these knives, I immediately realized that these are just such things. Their cost ranges from 15,000 ($30) to 40,000 ($80) AMD, depending on the size and materials used. They are made by master Armen Harutunyan, who lives in Yerevan. You can buy them directly from him, as well as order delivery to different countries. Armen’s Instagram.
Other expenses include entrance tickets to some temples and fortresses (only 2 places along our entire route, the cost is 700 drams per person ($ 1.5)) as well as tickets for the Wings of Tatev cable car — 7000 drams per person ($ 15).
Conclusion of the first part
I hope that this material will help all those who are going to visit Armenia and get the maximum pleasure and return from the trip. This is a wonderful country, with open and hospitable people, rich cultural heritage, beautiful nature, and delicious food. Armenia is far from being as popularized as many other countries, and the more fun it is to explore and discover it!
In the following parts, I will tell you in more detail about the interesting places in Armenia, its cuisine and people, and to whom this material has become useful, or additional questions have appeared, can find me on social networks: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter
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Have a nice day and fascinating travels!
