7 Days in Armenia: Classic Culture & History

Day 1

Stop 1.Yerevan Cascade

The Cascade is a long stairway rising behind the Opera House, with seven escalators inside. From the top you can see the beauty of Yerevan. Duration: 1 hour.

Stop 2.ARARAT Brandy Museum

Taste a selection of aged ARARAT brandies. As Winston Churchill is often quoted: "Never be late for dinner, smoke Havana cigars and drink Armenian brandy." Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 3.Mesrop Mashtots Avenue

Walk through the centre of Yerevan and admire the city's architecture. Duration: 1 hour.

Stop 4.Parajanov Museum

Discover the world of Sergei Parajanov, the great Armenian filmmaker. His collages, drawings, dolls and film sketches amaze with their imagination and artistry. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 5.Erebuni Museum

Tour the Erebuni Museum, dedicated to the founding of Yerevan, at the foot of Arin Berd hill, where the Urartian fortress of Erebuni was built. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 6.Vernissage Market

Vernissage is an open-air market where locals sell their handmade crafts, art and souvenirs. Duration: 1 hour.

Day 2

Stop 1.Zvartnots Temple

Zvartnots means "church of the vigilant powers". Its construction began around 643 and continued for about twenty years under Catholicos Nerses III. Zvartnots is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 2.Holy Etchmiadzin

Visit Holy Etchmiadzin, the main religious and administrative centre of the Armenian Apostolic Church, founded by St. Gregory the Illuminator in 303 on the site of a pagan temple, including the Holy Archangels Church. Nearby stands the Monastery of St. Hripsime, dating to 618. Etchmiadzin is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Day 3

Stop 1.Tsiranavor Church

Tsiranavor means "apricot-coloured church". It is a partly ruined 5th-century church on the edge of the gorge.

Stop 2.Karmravor Church

Karmravor means "reddish church". It is a 7th-century Armenian Apostolic church. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 3.Spitakavor Church

Spitakavor means "white church". It is a partly ruined 13th-century church on the edge of the gorge. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 4.Ashtarak Bridge

Built in 1664, the bridge has three arches of different sizes and crosses the Kasagh River. The area around it is a lovely place for a picnic. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 5.Saint Gevorg Church of Mughni

Built to house relics of St. George the Dragon Slayer, the church is decorated inside with 17th-century frescoes. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 6.Saghmosavank Monastery

A 13th-century monastery whose name comes from "saghmos", the psalms sung by Armenian clergy, thanks to its excellent acoustics. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 7.Saint Mesrop Mashtots Church, Oshakan

Visit the village of Oshakan and the Church of St. Mesrop Mashtots (1875–1879), the burial place of the creator of the Armenian alphabet. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 8.Amberd Fortress

Amberd is a 10th-century fortress 2,300 metres above sea level on the slopes of Mount Aragats, where the Arkashen and Amberd rivers meet. Armenian kings used it as a refuge in times of war. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Day 4

Stop 1.Gyumri Old Town

Walk the streets of old Gyumri, where you can almost hear the blacksmiths' hammers. Many old houses survived the 1988 earthquake and stand out for their architecture, coloured stones and finely carved bas-reliefs. Gyumri has always been a centre of cultural life. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 2.Marmashen Monastery

Built in 988–1029 on the left bank of the Akhurian River, Marmashen has five churches, the best surviving examples of the "Ani school" of medieval Armenian architecture. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 3.Harichavank Monastery

Set on a rocky ledge on the western slope of Mount Aragats, Harichavank was founded in the 7th century; its main church dates from the 13th century. In the 19th century it became the summer residence of the Catholicos. Nearby, a small chapel stands on a rock that split from the ledge in an earthquake and now rises above the canyon. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Day 5

Stop 1.Sevanavank Monastery

Travel to Lake Sevan, the "pearl of Armenia" and one of the highest freshwater lakes in the world, with remarkably blue water, and visit Sevanavank Monastery. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 2.Haghartsin Monastery

Visit Haghartsin, one of the religious and educational centres of medieval Armenia (10th–13th centuries), surrounded by the beautiful nature of Dilijan. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 3.Goshavank Monastery

In the 12th–13th centuries Goshavank became one of the most famous religious and academic centres of medieval Armenia, led by Mkhitar Gosh (1130–1213), one of Armenia's greatest scholars and legal thinkers. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Day 6

Stop 1.Charents Arch

On the way to Garni, a short stop at the Charents Arch, with a stunning view over the Ararat Valley and Mount Ararat.

Stop 2.Garni Temple

The Garni Temple is the only surviving pagan temple in Armenia, dating from the Hellenistic era and dedicated to the sun god Mihr. The site served as a summer residence of Armenian kings. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.

Stop 3.Geghard Monastery

Geghard is a masterpiece of Armenian architecture and a UNESCO World Heritage site, partly carved into the rock. First known as Ayrivank ("cave monastery"), it was renamed Geghard ("spear") after the spear that pierced Christ, once kept here and now displayed in Etchmiadzin. The main church dates from 1215, and the rock-hewn Avazan church from 1283. Hundreds of khachkars and caves surround the monastery. Duration: 1 hour. Entrance ticket included.