Tour Overview
| Duration | 6 Days / 5 Nights |
|---|---|
| Destination | Armenia — Yerevan, Tatev, Khor Virap, Noravank, Garni, Geghard |
| Price From | $1,495 per person (twin share, private) |
| Tour Style | Private Cultural Discovery |
| Best Season | April — October |
| Data Source | Araratour / One Way Tour — 2026 |
Itinerary Highlights
Day 1: Arrive Yerevan — Armenia’s Pink City
Land at Zvartnots Airport. Transfer to hotel. Afternoon walking tour of Yerevan — one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities (founded 782 BCE, 29 years before Rome). Visit Republic Square with its pink tufa stone buildings and singing fountains. Explore the Cascade Complex — a giant stairway with contemporary art installations and panoramic city views, topped by the Cafesjian Museum of Modern Art. Visit the Armenian Genocide Memorial (Tsitsernakaberd) on the hilltop overlooking the city. Evening: dinner in the lively Saryan Street wine district — try Armenian brandy (Ararat, Winston Churchill’s favorite) and khorovats (Armenian barbecue). Overnight in Yerevan.
Day 2: Khor Virap & Noravank — Biblical Views & Canyon Monastery
Drive south. First stop: Khor Virap Monastery, dramatically set against the backdrop of Mount Ararat (5,137m) — the biblical mountain where Noah’s Ark is said to have landed, now just across the border in Turkey. Khor Virap means “deep dungeon” — it was here that St. Gregory the Illuminator was imprisoned for 13 years before converting King Tiridates III, making Armenia the first country to adopt Christianity as its state religion (301 AD). Next: Noravank Monastery, a 13th-century masterpiece of Armenian architecture nestled in a red-rock canyon. The Surb Astvatsatsin (Holy Mother of God) church features an extraordinary two-story design with a cantilevered staircase carved into its facade. Overnight in a rural guesthouse near Goris.
Day 3: The Wings of Tatev — Longest Reversible Cable Car
The highlight of the trip. Ride the Wings of Tatev — the world’s longest reversible cable car (5,752m, recorded in Guinness World Records) — soaring over the Vorotan River Gorge, 320m below. The 12-minute journey ends at Tatev Monastery (9th century), one of Armenia’s greatest architectural and spiritual landmarks, perched dramatically at the edge of a deep gorge. The monastery was a major center of learning in the Middle Ages, with a university that taught philosophy, astronomy, music, and manuscript illumination. Explore the main church of Surb Poghos-Petros, the swinging pillar (Gavazan), the oil mill, and the monk’s cells. Afternoon: visit the Devil’s Bridge, a natural travertine arch with mineral pools. Overnight in Goris.
Day 4: Goris — Areni Wine Route
Explore Goris’s cave dwellings — houses carved into volcanic rock formations. Drive to the village of Areni, home of the world’s oldest known winery — a 6,100-year-old cave where archaeologists found grape seeds, withered vines, and a wine press. Taste Areni wines at a family winery. Visit the Areni-1 Cave where the world’s oldest leather shoe (5,500 years old) was discovered in 2008. Afternoon: return to Yerevan, stopping at the village of Oshakan — burial place of St. Mesrop Mashtots, inventor of the Armenian alphabet (405 AD). Overnight in Yerevan.
Day 5: Garni Temple & Geghard — Pagan & Christian Armenia
Day trip to Armenia’s must-see duo. Garni Temple (1st century AD) — a perfectly preserved Greco-Roman temple, the only pagan temple remaining in Armenia, built by King Tiridates I. Commanding views over the Azat River Gorge. Watch lavash (traditional Armenian flatbread) being baked in a tonir (underground oven) — UNESCO Intangible Heritage. Continue to Geghard Monastery (UNESCO), partially carved out of a mountain — the name means “spear,” referring to the spear that wounded Christ, once kept here. The acoustics in the rock-hewn chambers are extraordinary. Return to Yerevan. Farewell dinner at a traditional restaurant with live Armenian music (duduk — the haunting apricot-wood flute, another UNESCO treasure). Overnight in Yerevan.
Day 6: Depart Yerevan
Morning at leisure — visit the Vernissage flea market for carpets, Soviet memorabilia, silver, and crafts. Airport transfer. Ts’tesutyun!
Inclusions
- 5 nights (Yerevan hotel + Goris guesthouse)
- Daily breakfast + 4 dinners with wine/brandy
- Private vehicle & English-speaking guide
- Wings of Tatev cable car tickets
- All monasteries & museum entries
- Areni wine tasting & lavash baking demo
- Duduk performance
- Airport transfers
