Day 1

Yerevan

• Arrival in Yerevan Airport
• Meeting guests – transfer to the hotel
• Hotel accommodation / repose
• Lunch – “Caucasus” Pandok
• Evening walk through the city center
• Return to the hotel
• Dinner – restaurant “Cilicia”

Day 2

Guided Tour to Yerevan

• Breakfast in the hotel
• Walking through the Yerevan city accompanied by a guide

Places to visit:

1) Republic Square (National Art Gallery, History Museum of Armenia)

2) Abovyan street

3) Freedom Square (Opera and Ballet Theater)

4) Cascade (Cafesjian Center for the Arts)

• Lunch – “Yerevan Pandok” restaurant
• Excursion to Ararat Yerevan Brandy Factory

(visit the museum of the factory, get acquainted with the legends of ARARAT brandies, learn the 120 years old history of Armenian brandy production, know who have drunk Armenian brandy, see the oldest Armenian barrels and the medals which decorate the ARARAT legend.)

• Visit to Yerevan central cathedral
• Visit museum of Parandzhanov
• Dinner – restaurant “Caucasus”
• Return to the hotel

Day 3

Yerevan – Echmiadzin – Zvartnoc – Yerevan

• Breakfast
• Excursion to Echmiadzin

Echmiadzin – is the fourth-largest city in Armenia and the most populous town in Armavir Province, located about 18 km (11 mi) west of the capital Yerevan, and 10 km (6 mi) north of the Armenian-Turkish border.

• Visit to Zvartnots is a 7th-century centrally planned aisled tetraconch type Armenian cathedral built by the order of Catholicos Nerses the Builder from 643-652.
• Return to Yerevan
• Lunch – restaurant “Caucasus”
  
• Evening walk through the Yerevan city
• Dinner – “Yerevan Pandok” restaurant

Day 4

Yerevan – Hovhannavank – Armenian alphabet memorial – Amberd – Karmravor – Oshakan – Yerevan

• Breakfast
• Visit to Hovhannavank – Hovhannavank (Armenian: Հովհաննավանք) is a medieval monastery located in the village of Ohanavan in the Aragatsotn Province of Armenia. The monastery stands on the edge of the Kasagh River canyon, and its territory is adjacent to the village of Ohanavan. The deep gorge is carved by the Kasagh River.
• Tour to Armenian Alphabet Monument. The monument is an interesting demonstration of the stone carvings of 39 Armenian letters. The Armenian alphabet has been used to write the Armenian language since the year 405 or 406 and is still used to present Armenian language in written form.
• Visit to Amberd – (Armenian: Ամբերդ) is a 7th-century fortress located 2,300 meters (7,500 ft) above sea level, on the slopes of Mount Aragats at the confluence of the Arkashen and Amberd rivers in the province of Aragatsotn, Armenia. The name translates to “fortress in the clouds” in Armenian. It is also the name incorrectly attributed to Vahramashen Church, the 11th-century Armenian church near the castle.
• Lunch in Rshtunik
• Visitt to Karmravor (Armenian: Կարմրավոր եկեղեցի; meaning “reddish” because of the color of its dome), also known as the Church of Holy Mother of God is a 7th-century Armenian Apostolic church in the town of Ashtarak in the Aragatsotn Province.
• Visit to Oshakan – During the Arsacid Dynasty of the Kingdom of Armenia, it served as the main town of Ayrarat province and the capital of its Aragatsotn canton from which the Amatuni noble family ruled. However, Oshakan is best known for the Saint Mesrop Mashtots Cathedral which is the burial place of Saint Mesrop Mashtots, the creator of the Armenian alphabet. The church houses his grave and was rebuilt by Catholicos George IV in 1875. Wall paintings on the interior were done in 1960 by the artist H. Minasian. Saint Mesrop Cathedral is the seat of the Aragatsotn Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church.
• Return to Yerevan
• Evening walk
  
• Dinner – “Dolmama” restaurant
  

Day 5

Yerevan – Khor Virap – Noravank – Karahunj – Goris

• Breakfast in the hotel
• Visit to Khor Virap

The Khor Virap (Armenian: Խոր Վիրապ, meaning “deep pit” or “deep well”) is an Armenian monastery located in the Ararat plain in Armenia, near the closed border with Turkey, about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) south of Artashat, Ararat Province.The monastery was host to a theological seminary and was the residence of Armenian Catholicos.

• Visit to Noravank (Armenian: Նորավանք, literally “new monastery”) is a 13th-century Armenian monastery, located 122 km from Yerevan in a narrow gorge made by the Amaghu River, near the town of Yeghegnadzor, Armenia. The gorge is known for its tall, sheer, brick-red cliffs, directly across from the monastery. The monastery is best known for its two-storey Surb Astvatsatsin (Holy Mother of God) church, which grants access to the second floor by way of a narrow stone-made staircase jutting out from the face of building.

• Lunch – restaurant “Ljak” (Լճակ)
• Visit to Karahunj (Armenian: Քարահունջ; also Romanized as K’arahunj, Karaundzh, and Karahundj) is a village and rural community (municipality) in Armenia in Syunik province known for archaeological site Zorats Karer, located 4 km south of the city of Goris. The National Statistical Service of the Republic of Armenia (ARMSTAT) reported its population was 1,303 in 2010,[2] up from 1,254 at the 2001 census.
• Visit to Goris city
• Rest and dinner at the hotel

Day 6

Goris – Tatev – Khndzoresk – Stepanakert

• Breakfast in the hotel
• Visit to Khndzoresk (Armenian: Խնձորեսկ) is a village and rural community (municipality) in the South-East of Armenia, in the province (marz) of Syunik. The village is located to the right of Goris – Stepanakert highway, on the steep slopes of Khor Dzor (Deep Gorge), from which, according to tradition, it got its name.
• Visit to Tatev monastery – The Tatev monastery (Armenian: Տաթևի վանք) is a 9th-century Armenian Apostolic monastery located on a large basalt plateau near the Tatev village in Syunik Province in southeastern Armenia. The term “Tatev” usually refers to the monastery. The monastic ensemble stands on the edge of a deep gorge of the Vorotan River. Tatev is known as the bishopric seat of Syunik and played a significant role in the history of the region as a center of economic, political, spiritual and cultural activity. In the 14th and 15th centuries the monastery hosted one of the most important Armenian medieval universities, the University of Tatev, which contributed to the advancement of science, religion and philosophy, reproduction of books and development of miniature painting. Scholars of the Tatev University contributed to the preservation of Armenian culture and creed during one of its most turbulent periods in its history.
• Lunch
• Visit to Stepanakert
  
• Rest and dinner at the hotel

Day 7

Stepanakert – Gandzasar – Askeran – Tigranakert – Stepanakert

• Breakfast in the hotel
• Walk in Stepanakert
• Visit to Askeran Fortress is a fortress in the town of Askeran in Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. It is on the banks of the Qarqar River and was built by the Karabakh khanate ruler and consists of two sections. The left-bank section features a double line of stone walls.
• Visit to Gandzasar. The monastery at Gandzasar was first mentioned in the tenth century. The construction of Gandzasar’s Cathedral of St. John the Baptist began in 1216, under the patronage of the Armenian prince of Khachen, Hasan-Jalal Dawla, and it was completed in 1238 and consecrated on July 22, 1240.
• Picnic
• Walk in Tigranakert is a ruined Armenian city dating back to the Hellenistic period. It is one of several former cities in the Armenian plateau with the same name, named in honor of the Armenian king Tigranes the Great (r. 95–55 B.C.), although some scholars, such as Robert Hewsen and Babken Harutyunyan, have posited that this particular Tigranakert may have been founded by Tigranes the Great’s father, Tigranes I (r. ca. 123–95 B.C.). It occupies an area of about 50 hectares and is located in the province of Martakert in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR), de jure Aghdara in Azerbaijan, approximately four kilometers south of the Khachenaget River.
• Rest and dinner at the hotel

Day 8

Stepanakert – Shushi – Areni – Yerevan

• Breakfast in the hotel
• Walk in Shushi is a city in Nagorno-Karabakh. Situated at an altitude of 1,400–1,800 metres (4,600–5,900 ft) in the picturesque Karabakh mountains, Shushi was a popular mountain recreation resort in the Soviet era.
• Lunch and wine degustation in Areni
  
• Return to Yerevan
  
• Rest in Hotel
  
• Dinner

Day 9

Yerevan – Tsakhkadzor – Sevan – Dilijan – Yerevan

• Breakfast
• Visit to Tsakhkadzor (Armenian: Ծաղկաձոր) is a spa town and a popular health resort in Armenia, located north of the capital Yerevan in the Kotayk Province. Tsaghkadzor literally means valley of flowers or flower canyon in Armenian. The name of Tsaghkadzor is associated with the name of the nearby Tsaghkunyats Mountains, located to the west of the town.

• Visit to Kecharis Monastery is a medieval Armenain monastic complex dating back to the 11th to 13th centuries, located 60 km from Yerevan, in the ski resort town of Tsakhkadzor in Armenia. Nestled in the Bambak mountains, Kecharis was founded by a Pahlavuni prince in the 11th century, and construction continued until the middle of the 13th century. In the 12th and 13th centuries, Kecharis was a major religious center of Armenia and a place of higher education. Today, the monastery has been fully restored and is clearly visible from the ski slopes.

• Visit to Sevan lake/church

Sevan lake is the largest body of water in Armenia and the Caucasus region. It is one of the largest freshwater high-altitude lakes in Eurasia.The lake is situated in the central part of Armenia, in the Gegharkunik Province, at the altitude of 1,900 m (6,200 ft) above sea level.

Sevanavank (Armenian: Սևանավանք) is a monastic complex located on a peninsula at the northwestern shore of Lake Sevan in the Gegharkunik Province of Armenia, not far from the town of Sevan. Initially the monastery was built at the southern shore of a small island. After the artificial draining of Lake Sevan, which started in the era of Joseph Stalin, the water level fell about 20 metres, and the island transformed into a peninsula. At the southern shore of this newly created peninsula, a guesthouse of the Armenian Writers’ Union was built. The eastern shore is occupied by the Armenian president’s summer residence, while the monastery’s still active seminary moved to newly constructed buildings at the northern shore of the peninsula.

• Lunch on the lake Sevan
  
• Visit to Dilijan
  

Dilijan (Armenian: Դիլիջան), is a spa town in the Tavush Province of Armenia. Usually called Armenian Switzerland or Little Switzerland by the locals, it is one of the most important resorts of Armenia, situated within the Dilijan National Park. The forested and reclusive town is home to numerous Armenian artists, composers, and filmmakers and features some traditional Armenian architecture. The Sharambeyan street in the centre, has been preserved and maintained as an “old town,” complete with craftsman’s workshops, a gallery and a museum. Hiking, mountain biking, and picnicking are popular recreational activities.

• Visit to Haghartsin Monastery (Armenian: Հաղարծին) is a 13th-century monastery located near the town of Dilijan in the Tavush Province of Armenia. It was built between the 10th and 14th centuries (in the 12th under Khachatur of Taron); much of it under the patronage of the Bagratuni Dynasty.
• Return to Yerevan
• Relax in the hotel
• Evening walk
• Dinner – “Dolmama” restaurant

Day 10

Geghard – Garni

• Breakfast
• Visit to vernissage
• Visit to Geghard

Geghard (Armenian: Գեղարդ, meaning “spear”) is a medieval monastery in the Kotayk province of Armenia, being partially carved out of the adjacent mountain, surrounded by cliffs. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

While the main chapel was built in 1215, the monastery complex was founded in the 4th century by Gregory the Illuminator at the site of a sacred spring inside a cave. The monastery had thus been originally named Ayrivank (Այրիվանք), meaning “the Monastery of the Cave”. The name commonly used for the monastery today, Geghard, or more fully Geghardavank (Գեղարդավանք), meaning “the Monastery of the Spear”, originates from the spear which had wounded Jesus at the Crucifixion, allegedly brought to Armenia by Apostle Jude, called here Thaddeus, and stored amongst many other relics. Now it is displayed in the Echmiadzin treasury.

The spectacular towering cliffs surrounding the monastery are part of the Azat River gorge, and are included together with the monastery in the World Heritage Site listing. Some of the churches within the monastery complex are entirely dug out of the cliff rocks, others are little more than caves, while others are elaborate structures, with both architecturally complex walled sections and rooms deep inside the cliff. The combination, together with numerous engraved and free-standing khachkars is a unique sight, being one of the most frequented tourist destinations in Armenia.

• Lunch in Garni
  
• Visit to Garni

The Temple of Garni  is a classical Hellenistic temple in Garni, Armenia. It is perhaps the best-known structure and symbol of pre-Christian Armenia. It was probably built by king Tiridates I in the first century AD as a temple to the sun god Mihr.

• Return to Yerevan and departure