Join us for a tour of Armenia's breathtaking landscapes and delve into one of its most famous caves on this day trip to Khor Virap, Noravank and Areni-1. History, nature and centuries-old traditions are combined in this route through the Vayots Dzor region.
Day Trip Details
At the indicated time, we'll depart from Nalbandyan Street to board a vehicle and head towards the Ararat plain, near the Turkish border, passing through the mountainous landscape of the south of the country.
An hour later, we'll arrive at our destination, the Khor Virap Monastery. As soon as we get out of the vehicle, we'll fall in love with this place, one of the most photographed landscapes in Armenia! For about 50 minutes, we'll walk through its chapels and towers, and learn about the story of Gregory the Illuminator, who spent years imprisoned in its dungeon. A place full of spirituality and with views that will leave you speechless!
Our next stop will be the Areni-1 cave, also known as the cave of the birds. Why does this name come from? This archaeological site is also famous for being the place where the oldest shoe in the world was discovered. We'll explore this cavity for about 40 minutes while learning about the rituals and customs of the ancient civilisations that inhabited the area. Did you know that this place was also an ancient wine production centre?
Speaking of wine... a wine tasting is a must! We'll head to the Hin Areni winery, where we'll spend 30 to 40 minutes learning about the local wine-making process and, of course, tasting some of the most representative varieties of the local wine. Before continuing, we'll stop so you can grab a typical Armenian lunch at a restaurant. Enjoy your meal!
After lunch, we'll head to the monastery of Noravank, located in the rural community of Areni. We'll stroll around this site for about an hour, admiring its carved reddish stone reliefs and the impressive canyon that surrounds it—a picture-postcard setting!
Finally, we'll return to Yerevan and say goodbye at the starting point after a total of 9 to 10 hours of hiking.
