Khor Virap

Today is a long but fascinating day! It is dedicated to exploration of Southern Armenia combining the magic of Armenia's finest medieval architecture with stunning landscapes. Our first stop is at Khor Virap Monastery, one of the most popular destinations in Armenia for a number of reasons, primarily because it is where St. Gregory the Illuminator was imprisoned for 13 years before curing King Trdat III of a disease. This caused the conversion of the king and Armenia into the first officially Christian nation in the world in the year 301. Its location, near the closest point to biblical Mount Ararat within Armenian borders, offers a spectacular view of the mountain, the national symbol of Armenia. We continue to the south driving through the agricultural heartland of Armenia, Ararat Plain offering fantastic scenery of fruit orchards, endless vineyards at the foothills of Ararat Mountain. As soon as we pass the Ararat Valley we can experience the untamed beauty of Southern Armenia - surreal red rocks providing an eerie echo, honey-colored villages sandwiched between them.

Noravank Monastery

Our next stop is the Monastery of Noravank, an architectural gemstone nestled among brick-red cliffs, just above a deep gorge. It’s only here where you can see a bas-relief with the representation of Father God with almond-shaped eyes which look far ahead.

Areni

Visit Areni, the village of winemakers. We will tour of the world-class archaeological site, the cave complex Areni-1 to see the oldest winery in the world (6100 years old)!

Goris

Overnight in Goris

Goris

Explore Goris town, one of the most beautiful towns in Armenia. It’s a town in orchards where the houses have the same unique architecture with red tile roof. See old Old Goris cave town from the viewpoint.

Tatev Monastery

Riding the world’s longest aerial tramway (5.7 km) you’ll reach the miraculous Tatev Monastery, a formidable monastic complex founded in the 9th century. It’s the biggest monastery in Armenia located on a rocky peninsula more than 100 meters above the Vorotan River.

Karahunj

On our way we visit Karahunj known as the “Armenian Stonehenge”, the oldest observatory in the world which is 7500 years old. There are 223 vertically standing stones 84 of which have holes. The ancients were gazing the stars using them as telescopes.

Khndzoresk Swinging Bridge

Afterwards we hike in Old Khndzoresk cave village frozen in time with thousands of caves, where people were living until the beginning of the 20th century