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Armenia: In The Shadow of Mt Ararat
Group Tour
Overview
Spanning cultures and continents, Armenia lies at the heart of the Caucasus, its ancient monasteries and candlelit churches standing silent sentinel over centuries of conflict and religious devotion.
Watched over by the biblical heights of Mount Ararat, its mountains and forests play host to a stunning collection of ecclesiastical treasures, alongside remarkable pagan heritage.
This incredible journey takes us into the heart of this remarkable country, offering us a chance ...
Spanning cultures and continents, Armenia lies at the heart of the Caucasus, its ancient monasteries and candlelit churches standing silent sentinel over centuries of conflict and religious devotion.
Watched over by the biblical heights of Mount Ararat, its mountains and forests play host to a stunning collection of ecclesiastical treasures, alongside remarkable pagan heritage.
This incredible journey takes us into the heart of this remarkable country, offering us a chance to discover the very soul of Armenia as we travel from its bustling capital deep into its mountain landscapes. Along the way we will explore remote fortresses and ancient caravanserais, witness the intricate art of traditional khachkar (elaborate stone-crosses) making, and immerse ourselves in local life with a memorable BBQ masterclass at a welcoming family home. We will also discover Armenia's second city, Gyumri, known as Armenia's "Cultural Capital".
Deeply religious, staunchly traditional, and steeped in the passage of history, Armenia stands today as one of Europe’s most captivating and culturally rich destinations.
HIGHLIGHTS
At a glance
MEALS
TRANSPORT
Minivans and/or Sprinters
GROUP SIZE
EXPERT TEAM
ACCOMMODATION
6 nights x Standard
ENTRANCE FEES
FITNESS RATING
WILD MILES
ACCOMMODATION
Wherever possible we aim to use characterful accommodation that enhances the overall travel experience. This can obviously vary greatly across both countries and tours. On this particular trip we will be in comfortable hotels throughout. Please note that the accommodation mentioned in the itinerary is intended as a guide only and is always subject to availability.
FITNESS RATING
LOW: You should be comfortable walking around towns and cultural sites. May include some optional walks (typically 1-2hrs).LOW/MODERATE: May be of a long duration and/or involve numerous border-crossings. May include easy/moderate day walks (up to 2-3hrs/day). You should be relatively fit and lead a generally active lifestyle.
MODERATE: May include several easy/moderate day walks (up to 2-5hrs/day) possibly at altitude. You should be relatively fit and lead a generally active lifestyle. Previous experience of similar trips helpful.
MODERATE/HIGH: May involve several days of moderate hiking (up to 3-6 hrs/day) possibly at altitude. You must be a fit and active traveller with appropriate trekking experience.
HIGH: May involve several days of moderate/strenuous trekking (up to 4-7 hrs/day) possibly at altitude. You must be a very fit and active traveller with appropriate trekking experience.
Wild Miles Club
When you book a trip with Wild Frontiers you are awarded points, which are based on the return distance from London to the arrival city of your trip. Points are awarded for all our holidays, including both our escorted group tours and tailor-made trips. When you accrue points, you will qualify for the following discounts on all future bookings:
| Blue | More than 10,000 points | 2.5% discount |
| Bronze | More than 30,000 points | 5% discount |
| Silver | More than 45,000 points | 7.5% discount |
| Gold | More than 60,000 points | 10% discount |
Map & Itinerary
Individual departures may vary so please refer to the information in the tour specific links in the Dates and Prices section below
Day 1 Tour Starts in Yerevan
Day 1 Tour Starts in Yerevan
Rooms will be available in Yerevan from this afternoon. Those arriving on the suggested group flights will arrive in the early hours of tomorrow morning.
Day 2 Yerevan: Etchmiadzin, Zvartnots & Khachkar Making
Day 2 Yerevan: Etchmiadzin, Zvartnots & Khachkar Making
After breakfast, we will visit the spiritual heart of Armenia, starting with the majestic Etchmiadzin Cathedral, one of the oldest cathedrals in the world, followed by the impressive ruins of Zvartnots Cathedral, a 7th-century masterpiece renowned for its unique architectural beauty. We will then enjoy a traditional Armenian lunch at a local house, before visiting a skilled sculptor who makes khachkars, an ancient Armenian art form involving the carving of elaborate crosses on stone stele. After returning to Yerevan, we will pay our respects at the Genocide Memorial, dedicated to the victims of the Armenian Genocide.
Day 3 Yerevan - Gyumri: Talin Cathedral & Dashtadem Fortress
Day 3 Yerevan - Gyumri: Talin Cathedral & Dashtadem Fortress
After breakfast, we will depart Yerevan, starting with a visit to the historic Aruch Monastery, known for its remarkable medieval architecture, followed by the elegant Talin Cathedral, one of Armenia’s oldest surviving churches. We will then pause to sample some locally-made dried fruit and fresh healthy snacks & treats before continuing to the imposing Dashtadem Fortress, a fortress steeped in history and commanding views over the surrounding region. The day concludes with a scenic drive to Gyumri, where we will stay in for the night.
Driving time today is approx: 3.5 hours (150km)
Day 4 Gyumri - Dilijan: Armenia's Cultural Capital & Tolma Master Class
Day 4 Gyumri - Dilijan: Armenia's Cultural Capital & Tolma Master Class
Today we explore Gyumri, Armenia’s cultural capital, with its cobblestone streets, ornate medieval churches, and artistic heritage. Highlights include Vardanants Square, the serene Cathedral of the Seven Wounds, the historic Kumayri District, Varpetats Street, and the views from Black Fortress and Mother Armenia Statue. After lunch, we visit the 10th-century UNESCO site Haghpat Monastery before driving to Dilijan. There, a stroll along Sharambeyan Street reveals local life, and dinner is a hands-on tolma (stuffed vine leaves) masterclass at a local house.
Driving time today is approx: 4 hours (220km)
Day 5 Dilijan: Haghartsin Hike & BBQ Masterclass
Day 5 Dilijan: Haghartsin Hike & BBQ Masterclass
We begin the day with a pleasant 1.5-hour hike (optional) from Haghartsin Monastery to the beautiful Haghartsin Waterfall, enjoying the serene forest surroundings along the way. Lunch will be a hands-on BBQ masterclass at a local house in Gosh village, offering an authentic taste of Armenian hospitality. In the afternoon, we visit Parz Lake, a crystal-clear lake nestled in lush forests, perfect for walking along scenic paths, breathing the fresh mountain air, and soaking in the tranquil beauty of the park. The day concludes with a visit to Hovaz Winery to learn about wine production, including a wine tasting.
Day 6 Dilijan - Goris: Lake Sevan & Cheese Farm
Day 6 Dilijan - Goris: Lake Sevan & Cheese Farm
We begin the day with a drive to Lake Sevan, the largest freshwater body in the Caucasus before visiting Sevanavank Monastery. Next, we explore the village of Noratus, home to a famous cemetery. We then visit a local farm and enjoy some cheese tastings before visiting the medieval Selim Caravanserai, the best preserved of its kind in Armenia. Later we'll continue to Goris, where a short walking tour through the old streets showcases traditional Armenian houses with balconies, cobblestones, and charming narrow lanes, offering a vivid sense of the town’s unique style.
Driving time today is approx: 6 hours (360km)
Day 7 Goris - Yerevan: Areni Cave & Winery Visit
Day 7 Goris - Yerevan: Areni Cave & Winery Visit
This morning we visit the remarkable Tatev Monastery, perched looking over the Vorotan River Gorge, which we will reach by record-breaking cable car. Then we'll head to Areni Village to explore Areni Cave, home to the oldest known winery, before visiting a modern-day winery, where we will tour the family vineyard and enjoy expertly paired wines and fresh local foods. A hearty lunch follows at a local house in Yeghegnadzor, where we participate in a masterclass making Armenian fruit vodka and Gata, a traditional sweet pastry. Finally we travel on to Yerevan.
Driving time today is approx: 5 hours (265km)
Day 8 Yerevan: Garni Temple, City Tour & Farewell Dinner
Day 8 Yerevan: Garni Temple, City Tour & Farewell Dinner
Today starts with a visit to Garni Temple, a 1st-century Greco-Roman building and the only one of its kind in Armenia. We'll then see the Symphony of Stones, an impressive and oft-photographed natural rock feature. We'll enjoy lunch at a local family home before returning to Yerevan for a city tour, taking in Republic Square, the Cascade Complex and the Matenadaran Manuscript Museum. Finally we'll be able to reflect back on our tour with a farewell dinner, accompanied by traditional folk music.
Day 9 Tour ends in Yerevan
Day 9 Tour ends in Yerevan
The tour will end this morning at the hotel.
ACCOMMODATION USED ON THIS TOUR
Apricot Hotel Yerevan, Yerevan
With just 27 rooms, the Apricot Hotel Yerevan offers an intimate and stylish stay in the heart of Yerevan. Each room is dedicated to a famous Armenian, offering an insight into a little bit of Armenia's diverse and fascinating history. Located in one of the oldest areas of the city, you can easily access some of the main sites on foot, and also enjoy views of the city from the rooftop terrace which is home to the hotel's bar and restaurant. Rooms are comfortable and cozy, with the decor mirroring the style and history of the building, whilst the en suite bathrooms are well-designed and offer a generous range of amenities.
Grand Hotel Gyumri by Apricot, Gyumri
Grand Hotel Gyumri by Apricot Hotel is a stylish boutique hotel in the heart of Gyumri’s historic district, set in a beautifully restored 19th‑century building that blends vintage charm with elegant modern comfort. Guests can enjoy spacious, well‑appointed rooms, complimentary Wi‑Fi and a generous buffet breakfast including fresh pastries and cheeses. The hotel’s central location makes it ideal for exploring local culture, dining and attractions on foot, while its warm Armenian hospitality ensures a memorable stay.
Tufenkian Old Dilijan Complex, Dilijan
Close to the centre of Dilijan, the Tufenkian is a renovated stone complex located directly on historical Sharambeyan Street. The eight rooms are simple and modern but with very traditional features, natural colours and extra comforts such as kettles and satellite television. Breakfast is served in the attached Haykanoush restaurant which also specialises in rich Western Armenian cuisine for lunches and dinner. The complex around the hotel has a number of small workshops which specialise in traditional Armenian crafts such as carpets, wood carvings, ceramics and furniture, as well as a bakery and delightful souvenir shops all promoting local handicrafts. The English speaking staff are helpful and welcoming.
Red Roof Hotel, Goris
The stylish Red Roof Hotel is a great addition to Goris. Cosy but with spacious en suite rooms, the hotel maintains a welcoming atmosphere with an attentive team and lots of small details which add to the overall experience. There is a light and airy on site restaurant serving good local dishes and guests can enjoy lounging around in the beautiful garden.
Hotel Rating
Hotel Rating
Hotel Rating
Hotel Rating
Accommodation displayed here should be taken as a guide only. *Please refer to the Detailed Itinerary of your individual departure for more information.
PRIVATE HOLIDAYS: DATES DON’T FIT?
All group tours can be taken on a private basis.
Additional Details
Responsible Travel
With local people, culture and eco-systems in mind, responsible travel and sustainable tourism are at the core of Wild Frontiers. We believe that a successful trip not only delivers a unique and unsurpassable journey for our travellers but also benefits the people and places we visit.
When designing our tours, we actively seek out experiences that have a positive impact on the communities and precious environments we visit - from supporting social enterprises; resting our heads in rural homestays; and eating at locally owned restaurants; to helping fund conservation projects that protect wildlife and their habitats.
Visit the Responsible Travel area of our website to read more, including the work of the Wild Frontiers Foundation through which we fundraise to aid community empowerment and education projects.
Reducing Single Use Plastic
We recognise the environmental issues and challenges around single-use plastic in many countries we visit and are actively working with our partners on the ground to reduce plastic waste on our tours and within the hotels and restaurants we visit. You can help to reduce your personal plastic waste by taking a refillable, filtered water bottle with you on your trip. Filtered water bottles can be refilled from water sources including your hotel room and restaurant taps, drinking fountains and refill stations. Every time you refill your bottle without the use of single-use plastic, you will be helping to reduce waste and protect the environment. Filtered Water Bottles | Wild Frontiers (wildfrontierstravel.com)
Getting There
If you would like us to send you a quote for the suggested tour flights or on any alternative flight that may suit you better, please let us know, noting that for our US clients, we will most likely refer you to one of our preferred partners. For this trip our suggested flights from the UK (subject to change) are shown below.
If you wish to arrange your own flights, including possibly the new (as of 2026) direct flights to Yerevan from London with Wizz Air, you are completely free to do so and in this case we can arrange any transfers or supplementary accommodation that you may require. However please note that if you are planning on making your own flight arrangements, we recommend that you first check with us to see if the trip is guaranteed. We then suggest that you purchase flights that are flexible and ideally refundable as due to the nature of adventure travel, itineraries and destination accessibility can change at any time. For more information, please refer to our booking conditions.
| Flight Code | Departing | Arriving |
|---|---|---|
| TK 1980 |
London Heathrow (LHR) 11:20
27th September 2027 |
Istanbul (IST) 17:15
27th September 2027 |
| TK 0358 |
Istanbul (IST) 21:45
27th September 2027 |
Yerevan Airport (EVN) 01:00
28th September 2027 |
| TK 0361 |
Yerevan Airport (EVN) 09:40
5th October 2027 |
Istanbul (IST) 11:15
5th October 2027 |
| TK 1985 |
Istanbul (IST) 13:15
5th October 2027 |
London Heathrow (LHR) 15:10
5th October 2027 |
Visas & Vaccinations
VISAS
Visas are necessary for many of the destinations we travel to and while we aim to provide you with the most up-to-date information, requirements frequently change and as such for the latest advice we advise that you check with the relevant embassies or contact a reputable visa agency. More details can be found here - https://www.wildfrontierstravel.com/visa
For this tour UK passport holders currently do not require a visa for Armenia.
Passports should ideally be valid for a minimum period of 6 months from the end of your tour.
Non-UK passport holders or non-UK residents should contact the relevant embassies for individual requirements.
VACCINATIONS & ADDITIONAL TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS
There are no mandatory vaccination requirements for travellers to Armenia.
For all destinations, please make sure you are up-to-date with any standard vaccinations (e.g. MMR, Hepatitis A, Tetanus) as recommended by your local health care provider.
For the most up-to-date information on all vaccination requirements and the most suitable anti-malarial tablets, we strongly suggest that you seek advice from your local travel centre or consult an official travel health website such as www.travelhealthpro.org.uk
Covid Testing: No mandatory testing is currently required for vaccinated or unvaccinated travellers.
If necessary further details will be sent out to you upon booking, however ensuring that correct and valid visas & vaccinations are obtained remains the sole responsibility of the client.
Extensions
If you have more time available, why not arrive early to adjust to a new time zone or just to get a feel for the country before your tour starts? Alternatively, you might choose to allow a few extra days after the tour to relax or to undertake some further exploration.
The choice is completely yours and we can usually arrange anything from simply additional accommodation and transfers to full tailor-made itineraries*. Please contact the office for more details and to discuss your requirements.
*Please note bespoke, tailor-made itineraries need to be a minimum of 7 days and we can only offer them in countries where we have a tailor-made expert
Governmental Travel Advice
Many governments issue advice which highlights potential hazards their citizens might experience when travelling abroad. We strongly suggest you refer to your country’s particular advisory site before booking and contact us if you have any queries or concerns. Click to follow links to the advice of the British Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) or the US State Department.
Non-UK citizens should consult the travel advice of their respective governments.
Key Information
CLIMATE
The weather conditions can be extremely varied (even within the course of a day!). Most roads are open year-round but some will close in the middle of winter due to heavy snowfall. Summers are typically hot (with temperatures in low-lying areas often reaching 35 oC) leaving spring and autumn as the most popular times to visit the region.
IS THIS TRIP FOR ME?
It may sound obvious, but not all Wild Frontiers tours are the same, and it is important that you choose a tour which is suitable for you. To help you decide and ensure you choose a suitable tour, please refer to our helpful guide here. As a minimum, you should make sure that you read the day-by-day itinerary and the Key Aspects to Consider sections carefully. Should you still have any concerns about your ability to partake in any aspect of the tour, then please contact us.
KEY ASPECTS TO CONSIDER
Anyone in a reasonable state of health, with an open mind and a sense of adventure should be perfectly able to cope with this tour. Please be advised that on this trip vegetarians can be catered for but the selection and variety at times may be limited.
NEW TOURS
Never complacent, here at Wild Frontiers we are continually on the look-out for new tour ideas. Each year we aim to put on a selection of new tours in order to continually provide our clients with a fresh and varied choice of some of the best journeys on the planet. Although a lot of fun, these tours will often involve a greater element of unpredictability than our better-established tours, so please come prepared.
THE NATURE OF ADVENTURE TRAVEL
We feel that it’s worth pointing out that while we will always strive to stick as close to the stated itinerary as possible, it may be necessary from time to time to make changes to our itineraries or services (due to weather, political and religious influences etc.) and this can happen with little or no notice. This unpredictability can be one of the most exciting aspects of adventure travel and for many of our clients often leads to unexpected highlights as the tour-leader necessarily adapts the tour to the changing conditions. However we are aware that this lack of assuredness may not suit everyone. As such, with the greatest respect, if you are someone who needs to know that everything will happen exactly as planned, we would kindly suggest that perhaps our tours are not for you. Adventure travel can be infectious and once you’ve caught the bug, it is likely to never leave you, but especially if this is your first such tour we would strongly urge you to give us a call if you have any concerns whatsoever about your suitability for this trip.
TRAVELLING SOLO AND SINGLE SUPPLEMENTS
As a company approximately 70% of our clients are solo travellers, so it’s very unlikely you’ll be alone!
Our prices are typically based on twin-share accommodation but single supplements are not compulsory for any Wild Frontiers tour. If you prefer not to pay a single supplement we’ll pair you with someone else of the same sex for you to share with throughout the trip. On this trip, if you do opt to pay for a single supplement then please note that it will cover you for all nights of the tour.
Please note that paying a single supplement entitles you to lone occupancy of a single room. In many cases these rooms will be of the same size as a double/twin room, but in some cases they may be smaller.
INSURANCE
Insurance that provides cover for emergency repatriation in case of a medical emergency is compulsory for all tours. You should be aware that due to some of the geographical areas visited and some of the activities included on certain of our trips some standard insurance policies may not always provide adequate cover. As such we strongly recommend that you purchase a policy that adequately covers your trip. Please see the Insurance section for more details.
General Information
TOUR PRICE
All our tours are priced on a land-only basis, giving you maximum flexibility when deciding how to get to and from your tour.
DEPOSIT
A 10% deposit is required to confirm your booking.
PROTECTION FOR YOUR MONEY
For further details please see our travelling with peace of mind page
WILD MILES
This tour will earn you 4502 Wild Miles
WHAT'S NOT INCLUDED
We believe in a completely transparent approach to pricing with no hidden extras. As such, please note that the following are not included in the cost of the tour.
Visas & Travel Insurance: Visas will always be tour/nationality dependent but travel insurance is mandatory
Tips: Always optional but some guidance will be given in the pre-departure information documents
International Flights: Please ask us for an obligation-free quote for flights which originate in the UK
Airport Transfers: We include complimentary transfers if arriving/departing on the suggested group flights
Beverages & any costs of a personal nature: This will include items such as laundry and souvenirs
WILD FRONTIERS COMMUNITY
If you’re still not sure if this trip is right or just want to see get some different perspectives, then why not have a look at the wide variety of resources we have on our website? Browse our community section to read our blogs, watch videos and find out about our events.
WHY WILD FRONTIERS?
We are frequently asked what makes Wild Frontiers different from other tour operators. Visit our Why Wild Frontiers page to find out.