TUFF STONE TOWNS
MOUNTAIN CHURCHES
SOVIET MODERNISM
APRIL 23 ⇾ APRIL 30
OCTOBER 21 ⇾ OCTOBER 28
In addition to our regular group departures to Armenia, we also offer tour services for private travel parties and lone wolves alike. As a traveller-oriented boutique operator, tailored trips and bespoke adventures are our bread and butter. Get in touch for more info on our Bespoke Armenia Tours!
DAY 1 to DAY 2 • Yerevan
Meet-and-greet at Yerevan International Airport, transfer to our hotel of choice in central Yerevan and introductory briefing about Armenia, its history, culture and architecture.
For the next two days we will enjoy a comprehensive architectural gallivanting around Yerevan, which will include both early examples of Soviet constructivism and neoclassicism and later modernist and internationalist gems, as well as a selected compendium of pre-Soviet architectural wonders such as the traditional district of Kond.
We'll also go truly off the beaten path visiting Gumi Shuka, a colourful USSR-style covered grocery market, and the hinterland district of Malatia Sebastia, aka Bangladesh.
Overnights in Yerevan.
DAY 3 • Soviet Remnants
On our third day in Armenia we’ll undertake an excursion to the nearby Soviet-style town of Ashtarak and visit three peculiar sites in its vicinity:
Lernamerdz, home to one of the last Lenin monuments still standing in the country; Byurakan and Orgov, famous for their gloriously imposing Soviet-era astrophysical observatories; Artashavan, with is odd monumental complex depicting the Armenian Alphabet.
Overnight in Yerevan.
DAY 4 • Gyumri
Early morning start and transfer to Etchmiadzin, the spiritual capital of Armenia, home to a vast religious complex now included in the UNESCO World Heritage list.
En-route visits to the rusty USSR-era Ferris wheel in the satellite town of Zvartnos and the semi-abandoned Etchmiadzin Sport Compound.
Just outside Etchmiadzin, we’ll also have the chance to see traditional villages inhabited by the secretive Yazidis, a strictly endogamous ethnoreligious group sadly known for the persecutions they recently endured in Syria and Iraq.
Drawing a semi-circle along the barren and desolate western side of the Aragats Massif, we'll then head for the northern city of Gyumri, formerly known as Leninakan, with en-route stops in the Soviet towns of Metsamor, infamously known for its massive nuclear power plant, Armavir, home to the stately Sardarapat Memorial, and Maralik, former mining town harbouring a lively Soviet-era House of Culture.
Overnight in Gyumri.
Bespoke Experiences • Full Soviet cultural immersion in an archetypical USSR-era House of Culture in Maralik and traditional Armenian dinner in an authentic farmers’ house near Alaverdi.
DAY 5 • Alaverdi
In the morning we’ll pay a mandatory visit to the mesmerising Iron Fountain in the outskirt of Gyumri and then set off for a journey across the green Armenian highlands, heading for the quintessentially Soviet mining town of Alaverdi, close to the border with neighbouring Georgia.
We'll break our trip to Alaverdi by visiting two architectonically interesting realities along the way: Spitak, a small-sized town completely rebuilt after the 1988 quake and home to a sadly abandoned Soviet Youth Camp, and Vanadzor (formerly Kirovakan), a city of industrial decay and neoclassic charm.
After a scenic drive along the Debed Canyon, we'll eventually arrive in Alaverdi, where we'll enjoy a tour around its steampunk downtown and a de rigueur ascent to the picturesque monastic complexes of Sanahin and Haghpat.
Near Sanahin we’ll also visit to the Soviet Air Force Museum dedicated to Artyom Mikoyan, a local aerospace engineer and one of the main designers of the legendary MiG.
Overnight in Alaverdi.
DAY 6 • Dilijan
From Alaverdi we'll head south to Dilijan, a famous golden-era retreat for the Soviet intelligentsia, making a slightly time-consuming but extremely rewarding long detour via the remote Tavush province.
We’ll drive along a breathtaking panoramic road that runs along the tense border with Azerbaijan and crosses far-flung Soviet towns and isolated villages.
The array of precious jewels along the route will include the prototypically Soviet-Armenian towns of Noyemberyan and Ijevan as well as several idyllic villages-cum-monasteries such as Akhtala and Makaravank.
Once in Dilijan, we’ll visit the local WWII Memorial and a few of the many Soviet-era sanatoriums dotting the outskirts of the city.
Close to Dilijan, we’ll also visit the little-known hamlet of Fioletevo, one of the last thriving Molokan communities in the Southern Caucasus.
The Molokans are rather friendly but extremely shy members of an Orthodox spiritual sect who live in almost complete isolation from the rest of society, far from modern comforts and technologies: the Russian answer to the Amish communities in rural Pennsylvania.
Overnight in Dilijan.
DAY 7 • Sevan
From Dilijan we'll head to the USSR-wide famous Lake Sevan, the Armenian Ocean.
As always, we will focus our tour on Soviet architecture and socialist heritage visiting both renowned gems (the Writers’ House on the Sevanavank peninsula and the central railway station in Sevan city) and obscure socialist urban experiments such as the towns of Gagarin, Abovyan, and Hrazdan.
In the evening we'll eventually drive back to Yerevan for a conclusive Soviet-style dinner.
Overnight in Yerevan.
DAY 8 • FAREWELL TO ARMENIA
After enjoying a last Armenian meal together, we'll take care of your transfer to Yerevan International Airport.
Possible tour extensions to this itinerary include: Iraqi Kurdistan and/or Soviet Georgia.
End of the tour.
1595 €
INCLUSIONS
Double/twin-room accommodation (breakfast included), private transport in Armenia (car/minivan), all entrance fees, English-speaking guiding service, 24/7 on-site and remote assistance.
EXCLUSIONS
Single supplement, international flights, main meals (lunches and dinners), extra drinks, visa fees (if required), tips, travel insurance.