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Private Tour: Exploring Khor Virap, Noravank Monasteries, Winery, and Bird’s Cave
5.0
28 Ratings
Lusarat
Embark on a fascinating 8-9 hour journey to uncover the charm and rich history of scenic Armenia! Among its numerous historic sites, Mount Ararat, with Biblical associations, is arguably the most famous. Our tour hence pledges an incredible perspective from the nearest location possible.
Embark on a fascinating 8-9 hour journey to uncover the charm and rich history of scenic Armenia! Among its numerous historic sites, Mount Ararat, with Biblical associations, is arguably the most famous. Our tour hence pledges an incredible perspective from the nearest location possible.
Duration:
9 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Khor Virap - The Khor Virap monastery is located about an hour’s drive from the capital Yerevan and offers a breathtaking view of Armenia’s iconic symbol – the majestic Ararat. “Khor Virap” translates to “deep dungeon” and was built on the site of the former royal prison at the historical location of Artashat. This very prison held Gregory the…
- Khor Virap - The Khor Virap monastery is located about an hour’s drive from the capital Yerevan and offers a breathtaking view of Armenia’s iconic symbol – the majestic Ararat. “Khor Virap” translates to “deep dungeon” and was built on the site of the former royal prison at the historical location of Artashat. This very prison held Gregory the Illuminator, the first Armenian Catholicos, for 13 years. It’s no wonder this place is one of the most sacred for Armenians worldwide. Additionally, it’s the closest point to Mount Ararat from Armenia, often becoming the top reason to visit the country!
- Noravank Monastery - Another must-see is Noravank, a gem of medieval Armenian architecture nestled high among the stunning brick-red cliffs at the end of the Gnishik Canyon. Here, you’ll find the only depiction of God the Father in Armenia, as astonishing as the face of Jesus Christ that appeared on the dome of the Church’s narthex. Built by the Orbelian noblemen, it stands out as their family sepulcher, unique since burying people inside a church has been prohibited since the 5th century.
- T’rchuneri (Bird) Cave - The tour will take you to Bird’s Cave. In 2008, archeologists discovered some of the world’s oldest artifacts here, including a leather shoe and a winery. Overlooking the Arpa River near the town of Areni, the site dates mostly to the Early Bronze Age (around 5,000-6,000 years ago) and contains evidence of elaborate burial rituals and agricultural practices.
- Areni - To cap off the tour, you’ll have the chance to taste and purchase Armenia’s renowned Areni wine. Made from the oldest grape variety in the world, the wine is available at several wineries in the town of Areni, where we will stop before concluding the trip.
What's Included
- Hotel pick-up and drop-off included
- Complimentary bottled water
- No extra charges: all taxes, fees, and handling charges covered
- Stay connected with on-board WiFi
- All entrance tickets (valued at 2000 AMD per person) included
- Comfortable in-vehicle air conditioning
- Professional driver ensures a safe journey
- Hotel pick-up and drop-off included
- Complimentary bottled water
- No extra charges: all taxes, fees, and handling charges covered
- Stay connected with on-board WiFi
- All entrance tickets (valued at 2000 AMD per person) included
- Comfortable in-vehicle air conditioning
- Professional driver ensures a safe journey
What's Not Included
- Food and drinks (upon request)
- Professional guide (upon request)
- Lunch
- Food and drinks (upon request)
- Professional guide (upon request)
- Lunch
Additional Information
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
Location
Khor Virap
Highway 11 - Near the village of Pokr Vedi, Artashat
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(28 Ratings)
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1 star
Antoniock3446je
Aug 1, 2024
Great day tour! - I went for a day tour with my couple. We found a well organized company and a guide eager to tell us every detail.
They gave us a local candy and cold water, and brought us to eat something to a beautiful restaurant with good price. We recommend this company a lot!! :)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
A7898lbjoeyb
Jul 6, 2024
Excellent trip to Armenia - I’d like to extend our warmest appreciation to Armine and Vahan for a wonderful trip. It was such an amazing experience. I really commend Armine for her dedication to share the rich culture of Armenia. And to Vahan, for driving us safely during the entire trip. We just got a short stay in Armenia, but definitely, Armine made it very worth it and memorable trip. We enjoyed the breathtaking views going to Noravank. I think of all the monasteries that we’ve visited, Norabank was one of the best, the breathtaking views was just so extra ordinary.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lance
Jun 21, 2024
Day Trip to Areni - Well organized and everyone had a fabulous time. Our guides, Anastasia and Marat, were friendly, knowledgeable, and added to the experience. The van had WiFi and plenty of water. Would recommend
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Anoozz
Sep 12, 2022
Memorable ❤️ - Armenia is one of the travelling destination in my wish list. Thanks a lot for the team Yerani travels to make it true. Miss. Hasmik Babalaryan and Sushan (our guides) gave us a complete sketch about the places we visited there. Miss. Hasmik really entertained us by giving activities and all. I am sure, this trip will always be in my heart.
Thanks again!
With Love and wishes
Anas
Game street, UAE 🇦🇪
Review provided by Tripadvisor
_h9859na
Apr 26, 2021
Great experience! - The tour and the guide were great, we really enjoyed everything. The places we saw were beautiful and full of history. The guide (Ani) knew the difference between facts, and fiction and myths. She always had something interesting to answer for a lot of questions we had and overall was very nice. We were even surprised that not only the car had wifi spot, but that it was working well throughout the trip.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sparkyjamers
Mar 8, 2021
Book Now. Excellent Tours + Superb Guide (Nareh) and Driver (Marat). - Our family of six embarked on multiple single-day tours with Yerani Travel. These tours were, collectively, among the best experiences of our eight-week visit to Yerevan.
The Yerani office staff communicated very well with us and were accommodating and flexible. Responses were prompt and polite. The vehicles were clean, comfortable, in excellent mechanical condition, and (for you other westerns who also will not travel without seatbelt on) all had operational seatbelts in every seat. This had been an issue with other transportation in Armenia, where seatbelts are often inoperable or removed, and in any case are generally not used.The stops (for dining, breaks, etc) recommended by our guide and driver were all excellent.
Our tour guide, Nareh, and driver, Marat, are both a credit to Yerani travel. We derived as much enjoyment from their companionship as we did from the sites we visited. I recommend that you request them for your own tours, which you may do when booking the tour online or over the phone.
Nareh is the best guide we could have asked for. In addition to working for Yerani, she is a researcher (cultural anthropologist, I believe) at a museum in Yerevan. She was able to provide excellent, in depth responses to our questions, and provided us with much additional insight into the history of the country and the specific locations. Further, she communicated very well and tailored our tours to our specific interests. She even sang for us, briefly but beautifully, to demonstrate the acoustics in the choir room at one of the monastaries. Marat is a good man and a good driver. Gentlemanly and attentive to our family members and a pleasure to travel with. Further, in a region where most westerners will find the driving habits to be concerning, Marat was capable and cautious. We felt safe with him.
When we return to visit Armenia again later this year, we will consider only Yerani for our tour and transfer needs. We recommend them highly.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nast45454687
Feb 8, 2020
Noravank Tour - We had a great tour to Norvank with Hovo and Marat. Everithing was excellent, nice stories, good driving and wonderful places.
I would definitely recommend this tour to other people.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Viajerafeliz2018
Aug 11, 2019
Enjoyable day trip from Yerevan - We had a great time visiting these two amazing monasteries. The minibus was comfortable, with air conditioning as well as free water and a traditional Armenian snack. The guide was knowledgeable and gave us a lot of information about the sites we were going to visit as well as general comments about Armenia. We had lunch in a pleasant restaurant with vegetarian options. The whole trip was well organized and with an appropriate amount of time for each visit.
We recommend it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nellie
Jul 4, 2019
Amazing service - We loved our tour! Had the best guide in Srbuni and an amazing driver Marat! Such an informative and fun tour. Will definitely use the service again.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Davide
Aug 23, 2019
A nice and interesting day - Te tour was great, the schedule was perfect and the guide excellent.
The lunch could be little more better but that's no matter, this tour is absolutly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
