Winter Holidays in Armenia

armeniangeographic

6 years ago

The tour program is designed for those who have already planned their stay in Yerevan, visited the famous Garni and Geghard and want something extraordinary. We will spend most of our time in nature. During the day, we will have easy, but very impressive hiking trips to unusual places in Armenia.

Do not hesitate, contact us and we will organize the perfect winter holidays in Armenia for you! You will return home with memories for a lifetime.

Day 1

Through dense forests of Tavush we will head to the impregnable Girl’s Fortress, which used to be one of the most significant fortresses in Armenia. During our trip, we will see the remaining walls of the fortress, which occupy a big territory. During the hike, we will tell you a beautiful legend connected with this fortress.

Girl’s Fortress

Details of the day:

Location – Tavush province
Driving – 98 km
Relative altitude – 600 m
Length of the route – 9 km
Difficulty level – moderate
Overnight stay – Dilijan

Day 2

On this day we will drive to Shamshadin, which locals call the Real Tavush. At the beginning we’ll visit the Srvegh monastery hidden in the forests. The monastery was built in the 13-th century. After examining Srvegh we will continue to a place called Ghuzani Qar (Ruzan’s stone). This is a huge piece of rock from the top of which one can enjoy a breathtaking view of Shamshadin. We’ll hike up to the top and return. The way up will take some 30 mins of walking. There are several legends connected to this place. One of them has it, that there was a young girl called Ruzan, who didn’t want to get caught by a Persian Shah, so she climbed up to this huge rock and jumped off a cliff. After this the rock was named after her.

Winter holidays in Armenia

Then we will continue to another monastery hidden in the forests. We will have a small hike to Kaptavank monastery from the 12-th century. It is a perfect example of harmony of nature and architecture.From the former monastery complex only one church is preserved.

We’ll end the day at our cozy guesthouse in Dilijan.

Details of the day:

Location – Tavush province
Driving – 170 km
Length of the route – 9 km
Difficulty level – moderate
Overnight stay – Dilijan

Day 3

In the morning, after breakfast, we’ll head to Yenokavan, from where we’ll start our hike to Okonavank monastery.

Okonavank is located in the upper stream of Khachaghbyur gorge. The hiking trail of Okanavank is very beautiful, especially in winter. The trail goes through dense forests of Ijevan, through deep and breathtaking gorges and ends at Okonavank monastery.

Hiking to Okonavank

Length of the hike to Okonavanq is 18 km and passes alongside the whole Khachaghbyur gorge.

Winter can be extremely different at this place. One year it can be fully covered with snow, the other year it feels like spring in the middle of winter. You can see the difference in the photos above.

Details of the day:

Location – Tavush province
Driving – 84 km
Length of the route – 18 km
Difficulty level – moderate
Overnight stay – Dilijan

Day 4

In the morning we will leave our guesthouse in Dilijan and move to Sevan lake, where we will ascend the Mount Artanish.

Mount Artanish is an ideal option for a winter ascent in Armenia, as it has a low altitude and beautiful landscapes. The summit of the mountain is the only place from where you can clearly see the confluence of Greater and Lesser Sevan.

We start the ascent near the Shoghakat village, from an altitude of 1920 m above sea level. The relative altitude is 540 m.

Mount Artanish

After enjoying the beautiful views and having a little rest, we will descend to Artanish peninsula and continue our hike along the shore of the Lake Sevan.

Tour details: