I have always wanted to travel the world and when I came to Dubai – United Arab Emirates, I heard that it will be easy to tour around different countries because it is very accessible from there. When my friend and I decided to start our trip, we made sure to choose a place that is safe, beautiful and less expensive. We are turned between Armenia and Georgia but when I check flights and tour packages, Armenia is the cheapest. And so, we end up with Armenia – my first ever our country visited for leisure.
We scheduled our vacation on Ramadan holiday. I have looked for a tour package because this is our first time out of UAE, and we wanted it to be hassle free. The package includes airfare, tour, accommodation with free breakfast for stay of 3D/2N. We were lucky to have it booked two months prior to the holiday because it will be a peak season for traveling and the price might go up. The flight from Sharjah International Airport to Yerevan Airport is more than three hours.
Armenia Immigration Experience
Visa in Armenia is issued upon arrival. Some people said it can be done online but we did not try it. I don’t want to give negative impression in Armenian Immigration system, but the issuance of visa takes a long time and take a lot of patience. When we headed to the immigration department upon arrival, we immediately fell in line to their cashier window to pay for the visa fee. They accept the US Dollar and convert it into local currency if you happen not to have local bills ready. After payment of AED 35.00 (AMD 3,600.00) for 30 days stay that was in July 2023, we then proceed to immigration windows where they will issue stamped visa on the passport. The process was very slow. We were in a queue for about 2-3 hours. I am not sure if that is really the process, but at that time we only saw 3-4 officers on duty, and they took time to issue the visa. Perhaps there might be a background check on their end before stamping the visa, but I am not sure. There is also one instance where it was the guy ahead of us turn. He proceeded to the counter but the officer left telling him that it was his lunch, and the guy needed to wait for another officer to attend him. Maybe they followed their lunch break on time, but we are surprised he did that. There’s also one guy in the queue who complained but the officer came out and said something like what his problem was and that he just needed to wait for his turn. So, everybody in the queue kept silent.
The Tour
After the immigration, we headed out to check our service vehicle because we thought that the driver might have left already since we took so much time to get out of the airport but the driver patiently waited for us. Pick and drop were included in our package. Surprisingly, all of us in the tour were Filipinos but in different accommodations. The driver dropped us first. We are supposed to stay in a hostel – single room with shared bathroom but when we are checking-in the staff said they’re full. We were transferred to a hotel. Me and my friend had an instant upgrade and the hotel we got into is way better than the first one we were supposed to stay in. Since we spent so much time immigration, I feel so tired. After we settled our stuff in the hotel, we went out to have our late lunch.
We asked the hotel owner to recommend a good restaurant to eat at. She was so kind to accommodate us and even booked a taxi for us since we are 5-10 minutes’ ride away from the central area. She told us that we need to pay only AMD 800.00. She also warned us about the drivers there charged too much. The same thing happened when we were near to the place where the driver asked us to pay him AMD 1,000.00. I argued with him, but it is pointless because he keeps saying he don’t know to speak English. I told him to drop us that instant in an intense tone then he abides. We paid only for what was right. We don’t want our vacation to be ruined so we let it go. There were lots of restaurants in that area but since we were so dead hungry, we went to the one we first saw. We’ve ordered authentic local food to try their cuisine.
After food, we roamed around the city, took photos at the Republic Square and walked back to our hotel. Funny thing is that we have lost our way going back. We had a hard time asking for the direction because locals cannot communicate in English, but they are trying to help us as much as they can. We are moving only in the direction they have pointed out. We kept walking and kept taking photos and enjoying the view until we became so exhausted. When we decided to take a taxi, we were just in the corner of our hotel. I just stayed in the hotel while my friend made some friends already, she went out with them to see the rest of the city that night.
Day 1 – North Armenia
We were so excited on our first day tour. We had a nice heavy breakfast. Our service vehicle picked us up at the hotel at 9:00 am. We were more than 10 people in our tour group. The van is spacious, and the driver is so entertaining. The weather was not too hot nor too cold in that month of July when we visited Armenia. Here are the places we’ve visited and things we did on our first day.
- Cable Car Tsaghkadzor
One of the top things to do in Armenia is cable car ride. It is another very first experience for me and my friend to ride in a cable car. The fee for cable car ride is AMD 3,000. We were nervous when we started to climb in. I am not looking down in the first few minutes of the ride because we were so high. I was thinking that if I lost grip or the lock or the cable missed up, we would not be alive but that was just my worst imagination. The ride is safe and secure. The music up there was so relaxing. A few minutes passed and we are enjoying the view already. We took as many pictures and videos as we can. The cable car will bring visitor to the top of the mountains where we saw 360 degrees view of North Armeria.
- Lake Sevan
We headed to Lake Sevan right after our cable car tour. It is the biggest body of water in Armenia and Caucasus region. According to our driver, the lake is totally freezing and frozen during winter. Looking at the lake’s horizon brings me inner peace.
- Sevanavank Monastery
Sevanavank monastery is one of the oldest monasteries in Armenia. It is located just on the shore of Sevan Lake and elevated about 6,250 feet above sea level. From the monastery you can see the overlooking view of Lake Sevan. You need to climb up narrow and steep stairs to reach the monastery. It is quite a need for energy to go up but once you get there you will not feel how tired you were because of the lovely sight of the lake and the nearby mountains. It was amazing and mind blowing how this kind of structure was built on top of the mountain.
- Tsovagyugh Food Court
After half of the day’s tour, we were surely hungry. We went to one of the famous food courts in the north which is the Tsovagyugh Food Court. It is a one stop food place. All the native cuisines of Armenia were there. Based on our research, one of the famous food in Armeria is their pork dishes because of its fresh taste so we opted to take one to try. I can say that the port’s taste is normal for me, maybe because I grew up in the province where we used to cook fresh pork meat occasionally.
- Gehard Monastery and Azat Valley
After we ate, we headed to another monastery. It is also located on top of the mountains – the monastery of Geghard. It is also included in UNESCO Heritage. It said to have been containing churches and tombstones. The monastery is surrounded by valleys. When we came there, the church was under construction, but it is still mysteriously beautiful.
- Garni Temple
Our last stop for our first day tour is the Garni Temple. If my recollection is correct, we paid AMD 1,000 for the entrance fee (July 2023). My first impression of the temple is that it looks like a place for Roman goddesses like Athena. It is amazing how people built those huge pillars of the temple. The overlooking view of mountains and valleys behind the temple is stunning. Around the temple, there’s a grape plantation which said to be free for visitors to eat but unfortunately, that was not grape season when we visited there.
Day 2 – South Armenia
Armenia has a lot of beautiful places to visit. We only have two full-day tours and so we cannot skip the beautiful Mt. Ararat and other monasteries and landmarks in the southern part of the country. This part is mostly visited because of the said renowned mountain Ararat. There are more exquisitely designed monasteries on our second day tour. I was fascinated by how some of the structures are built in the middle of nowhere and/or top of the highest mountains. The materials like boulders of rock are intriguing as to how these were brought to the site and build the monasteries. There are the best places to visit in the southern Armenia.
It is said that Armenia is the first Christian nation and churches or monasteries have great influence in their culture.
- Hovhannavank Monastery
Another monastery located in the southern part of Armenia that was built in 17th century. I noticed that almost all the monasteries have the same architectural layout.
- Saghmosavank Monastery
This monastery is also called the Monastery of the Psalms mainly because the singing of the psalms took place here. At first, I thought this monastery was built on a flat surface unlike other monasteries built on top of the mountains. But when I went around the structure, it was built almost by the edge of canyons.
- Armenian Alphabet Monument
Before heading to the mountain, the Armenian Alphabet Monument is on the way. It was built in memory of Mesrop Mashtots who created the alphabet. His statue is also constructed in that area.
- Mount Ararat
According to our driver/tour guide if you are looking at the mountain from Armenia side it is called Mt. Aragat but if you are in Turkey and you are looking at this mountain, it is called Mt. Ararat. Maybe it is safe to say that the mountain is like a boundary of the two countries – half of it belongs to Armenia and the other half belongs to Turkey. It was July when we traveled, and the snow had already melted but there was still leftover snow on top of Ararat Mountain. We could see it from afar. We reached the mountain on our vehicle. The cliffs and ravens going to the top made me chill and nervous. Fortunately, our driver was skillful enough to drive on that steep and narrow road. As we go up, we can see the low land and the mountains. The scenery brings me back to my childhood where I only see those kinds of landscapes in one of my favorite cartoons show “Heidi”. The mountains grass looked so soft that I wanted to roll over. The flock of sheep and horses at the top of the mountains looks unreal. My younger self is so happy being able to see such a lovely place like this.
The lake setting at the edge of the mountain at the top is so surreal. The water was so cold. The breeze of the fresh cold air numbs my skin, but I felt so ecstatic.
- Amberd Fortress
As its name suggests, Amberd Fortress is a castle-like place. The structure was destroyed but somehow its majestic features remain. I was astonished when we reached the place. It took us perhaps 30-45 minutes to get there. It was in the middle of the mountains, surrounded by valleys and canyons. The area was full of different kinds of flowers. Again, I wonder what its landscape looks like could be when it was in its original state.
Our Armenia tour is one-of-a-kind experience. There are still a lot of places we should visit because the country has a lot to offer. I knew some people who frequently visit Armenia, and they fall in love in the place in any season – summer or winter. It made me want to travel to more places and to know more about their culture. Monasteries as almost everywhere in Armenia. However, these are just merely relics of the past. I wonder how lively it was back in the centuries.
Food in Armenia is also topnotch. I loved all the dishes that we tried. Even a simple breakfast from our hotel is also delicious. Their pork sausage is the best, too! Cherries and apricots are also in season when we get there (July). We used to buy a lot of cherries and eat them in our hotel because they are big and very sweet. I would recommend visiting this place to everyone. I would definitely choose this over Georgia.
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