A Christian Pilgrimage to Armenia.

TOUR PROPOSAL ARMENIA - A COUNTRY OF THE MOUNT ARARAT AND CHRISTIANITY (12 days/11 nights) For full itinerary pilgrimage to Armenia click here.

Christian pilgrimage to Armenia.

Day 1, Friday: Meeting with Yerevan Arrival in Yerevan at 13-10. Transfer to the selected hotel(www.anihotel.com). Rest. Welcome dinner. Afternoon and evening city tour. City center, Republic square, Opera house, Cascade, Café. Overnight in Yerevan.

Day 2, Saturday:Yerevan city tour (www.yerevan.am) Breakfast at the hotel.Yerevan sightseeing including City center, Republic square, State University, City panorama, Matenadaran (depository for ancient manuscripts); visit to the Genocide Memorial, dedicated to the Victims of 1915 and the Genocide Museum. Visit to the ruins of Erebuni fortress, founded during the Urartian Kingdom by King Argishti in 782 BC and the Erebuni museum (1968) with Urartian period exhibits. Overnight in Yerevan. 10:00-17:00 OPERA HOUSE .

Day 3, Sunday, "CRADLE OF CHRISTIANITY" ECHMIADZIN, ZVARTNOTS Breakfast at the hotel. Visit to vernissage - crafts/art market (open on Saturdays and Sundays). Drive to Etchmiadzin, the spiritual and administrative center of Armenian Apostolic Church. visit to St. Hripsime's Church (7th c.), St.Gayane Church(7th c.), ruins of Zvartnots temple (7th c.), (UNESCO World Heritage list 2000). Meeting with clergymen. Overnight in Yerevan. 9:00-16:00 Etchmiadzin ( www.etchmiadzin.com) Etchmiadzin City used to be the ancient capital of Armenia.

Day 4, Monday: "TRIP THROUGH ERAS" GARNI, GEGHARD Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to the only remaining pagan temple in Armenia devoted to the God of Sun - Myrth, in Garni, built in 77 AD by King Trdat (Arshakid Dynasty). The temple is Greco-Roman style with characteristic pillars. It stands proudly on a rocky ridge with a deep canyon presenting a beautiful view. The temple was a summer residence for Arshakid dynasty.

Visit to the ruins of Royal Palace and Royal bath-house nearby. Drive to the unique caved temple St. Geghard (12th -13th cc.), the name of which means "holy spear" in the honor of the long-preserved spear, the same spear that pierced the body of crucified Christ. It is now exhibited in the museum of Etchmiadzin Cathedral. Geghard Monastery is included in the UNESCO World Heritage list (2000). The program includes family hosted lunch in village and watching of "Lavash" (Armenian traditional flat bread baked in stone-make oven) making process. Free time-café, theatre. Overnight in Yerevan 10:00-15:00 Garni One of the most interesting places to visit during your trip to Armenia is the Pagan temple devoted to the God of Sun - Myrth in Garni. According to some cuneiform records in Greek language, the temple was built in 77AD by King Trdat (Arshakid Dynasty).

Day 5, Tuesday:"SYMPHONY OF STONES" KHOR VIRAP, NORAVANK Breakfast at the hotel. Visit to Khor Virap Church - the place of imprisonment of St. Gregory the Illuminator, who stayed here in the small dungeon for 13 years without any food, accused by the Armenian King of preaching Christianity. Khor Virap Church was built on the dungeon and now people have a chance to go down into the dark pit themselves. It is one of the holy places for the Christian world. Here is also the closest and most spectacular view of the gorgeous biblical mountain Ararat shining with its two white peaks.

The hills adjoining Khor Virap were the site of the early Armenian capital - ancient Artashat built by King Artashes I, founder of the Artashesid dynasty, around 180 B.C. It is one of the few ancient towns, built by the special design of the famous Carthaginian general Hannibal. After the defeat in a war against Rome, he found shelter in Armenia.

Day 6, Wednesday: "PEARLS OF ARMENIA" LAKE SEVAN, HAGHARTSIN Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to mountainous resort Dilijan, visit to Haghartsin Monastery complex (13th c.), including Church St. Stepanos, St. Mary and St. Gregory's Church, as well as famous refectory. Appearing unexpectedly, out of the thick forests, in front of the visitors, the Monastery creates a magical impression of the lost world. Drive to Sevan, one of the greatest high mountainous freshwater lakes of Eurasia, visit to Sevan Monastery (9th c.). The program includes lunch in a local restaurant, tasting the fish freshly caught from the lake. Overnight in Yerevan. 10:00-18-00 Lake Sevan (60km from Yerevan, elevation 1900-2000 m )

Don't miss the chance to rest at the beach. You can enjoy the crispy clear weather, the view of the lake, swim, get a suntan, however be careful not to get a sunburn. As a reminder, the sun is very devious and you will not notice how fast you turn red. You can hide in the shelter, and this will be enough to have a Hollywood suntan by the evening. Boats, water skis, bicycles, etc. will be available at the beach for your entertainment.

After dinner, we will climb the peninsula to visit the ancient Sevanavank Monastery (IX century). It is customary to make a wish and light a candle. The trip to Lake Sevan should be a memorable one for you. Haghartsin Haghartsin Monastery is located in the secluded place of the forest, which includes the group of Monastery buildings.

Day 7 Thursday: "PRINCEDOM MONASTERY" TATEV Breakfast at the hotel.Drive to the Tatev Monastery (9th -13th cc.), one of the unique and beautiful monasteries in Armenia.

It is located on the steep of a deep gorge surrounded with very strong settings. Tatev used to be a religious and political center of Syunik princedom. There was a university functioning in that period which had 3 departments: music, painting and science. Drive back to Yerevan. The program includes lunch. Overnight in Yerevan. 9:00-20:00 Tatev Monastery Tatev Monastery is one of the unique and beautiful monasteries in Armenia. It is located on the steep of deep gorge surrounded with very strong settings. It was built during the 9-13th centuries as an Armenian intellectual center where philosophers, musicians, painters, calligraphers and monks lived. Tatev used to be a religious and political center of Syunik princedom.

Day 8, Friday: "VALLEY OF FRLOWERS" TSAKHKADZOR Breakfast at the hotel. Visit to the Kecharis Monastery (16th c.) in Tsakhkadzor (means "gorge of flowers") and going up to the mountain peaks by rope way, where you will catch an unforgettable gorgeous panoramic view of this part of the world. The program includes lunch in a local restaurant. Overnight in Yerevan. 11:00-17:00 Tsakhkadzor (55 km from Yerevan) Tsakhkadzor - means "gorge of flowers" in Armenian. It is well known for the shady forests and flowering meadows that entice large number of tourists and residents of Armenia.

Tsakhkadzor with its beauty is considered to be "small Switzerland", which can be glanced if you go up to the higher mountains on the 2500 meters long ropeway. In winter the snowy meadows are perfect place to ski. Reaching the second level of the ropeway, you can stop at the cafe to take a break, sip a cup of hot tea or coffee and then continue to climb up to 2500km. Wintertime is just right for the adventurous people who rent the scooters that will ride you down the hill on the round slope. Snowboards, sleighs and skis are also available for rent.

We will also visit the architectural and artistic Kecharis Monastery (1551 y.) located on the eastern edge of Tsakhkadzor. Before you leave the town you can dine at one of the taverns and taste the national country food to enjoy the unforgettable flavor.

Day 9, Saturday: "MEDIEVAL UNIVERSITIES" SANAHIN,HAGHPAT Breakfast at the hotel. Trip to the northern Armenia, the magical place of forested mountains and deep canyons. Visit to the masterpieces of Armenian medieval architecture - the Monastery complex Sanahin (9th - 12th cc.) and Haghpat (11th - 13th cc.), that are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List (2000).The program includes lunch in a local restaurant. Overnight in Yerevan. 10:-18:00

Sanahin Sanahin Monastery ranks amongst the most celebrated monasteries of medieval Armenia. It is a complex with St. Mother of God Church, St. Amenaprkich Church, St. Gregory chapel (X c.), an Academy building (XI c.), a depository (XI c.), a Gallery building (X c.), a vestibule (XII c.) and bells (XIII c.). All these buildings are around St. Blessed Virgin old Church. The academy was historically famous as Academy after Grigor Pahlavuni, where major attention was paid to the arts and humanities.

Day 10, Monday: "ALPHABET STORY" Oshakan, Saghmosavank Monastery, Alphabet Park Breakfast at the hotel. Trip to the city Ashtarak and the village Oshakan. Visit to the Church St. Mesrop Mashtots and his gravestone. Drive to the Saghmosavank Church (13th c.) where the beautiful view of Kasakh river canyon can be spotted. Visit to Alphabet Park, a location where all letters of Armenian alphabet made from tuff of human-size are scattered around volcanic stones.

The program includes lunch in a local restaurant. Visit to hand-made Carpet factory. 10:00-18:00 Oshakan Oshakan is the typical Armenian village with preserved traditions and lifestyle. The major sightseeing spot of Oshakan village is St. Mesrop Mashtots Church. The relics of Mesrop Mashtots, the founder of the Armenian alphabet (V c.), lie here. Mesrop Mashtots was canonized by the Armenian Church in the V c. Initially, the chapel was raised on the gravestone of Mesrop Mashtots and later in the XIX c. the temple was erected.

Day 11 , Monday: "ALWAYS ARARAT" SARDARAPAT Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to Sardarapat,-the memorial complex devoted to the victory of Armenians over the Turkish invaders in 1918. Visiting to Ethnographic museum. The program includes lunch in a local restaurant. Farewell dinner. 10:00-17:00 SARDARAPAT A memorial complex to the heroes of Sardarapat battle against Turkish invaders was opened in 1968. This is the place where Armenians held a victory in the battle on May 20-22, 1918, leading to the establishment of the first independent Republic of Armenia in 1918. The complex includes a park, alley with Eagle statues, 26-meter-high bell tower and a wall with triumphal arch.

The bells ring every year on the day of the historic victory.

Day 12, Tuesday: Transfer to the airport. Departure at 8:30

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