Yerevan is called the city in the eternal vacation: it seems that no one is in a hurry here, and local residents instead of a frantic pace of life and eternal race, characteristic of the capitals, choose pleasure every minute. People slowly walk along beautiful streets and parks, sit in restaurants and admire the majestic Ararat, towering on the horizon. Fairy tale! And now it is very easy to get into it.
How to get
To the capital of Armenia from Moscow, it is most profitable to fly the flights of Aeroflot with a docking in Sochi. The duration of the journey depends on the transplant, on average it turns out about 16 hours on the road, and the cost of the flight is 15,000 rubles one way.
Aircraft arrive at the Zvartnets airport, which is located 12 km from Yerevan. From there to the city center, you can get by bus No. 201 or minibuses No. 107 and 108 in half an hour. The path will take 15 minutes on a taxi.
Entrance rules
The entrance for Russian tourists is free, no Covid documents are required. The visa is also not needed, but you can get to Armenia without even having a passport – according to Russian. You can be in the country until 180 days.
Where to stop
In Yerevan, there are many different options for living – from inexpensive hostels to five -star hotels and comfortable apartments. If you want to live in walking distance from the main attractions, choose housing in the center: this is the area of the square of the Republic, the streets of Abovyan, Tumanyan, Khanjyan, Muscovyan, Martiros Saryan, Prospect Menpa Mashtots.
The night in a hotel is not lower than three stars with good reviews of guests (estimate 8 points out of 10) will cost from 3,000 rubles for two rooms.
What to see
Square of the Republic
It is worth starting acquaintance with the city from its center, and in Yerevan it is the main square. Around it are the building of the Armenian government, the Marriott Armenia hotel, the house of ministries (in it there are ministries of foreign affairs, transport and communications), the central building of the post office and the Armenian History Museum.
In the center of the square of the republic there are singing fountains, which many tourists and local residents come to see in the evenings. The spectacle is very beautiful: the jets of water seem to dance to the music- from classic masterpieces to popular rock and pop-jobs. The performance ends with Charles Aznavour’s song “Une Vie d’amour”.
Singing fountains on the Republic Square have been operating from late May to October daily from Tuesday to Sunday. The highlight show starts at 20:00 and lasts 2 hours.
Museum of the History of Armenia
Address: pl. Republic, d. 4.
Opening hours: From Tuesday to Sunday from 11:00 to 18:00, entrance until 17:30. Monday is a day off.
Ticket cost: 1000 drams (4000 drams – with a tour in Russian).
Website:
One of the most famous museums in the country, which you definitely need to visit in order to learn more about Armenia. Last year he turned one hundred years old, and most halls were temporarily closed for reconstruction, but now almost everyone is working, and by the summer the rest also promise to open.
The museum has a rich collection – more than 400,000 exhibits! You can, for example, look at ancient shoes made of whole leather, which is about 5500 years old, and 6000-year-old utensils for the preparation of wine. We recommend taking a tour, otherwise miss a lot of interesting things.
Great Cascade and the Center for Arts Gafeschyan
Address: st. Tamanyana, d. 10
Opening hours: The gallery is open daily from 8:00 to 20:00.
Ticket cost: Visiting a cascade and galleries for free.
Website:
One of the modern symbols, without which it is no longer possible to imagine Yerevan. The cascade originates in a small square and rises to the Victory Park (we will talk about it separately). This is a monumental structure: a pompous staircase with sculptures, fountains and flowerpots with flowers.
The cascade was designed in the General Plan of the city as the famous architect Alexander Tamanyan (a monument to him now stands at the foot of the stairs). This system of stepping transitions with waterfalls and flower beds was supposed to connect the central and northern parts of the city. The construction began in the 80s, after the collapse of the Union, they froze and resumed only at the beginning of the two thousandth. By the way, construction is not over yet, but you can still climb the observation deck.
Today, the Gafeschyan Center is located inside the cascade, in which, along with the paintings and sculptures of Armenian artists, you can look at the work of Mark Shagal and Andy Warhol.
At the top of the cascade there is an observation deck, which opens a wonderful view of the city and Ararat. It is best to come at sunset – at this time of the day the “pink city” (Yerevan is so called for houses from pink, white and yellow tuf in the center) is especially beautiful.
Victory Park (“Akhtanak”)
Work schedule: Museum “Mother Armenia” is open on weekdays from 10:00 to 17:00, and on the weekend-until 15:00.
Ticket cost: for free.
If you climb to the top of a large cascade and go a little further, get into Victory Park. From here, too, a great view of the city opens, and you can also ride a Ferris wheel and look at the “Mother of Armenia” monument. This monument perpetuates the feat of the Armenian people in the Great Patriotic War.
At the foot of the monument, the eternal flame burns, and the military museum is located at the base, where the personal belongings of the heroes of not only the Second World War, but also the Karabakh war are represented.
Erebuni fortress and museum
Address: st. Erebuni, house 38
Opening hours: Tuesday-Snabbot 10:30 until 16:40. Monday and Sunday – weekend.
Ticket cost: 1500 dramas, with a tour – 4000 dramas.
Website: Erebuni.am
Once upon a time, an ancient state of Urartu was located on the Armenian Highlands. Today, the ruins of the fortress called Erebuni remained from him (this name was the capital of Urartu), founded already in 782 BC. It is located on the Arin-Berd hill on the outskirts of Yerevan. The ruins themselves are not too interesting: the truth is little left here, one can only assess the size of the ancient palace and temples according to the foundations.
If you want to know more, take a tour: guides excitingly talk about the history of the ancient state and pay attention to unsolved puzzles and secrets that archaeologists discovered. With the tour, it is also worth visiting the museum at the fortress, where the samples of the culture of Urartu found here are exhibited.
Matenadaran
Address: Ave. Mashtotsa, d. 53.
Opening hours: From Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 to 17:00. The ticket office works until 16:30. Monday and Sunday – weekend.
Ticket cost: An adult – 1,500 dramas, visiting a tour in Russian – 5000 dramas.
Website:
In general, this is a research center and one of the largest storages of manuscripts in the world. Sounds boring? However, the local museum is considered one of the most interesting in Yerevan, and even children are delighted with it.
To study the huge collection of the museum, located in 14 halls, is best with an excursion. The guide will tell you many unusual facts, offer to navigate on the first printed map in Armenian and will show the largest manuscript in the world (weighing 28 kilograms!). The smallest is also stored here – this is an explanatory calendar dated to the 15th century, weighing only 19 grams – a little less than four ten -ruble coins.
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