Northern Armenia

Not in the story-mood? Scroll down for the Quick Budget Fact Overview: an itemized information summary of Northern Armenia! ↓

I never made it a secret that Armenia got me right by the balls (which I’d like to have at times just to be able to say such things). Without prior anticipation this country grabbed and maintained my ever-lasting attention with its intriguing yet painful history, their great outdoors and a level of hospitality I have never encountered anywhere else in the world. Yet, the few lucky ones that make it out there mainly concentrate their explorations on the centre and south of the country, with pitstops such as the Khor Virap, the Symphony of Stones, the Tatev Monastery and the capital Yerevan… places where I also made wonderful core memories of Armenia. Yet, in the name of inclusiveness, I warm-heartedly recommend to allocate sufficient time in order to tour through all the different corners of this rewarding travel destination. Take the north, while we’re at it, an edge relatively unexplored by the masses (for how far we can speak about “mass tourism” in Armenia to begin with), yet home to some decent adventures I wouldn’t want to have missed for the world.

Like what? Thought you’d never ask:

5 Reasons to Travel through Northern Armenia

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1: Go Hiking in Dilijan

Dilijan is one of the first Armenian villages I drove through upon my arrival, located right on the way from Georgia to Yerevan. It was right there and then that I swore to myself to get back here before I’d cross the country’s borders again. It might have a correlation with my eternal love for Switzerland, a place I keep on returning to, be it for travel, catching up with old friends or to make some decent travel money. Dilijan truly lives up to its title of the “Armenian Switzerland”: It’s lush*, it’s mountainous and it’s expensive. The latter obviously doesn’t even slightly compare to actual Swiss prices, but in reference to Armenian standards expect higher costs than elsewhere… accommodation prices will be about 1,5-2x as much, and somehow, they dare charging 4000 dram for the Local Lore Museum and Art Gallery, which is about 8x higher than average. Luckily, you won’t visit Dilijan for its artworks… you’re here to hike (which won’t cost you a dime)! And hiking you will, as you came to the country’s prime day-hike-destination! Let me list the best ones for you, in intended order:

* Obviously, the lushness stands in a direct relation with the incredible amount of rainfall. Every. Single. Day. (At least during my 1-week visit). Bring your poncho!

1. Yeghjervasar Peak: If you’re looking for the master of Dilijan day hikes, look no further! This is the best trail I have completed here, balancing a serious challenge with eye-pleasing rewards. Don’t be mistaken, it’s hard work without much mercy the entire way up (it’s one of those peaks that never seem to get closer), but you’re constantly distracted from your efforts by an ongoing supply of fantastic views all around. That magical feeling of struggling your way through grey clouds and suddenly rising above it, surrounded by carpets of wildflowers, is not only a core memory of my time in Dilijan… it’s also a metaphor of life in general. As I don’t like to backtrack the same route, I created a loop hike… if you intend to follow this, do wear high pants, as it leads to incredibly high overgrowth on the way down. Hiking poles won’t hurt either. Try to reach the top before midday, before the (rain)clouds set in!

2. Ancient Monastery Loop: One of the most intriguing trails leads to a series of abandoned, moss-covered monasteries. Eery and intriguing at the same time. On paper, this is a very easy trail… but in case you don’t have a car or the willingness to pay for a taxi (like myself), do realize that getting to the trail head from Dilijan makes the distance about 3-4x longer than the actual trail (you can take a mashrutka to the last split-off, but it’s still 3km 1-way from there, without too much traffic to hitchhike with). As always in Dilijan, be prepared for mud and download the GPS!

3. Whispering Waterfall Trail: It’s always nice to hike towards a certain goal. In this case, the short and muddy trail leads to a small waterfall (a whispering one, if you will), which is nevertheless situated in quite the glorious setting. The trail itself is rather easy, but several factors add a tad of challenge: First of all, the trail goes through high grass and vegetation, incl. nettles and thorns… therefore, long pants and sleeves are recommended. This also helps against ticks, of which we found several on our skin afterwards. This trail crosses several streams and incredibly muddy terrain, so proper Gore-Tex shoes as well as hiking poles won’t hurt either. Finally, the signalling is insufficient, so grab this GPS recording I made for you!

4. Panorama Trail: This easy trail kicks off at the Dilijan Brewery (which isn’t worth a visit), but as there is no public transport into this direction be ready to walk quite a way up here before you even can get started. Quite frankly, the steep roads up are more challenging than the trail itself and it actually doubles the distance! Yet, the short trek is rather scenic and lives up to its promises: plenty of panoramas! The “end destination”, the mineral water source, is rather underwhelming… buy as they say: “In the end it’s about the journey, not the destination!” As Dilijan is famous for its rainfall, be prepared for an extremely muddy trail, as this one is also used by and therefore entirely trampled by cattle. Even though it’s marked, it lacks signage on various split offs. Therefore, I recommend using my GPS recording, which starts from the city centre giving an honest overview of the actual distance and also includes water sources.

FREE Recommended Sights / Activities in Dilijan

Sights: Dilijan National Park (trails as described above); Haghartsin Monastery; Matosavank Monastery; Goshavank Monastery; Jukhtakvank Monastery; Monument to the Heroes of the Film Minimo; Lake Parz; Gosh Lake; Sharambeyon Street “Old Town;” Soviet Government Rest House; St. Sargis Chapel; Mantash Fortress.
Museums: Isahakyan House Museum; Style Art Gallery.

PAID Recommended Sights / Activities in Dilijan

Other: Verev Rope Park; Tsaghkadzor Ski Resort.

2: Climb The Country’s Highest Peak: Mount Aragats

Let’s continue with a rather controversial one, for good time’s sake. You see, the Armenians don’t consider Mount Aragats the highest peak of their country. In their experience, it’s still the illustrious Mount Ararat which takes the crown… and in all fairness, I can’t say I disagree. This stunner of a mountain, on clear days majestically rising up behind the capital Yerevan, has been located on Armenian soil for the lion share of our (somewhat) recent history. Soil that, with most of Eastern Europe, was swallowed by the Ottoman Empire for about 500 years. An Empire that did not appreciate the dominant Christian religion of this ethnic group, as in their opinion this formed a clear obstacle hindering the Islamic expansion eastwards. The Ottoman solution? Murdering every single Armenian in their way. The world should have been warned by the preludes of the Hamidian and Adana Massacres that took place by the end of the 18th and the start of the 19th century… but this was only the beginning. During WWI, a Turkish-Armenian War was fought out simultaneously, during which an estimated 600,000 - 2.5 million Armenians were killed or sent out on the by now notorious death marches. 2.5 million! After the genocide was completed, they seized significant parts of Western Armenia (incl. big chunks of current-day Anatolia), including their national symbol: Mount Ararat. A mountain that is considered sacred by Armenians and is depicted on their coat of arms… yet a mountain they cannot reach, as they are not allowed to travel to what now geographically is registered as Eastern Turkey… while Turkish politics, over a century later, still doesn’t have the decency to admit a genocide ever happened. Quite the world we live in.

Yet, what we do have until justice is served: Mount Aragats, a 4-peaked volcanic massif located about 40km north of Yerevan. Where Ararat is 5137m high, the highest of Aragats peaks only has a 4090m height. However, that doesn’t mean it’s an easy ascend, especially not if you attempt it out of season (the season runs from July-September, depending on snowfall). However, as I was there mid-June I didn’t have much of a choice (unless you mean choosing NOT to do it, which is simply not an option if you are me). I was met with nothing but demotivation: People told me I was basically going to freeze to death, drown in snow, get dramatically lost without a guide, be devoured by bears and if I would survive all of that, the lightning would most definitely kill me. Well-intended advice, but usually given by people who didn’t actually attempt it themselves (to be compared with the numerous warnings I receive about so-called “dangerous countries,” given by individuals who have never travelled there and blindly trust the news and social media). Yet, I decided there could be a slight grain of truth hidden in these exaggerations and approached this “finger crossed operation” with scepticism about its completion.

To say it wasn’t easy is indeed an understatement. First of all, as like most tourists my travel partner and I didn’t have our own vehicle, we needed to grab 3 different hitchhikes to reach the starting point.* Sure, it is possible to organize a taxi, but they notoriously overcharge as they are quite aware you don’t have a whole lot of choice. People weren’t lying about the cold, as we indeed went from perfect summer to an almost 30-degrees temperature drop. But… what else is new on a 4000+m elevation? Not a problem clothing cannot fix. Yet, the snow was indeed a serious issue. Even though the HIKEArmenia office in Yerevan (yes, they have such an institution!) had assured me that it would be doable, and even suggested we camp in the crater which they said would be snow-free, nothing was further from the truth! I found a bunch of beautiful recordings on Wikiloc, indicating where the trails should be… but all I was confronted with was a long stretch of knee-deep snow, every now and then hiding a massive slush river underneath we could tumble into if we didn’t pay attention. We had no idea where it was safe to walk, and often sank about crotch-deep into a depth we couldn’t anticipate on. After a long struggle through paradise, we finally reached the side of the southern peak. As the standard trail was inaccessible, we had to scramble up over the loose rocks on the mountainside, which tumbled away under our very feet with every movement. In retrospect this was quite a dangerous operation to undertake without helmets and safety equipment. As we weren’t ready to give up just yet we however managed to reach the South Peak (3888m)… from where a grand view over all 4 peaks of the Aragats taught us this is the absolute furthest we could go, as an ascend to the highest Northern Peak would include a crossing of the crater, which still had an unpredictable, meters-thick snowpack resting in its core.

A disappointment? A bit, as I always attempt to reach the highest peak of each country I visit… Yet, I prefer to actually continue living injury-free to keep doing so. And admit, these panoramic views from the southern ridge are probably even more memorable because of the dreamy layer of snow:

Photo by Miles Watson Photography.

An easier (but less impressive) alternative is the walk towards the Amberd Fortress. As an extra stimulation: If you hike to the fortress up the rather short trail along and through the canyon (opposed to entering via the parking lot at the end of the road) you can enter free of charge! GPS here.

* It’s rather doable to get a hitchhike until the split-off with the road towards the Amberd Fortress, as quite a few tourists visit this sight. From there it is however still 13km to the starting point, from where traffic is severely limited. On the first day I didn’t manage… only on the second day I was lucky to get a ride from one of the suppliers of the hotel/restaurant which is located next to Aragats.
** There is full cell phone coverage in the area with Ucom.
*** The best base to stay when planning an adventure to Mount Aragats: the tiny village of Agarak.

FREE Recommended Sights / Activities in Agarak

Sights: Mount Aragats; Artavazik Church; St. John Church.
Museums: Isahakyan House Museum; Style Art Gallery.

PAID Recommended Sights / Activities in Agarak

Sights: Amberd Fortress (free if you hike up from the other side).
Other: Voskevaz Winery (looks like some tacky Disneyland rip-off, so by all means recommended)

3: Visit Armenia’s Most Interesting Art Museum (Vanadzor)

Armenia has a lot of good things going. Yet, museum-wise there is still some room for development. I can fairly state that I have quite an informed opinion in this regard, as I happened to have sublimely yet unintentionally planned my visit to the capital during their National Museum Day (May 21st). As such, I about wore myself out trying to visit every single one I could haul my ass to. However, against all odds, it wasn’t in Yerevan where I ended up tracing down the (in my opinion) country’s best museum. It was on a rather rushed lunchbreak when traveling from Gyumri to Dilijan, in the hectic town of Vanadzor. It’s hard to tell when looking at the rather depressing exterior of the rundown Soviet-style building, but the Vanadzor Fine Arts Museum contains over 1700 artworks spread out over 3 ample exhibition rooms. The collection is focussed on Armenian artists, chronologically displaying the developments of the Armenian school from the mid-20th century onwards. Of course, we know and appreciate our all-time masters such as Van Gogh, Dali and Renoir… but boy oh boy, we had no idea what talent is hiding in Armenia! Artists such as Hakob Hakobyans and Armine Kalents definitely outgrew the dusty walls of this rather obscure museum… but before the secret is out, we can admire their fantastic works for next to nothing in an unexpected place like Vanadzor.

FREE Recommended Sights / Activities in Vanadzor

Sights: Street Art; Vanadzor Square; Tairov’s House; St. Gregory of Narek Cathedral; Russian Orthodox Church; Old Train Station; World’s First Lenin Statue (Arbanyak Soviet Camp); Mineral Fountain Tetuh Djour.
Museums: Aesthetics Centre.

PAID Recommended Sights / Activities in Vanadzor

Museums: Vanadzor Museum of Fine Arts.
Other: Rafting; Mountain biking.

4: Find Armenia’s Oddest Architecture in Gyumri

Gyumri is the second largest city of Armenia, but cannot in the slightest be compared to Yerevan. And why would you want to? It would make traveling rather boring if all places look the same. I’m pretty solid that Gyumri is nothing you’ve ever seen before… I for sure haven’t, and Armenia was my country #75. It was in fact the 1988 earthquake that is responsible for the city’s current look. After this immense tragedy, which had a death toll of approximately 25,000-50,000, most buildings were razed to the ground and Gyumri had to be rebuilt (almost) from scratch. To my great delight, they did so by using the odd color combination of volcanic black and orange tuff stone, quarried just outside of the town’s borders. As a result, the entire downtown area looks like it has been blackened by fire, the churches even having a well-nigh demonic look to them. Besides the rather eccentric architecture, other elements that might draw you into Gyumri include the Black Fortress, a vast collection of small-scale museums and (for some reason) an insane amount of public coffee machines and lucky cranes.

FREE Recommended Sights / Activities in Gyumri

Sights: Kumayri Historic District; Black Fortress; Mother of Armenia; Church of the Holy Savior; Seven Wounds Church; Orthodox Chapel of the Archangel Michael; City Hall; Horom Citadel; Vardan Mamikonjan Statue.
Museums: Isahakyan House Museum; Style Art Gallery.

PAID Recommended Sights / Activities in Gyumri

Museums: Gallery of Mariam and Eranuhi Aslamazyan Sisters; Museum of National Architecture and Urban Life; Cobweb Art Gallery; Mher Mkrtchyan Museum; Hovhannes Shiraz Home and Museum.
Other: Aleksandrapol Brewery; Gyumri Brewery; Alikhanyan Puppet Theatre.

5: Go Entirely Off-The-Grid in Berdavan

I wouldn’t claim that Armenia is right on the standard backpacker’s trail. I mean, surprisingly enough I saw plenty of tourists in Yerevan and its day-trip’able destinations surrounding it… but how often did you really overheard someone saying “oh yeah, just booked my summer vacations to Armenia!”? Exactly. And that’s mighty good news, as mass tourism definitely squeezes the last drip of joy out of a destination that’s otherwise most probably worth the hype. Even better: While at it, why not going off-the-grid in a destination that’s already plenty obscure in its own right? I mean, Berdavan… you have to zoom in for quite some time in order to trace it down on Google Maps. Yet, it’s located right on the border of both Azerbaijan and Georgia, making it quite the strategic spot. To me, it was an excellent location to unwind and try to mentally deal with the fact that I was about to leave Armenia… not an easy task at hand!

I arrived in Berdavan upon invitation by the Berdavan Guesthouse, also to be found on Couchsurfing.

FREE Recommended Sights / Activities in Berdavan / Noyemberyan

Sights: Berdavan Fortress.

Quick Budget Fact Overview

Armenia Facts

Capital: Yerevan
Language: Armenian (incl. their own alphabet)
Population: ± 2.9 mln*
Sq km: ± 29,743 km²
Currency: Dram (֏)
Electricity Outlet: C & F / 230 V / 50 Hz. Check here.
Country Code Phone: +374
Emergency Phone: 103 (ambulance), 101 (fire), 102 (police)
Visa: Check out the visa requirements here. Easy applications can be arranged here.
Climate: Hot Summer Continental (Dfa)
High season: Summer

* An estimated 7mln Armenians live outside of Armenia in “Diaspora Communities”. The main reason for this immigration was the genocide carried out towards the Armenian people by Turkey (beginning of 19th century) and the recent war with Azerbaijan concentrated in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Short History Recap

2400BC: The Book of Genesis identifies the land of Ararat as the resting place of Noah's Ark. 2300BC: Armenian nation created in Ararat. 1200BC: Nairi tribes in highlands (Van /Hakkari provinces of current Turkey). 860BC: Kingdom of Urartu. 782BC: Fortress of Erebuni constructed. 512BC: Annexed to Persia. 331BC: Alexander the Great attacks Persia, but doesn’t conquer Armenia à independence from Persia gained. 190BC: Artaxiad Dynasty. 83BC: Conquest of Syria, Phoenicia, and Cilicia. 66BC: Pompey invades Armenia, but returns to Rome after money is offered by Armenian Tigranes the Great. 1AD: Arsacid Dynasty. 58: Roman invasion. 301: Armenia 1st Christian state in the world (by King Tiridates III). Division into West-East between Sassanid Persians and Roman Byzantines (Peace of Acisilene). 405: Armenian alphabet invented. 428: Part of Sassanid Empire. 639: 1st Arab invasion. 650: Khazar-Arab Wars & Byzantine-Arab Wars. 1016: Seljuk Turks à become dominant in Anatolia. 1045: Armenia falls to Byzantine troops à Armenian exodus. Conqueror Timur from Timurid Empire invades Armenia, Georgia & Anatolia: slaughter / enslavement. 1502: Safavid Dynasty of Persia conquers Armenia. ’14: Ottoman-Persian Wars. ’32: Ottoman-Safavid Wars. ‘55: Peace of Amasya & 1639’s Treaty of Zuhab: Western Armenia under Ottoman rule. 1813: Treaty of Gulistan: Eastern Armenia under Persian rule, Karabakh part of Russian Empire. ’26-’28: Russo-Persian Warà Eastern Armenia to Russia. ’94-’96: Hamidian Massacres; an estimated 80,000–300,000 Armenians are killed by Ottomans. 1909: Adana Massacre: 15000-30000 Armenians killed by Ottomans. WWI: Armenian Genocide by the Ottoman Empire (still denied by Turkey) à between 600,000-2.5mln Armenians murdered or sent on death marches to present-day Syria. Motivations: Christianity & suspicion of pro-Russian sympathies. ’16-’18: Armenian regions of Ottoman Empire fall to Russia / Soviet Union. ’18: The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk gives Armenian Kars, Ardahan and Batum regions to the Ottoman Empire. Independent Armenia. ’20: Invasion by Turkey & Bolshevik Russia. ’22: Armenia incorporated into USSR. ’88: Armenians begin to campaign for Nagorno-Karabakh (NK), a region with a predominantly Armenian population in Azerbaijan, to be united with Armenia. Earthquake kills 25,000. ’89: NK begins à many Azeri citizens are forced to flee their homes. ’90: Nationalists win elections à Independence Armenia declared, but ignored by Russia. ’91: Joins Commonwealth of Independent States (successor to Soviet Union). ’92: Joins UN. Trade + energy embargo imposed by Azerbaijan. ’94: Demonstrations over food+ energy shortages à Russian-brokered ceasefire ends NK fighting. Self-proclaimed republic: Armenian forces in control of Azerbaijani territory. ’99: Prime minister + 6 officials killed in parliament. 2001: Council of Europe member. ’07: Parliament allows dual citizenship: naturalisation of Armenia's massive foreign diaspora (8mnl people). ’14: Tensions rise over NK again. ’15: Eurasian Union. Gyumri massacre (Armenians killed by Russians). ’16: NK clashes. ’20: NK War à recognized as part of Azerbaijan.

Local Festivals

Vanadzor Color Festival – July.
Dilijan Music Fest – July.
Urvakan Festival (Dilijan) – Sept.
Sensor Festival (Mount Aragats) – Sept.

Budget Bites

Supermarkets: City; SAS; Kilikia; Parma; Carrefour; Evrika.
Local Dishes: Khorovats (BBQ); Tolma (dolma, rice/meat in wine leaves); Harissa (ground wheat / pulled meat porridge); Qyufta / Kufta (meatballs); Tjvjik (beef / lamb liver); Arishta (thick noodles); Spas / Tanov Apur (yoghurt soup); Khash (beef broth); Khashlama (lamb veg stew); Ghapama (pumpkin with minced meat, boiled rice, nuts, dried fruits); Jingyalov Hats (greens in flatbread); Aveluk Salad (Armenian wild sorrel with pomegranate seeds, garlic, oil, and walnuts); Tatar Boraki (yoghurt pasta); Basturma (dried beef tenderloin); Panrkhash (boiled cheese/butter/onions); Potchapur (bean onion soup with meat); Gata (sweet vanilla bread); Dabgadz Banir Boerag (flaky puff pastries filled with cheeses); Topik (chickpea dumplings); Lavash (flatbread); Manti (tiny little boats of dough, filled with meat); Shashlik / Kebab (meat skewers); Itch / Eech (bulgur salad); Kchuch (meat and vegetable stew / soup); Vospov Kofte (lentil kofte); Ishkhan (trout); Pelmeni (Russian dumplings).
The Veg Situation: Going veg is rather complicated in Armenia, as the local kitchen is very meat- and cheese-centred. On top of that, refusing food that’s offered by the generous locals can be taken as an insult. However, where there’s a will there’s a way. Find all veg-friendly in this destination here. Local veg dishes (description above): Pasuc Tolma (vegan); Arishta (vegan); Spas / Tanov Apur; Jingyalov Hats; Aveluk Salad (vegan); Tatar Boraki; Panrkhash; Gata; Dabgadz Banir Boerag; Topik (vegan); Lavash (vegan); Itch / Eech (vegan); Vospov Kofte (vegan); Mshosh (vegan - lentils/onions/walnuts/apricots); Ailazan (vegan - stew).
National Drink: Vodka (oghi); Cognac; Wine; Beer.

Photo by Miles Watson Photography.

Sleep Cheap

Hostels / Hotels: Whereas Armenia is quite a cheap destination (depending on where you’re coming from) with relatively low costs of food, transportation and tourist attractions, you’re likely to spend the most of your travel budget on accommodation. Ho(s)tel prices aren’t outrageous, but generally a bit pricier than in Georgia or Iran… especially in the cities, like Yerevan and Gyumri. However, in homestays and guesthouses in the southern countryside you’ll be often treated on free meals, coffee and snacks as a general gesture of hospitality, so you can save some expenses there. In Northern Armenia this is less common. Always re-confirm your booking per phone or WhatsApp, as sometimes a property doesn’t have space for you at all, even though they’re accepting bookings. It also (rarely) happens that you’re given a different (worse) room than booked, or a different (higher) price is suddenly quoted. Payment is generally in cash. I personally found the best deals on Booking.com. They have the biggest selection, are transparent about the final price and have an efficient search engine tailored to your specific needs (cheapest first!). If you use it often enough, Genius-discounts are applied. Agoda is often not transparent about prices, adding a lot of additional costs in the last booking-step. Opodo is another decent option. I don’t recommend Air BnB in Armenia, as it’s not only much more expensive, often properties accept bookings but aren’t available at all… and as it’s prepaid, the owner has to cancel the booking for you to get your money back (try to explain that in Armenian / Russian). Writer’s choice: In Dilijan I stayed in the quirky Rossi Rest House, which is very basic with insufficient bathroom and kitchen facilities. Yet, it has a certain charm to it, as well as a very central location. To climb Mount Aragats I stayed in the village of Agarak, in a guesthouse named Our Village. It’s extremely basic, including a hole-in-the-ground-toilet in the backyard, but the rooms are comfortable, the garden is a true oasis and the hospitality provided by the lady of the house was unlevelled. In Gyumri I stayed in a spot named “Guest House in Gyumri” (Dashtents Street 17), which was slightly pricy. It was comfortable, with a pleasant roofed seating space in the garden, yet the rooms were very small and it was a tad too far from the centre. In Berdavan I stayed in Berdavan Guesthouse, which was comfortable and quiet.
Couchsurfing: allows you to stay with locals. Nowadays it has a moderate sign-up cost (unless you put a third-world country as homebase), but paying extra for verification is unnecessary: Positive reviews are more important. Once active, there are no costs for staying at someone’s house. In order to get accepted, make sure to write an elaborate review explaining why you applied to this specific profile and think you and your host are a good match (copy-pastes tend to be ignored). Unfortunately, the active Couchsurfing community is quite limited in Armenia. During a month’s time I landed two stays, but I noticed that most profiles are inactive or hosts live in with their parents and therefore cannot host. Yet, I arranged a few pleasant stays.
Housesitting: is an amazing exchange allowing you to stay short- or long-term in somebody’s house, while looking after their house and pets. There are many different websites, most of them paid… but once you landed a sit, the subscription fee is pays itself back quickly. The main housesitting site is Trusted Housesitters.
Wild Camping: is entirely legal in Armenia. Of course, make sure to not litter and be careful in choosing your camping location, as bears and wolves are common in many natural areas of Armenia (never ever keep food inside of your tent and cook far away from your camping spot). Steer clear of shepherd’s territories, as the dogs guarding the cattle can be quite aggressive. When camping around towns and villages: Armenians are incredibly hospitable, and if you ask permission to camp on their land they’ll probably treat you on food and drinks.

Mama Said

Safety: Armenia is generally very safe, but use your common sense like everywhere. Don’t walk alone in remote areas after sunset, don’t take valuables along and follow your instinct when entering certain neighbourhoods further away from the centre. Follow the latest updates on the situation in and around Nagorno-Karabakh, as armed conflicts are occasionally breaking out.
Tap Water: is generally drinkable. That said, always double-check this with the accommodation owner, as some houses store their water supplies in water tanks, causing possible contamination.
Language: Keep into account that English is not spoken here. At all. Besides Armenian, most people speak Russian. If you don’t speak any of these two languages, make sure to have a translation app (such as Google Translate) at your disposal, as that makes life much easier.
The best credit/debit card for traveling is Wise, as they use the live conversion rates without any extra fees. Wise also has the lowest fees for sending money to foreign accounts. Unfortunately, you cannot create an Armenian Dram wallet on your Wise account (yet!). Money exchange offices are concentrated in Yerevan and generally charge decent exchange rates (avoid doing it at the airport). I noticed there are quite some exchange offices, but almost none are listed on Google Maps, so it’s better to just look around.
Cash: Card payments are rarely accepted in Armenia. Always bring enough cash with you and keep in mind that small villages often don’t have ATM’s nor money exchange offices. Another difficulty is that large bills (sometimes even as small as 5000 dram / €10) are not accepted, as local shop owners simply don’t have change.
Simcard: Acquiring a simcard is rather easy and very affordable in Armenia. Simply walk into a phone shop with your passport and buy the sim and package that interest you, and the employees will set it up for you. Avoid any expensive tourist packages or deals sold at the airports. I experienced excellent service and coverage with Ucom, where I bought a 30-day call and data package. Other companies are Vivacell, MTS and Beeline.

Transport

Walking: Most tourist attractions in the towns/villages covered in this article are located in the city centre and can be reached on foot. However, the city is quite spread out, so for further exploration or in order to reach the train and bus stations, public transport is necessary.
Cycling: Due to the hectic traffic situation and the reckless driving behavior of Armenian drivers I don’t recommend cycling. That said, if you are confident enough about your own bicycle skills nothing is impossible.
City Buses / Tram / Metro: Most towns in Armenia have mashrutkas (minibuses), which stop everywhere along the way. As destinations are written in the Armenian alphabet only, and navigation apps such as Google Maps and Moovit don’t operate here, it is necessary to talk to locals in order to find your way. Even though English isn’t spoken here, Armenians are incredibly helpful and will go out of their way to help you. You can pay the drivers in cash.
Taxi / Uber: The local taxi app is called Yandex Go.
Intercity Buses: Dilijan’s intercity buses stop on the main roundabout at Maxim Gorky Street. Agarak can be reached from Yerevan by taking minibus #520 (headed for Byurakan) from Yerevan’s Southern Bus Station. There is no public transport to the base of Mount Aragats. Vanadzor’s main bus station is located at Kayarani Street. In Gyumri you can take a mashrutka from Avtokayaran, located at the end of Shahumyan Street (the ones to Yerevan go to Kilikia Central Bus Station). The closest bus station to Berdavan is in Noyemberyan. T-Armenia has a pretty useful travel planner for public transport routes in Armenia.
Train: Even though there are many train stations all over Armenia, few are operational. Yerevan’s main train station is located at 50 Tigran Mets Avenue (reached by mashrutka/bus 1; 16; 23; 30 / metro station Sasuntsi David). From Yerevan there’s a train to Gyumri (twice a day) and one to Tbilisi (daily). Times and prices are flexible over time, so need to be verified at the station or tourism office.
Car Rental: I only recommend car rental to stress-free and confident drivers. The local traffic situation is quite the madhouse and traffic rules don’t seem to be followed. If you decide to rent a vehicle, get a proper insurance coverage as accidents and damage is never far away in Armenia. Expect to pay about 30 bucks per day.
Airport: Zvartnots International Airport (EVN). Mashrutka 201 connects the airport with downtown Yerevan (metro station Yeritasadarkan). Shirak Airport Gyumri (LWN).
Hitchhiking: is relatively safe in Armenia and it’s a very common concept. Waiting times are relatively short and people generally buy you drinks and snacks along the way (and refuse to receive any generosity from your end). Consider that English isn’t generaly spoken, so chit-chat might be impossible.

Next?

National Destinations Close By: Yerevan; Garni; Khor Virap; Sevan; Dilijan; Areni.
International Destinations Close By: Turkey (border closed); Azerbaijan (border closed); Iran; Georgia.

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