Yerevan is Armenia’s capital and your likely first sight of the country. It’s also a good base for regional day trips – but unless you have a very modest itinerary, it’s better to spend a few days acclimatizing in town and then heading out.

The Garden City. In 1837, Yerevan became the capital of the Tsarist Russian empire’s territory that mainly covered eastern Armenia. Russia conquered the region from the Persian empire and developed Yerevan as the colony’s main political and economic center. There are many Tsarist style buildings in town, some of which are being restored.

In the 1920s and 1930s, the city was extensively redeveloped as a modern Soviet city The general plan was designed by the Armenian architect Alexander Tamanian in 1924. The central city plan included a street grid punctuated by grand squares, large parks and a circular green belt, much of which stands to this day. There are plenty of parks to pause in.

Despite later modernization, the city has an approachable feel. 6-level mixed storefront/apartment buildings built in the interwar and postwar Soviet classical style are common – and is it readily walkable.

Republic Square is a useful starting point, with the History Museum of Armenia located on the east side. The Vernissage arts and crafts market is just south of the square. This open-air market contains the usual range from interesting craft to trinkets, but is worth a look, especially on the weekend.

Yerevan’s city center is just east of a major ravine, the Hrazdan Gorge. A walk to the top of the Cascade, located in the northern green belt, gives useful orientation. The Cascade is a limestone stairway and artificial waterfall partially constructed in the late Soviet era and then improved after independence. Look for the Fernando Botero statues – cat and nude – in the sculpture park at the food of the stairs.

There are a range of buildings worth passing by that show the city’s changing history – from the Soviet era Opera House (Freedom Square), built in 1933, to the Blue Mosque (12 Mesrop Mashtots Ave.), built as a shia mosque under Persian rule in 1765. The Blue Mosque was secularized in the Soviet era and then restored as a mosque and cultural center in the 2000s with Iranian government support.

A walk along Abovyan Street shows a number of Tsarist-era buildings, as well as the Moscow Theater (Number 18), another classical Stalinist-era structure opened in 1933. You will get periodic glimpses of Mount Ararat, about 50 kilometers northeast of Mount Ararat, which lies in Turkish territory.

Museums and Stuff. Yerevan has a range of cultural sites to visit, established in Soviet and independent times. The National Gallery of Armenia (1 Aram St.) has an extensive collection, in part as many pieces were moved there from other parts of the Soviet Union for safety during WW2. The History Museum of Armenia (Republic Square) is worth a visit. Just west of downtown, the Armenian Genocide Museum (8 Tsitsernakaberd Highway) is an obligatory stop to explain Armenia’s painful history. For those interested in the urban design of Yerevan, the Tamanyan Architecture Museum-Institute (Government Building # 3, on Aram St. at Hanrapetutyan St. ) is worth a visit.

Day Trips. Here are a few day trip ideas.

Day Trip 1. The Geghard Monastery and Garni Temple, are popular days out, although I’d recommend using these as the first stop on a longer trip and then heading on. Otherwise, if you’re pressed for time, this is as good a group as any. Details of these places and subsequent stops are here https://www.aerotrekka.com/yeghegnadzor-armenian-highlands-hilltop-fortresses-and-wine/

Day Trip 2: While you can easily reach the Yereruyk Basilica from Gyumri, it’s also a reasonable day trip from Yerevan, especially if combined with a visit to the Vagharshapat cathedral precinct. Yereruyk, located in the village of Anipemza adjacent to the Turkish border along the River Akhurian, is one of the earliest (5-6th century) examples of early Armenian church architecture. Its also one way to see the Turkish border – the basilica is south of the 10-11th century Armenian kingdom’s capital of Ani, which was one of the world’s largest cities until being sacked by the Seljuk Turko-Persian army in 1064 and subsequently by the Mongols in 1236.

The church must have been truly impressive by the standards of the 6th century and reflected the power and wealth of the early Medieval Armenian kingdoms, that extended into present day Turkey.

Day Trip 3: A hike up Mount Aragats. Consisting of four peaks around the rim of a huge volcanic crater, the Northern Peak is Armenia’s highest point (4,090 meters), although heavily snowed in from around October through April. An ambitious day trip to the nearest Southern Peak is potentially doable with good weather and an early start. The main trailhead has a small hotel and a campground. Check for snow state before you go, and go equipped. You can drive up the lower slopes of Aragats from the south along the winding H20 road, to a starting point at the parking lot next to the Aragats Cosmic Ray Research Station (built in 1943) and a small lodge and restaurant, located next to Lake Kari. The hiking trails lead from there towards the various peaks.

There are plenty of trail guides to take you the various peaks, with the Southern Peak (https://www.alltrails.com/trail/armenia/kotayk–3/southern-peak-of-aragats?u=i) being the shortest trail and the highest Northern Peak being a longer hike that may need an overnight campout .

You can also see the nearby Amberd Fortress, built in the 12th century overlooking the Amberd River gorge.

Logistics. Yerevan is an excellent urban destination with a high concentration of quality restaurants, hotels and drinking establishments, which are often unique to the country and avoid a lot of the cookie-cutter places you see elsewhere. Additional to Armenian, there are plenty of Georgian, Russian and middle eastern restaurants – the latter increasing as many diaspora western Armenians have returned. Bradt’s Armenia guidebook (www.bradtguides.com) is the most comprehensive and its recommendations are reliable, although beware that some places have changed hands or closed; Yerevan is a fast changing city. A few restaurant recommendations:

Artashi Mot. (21 Tumanyan St.) Casual Armenian counter-served cafe specializing in charcoal bbq shawarma. Genatsvale Tavern. (12 Ishakyan St.) Comprehensive Georgian menu in a multi-room layout. Lavash. (21 Tumanyan St.) Higher end Armenian with streetside veranda. Tavern Yerevan. (5 Armiryan St.) Well-delivered Armenian standards. Tumanyan Khinkali Factory. (21/1 Tumanyan St.) Good Georgian cafe specializing in dumplings.

There are plenty of excellent wine bars featuring the fast evolving Armenian wine industry. Armenia’s wine industry is making a comeback and recovering from the Soviet-era decision to prioritize brandy production. Additional to the usual lagers (of which Gyumri is probably the best delivered) there is a growing craft beer industry in Armenia, led by Dargett.

In Vino. (6 Martiros Saryan St.) Wine bar plus store serving snacks with an excellent selection of bottles to take back. Voskevaz Wine Time. (6 Martiros Saryan St.) Another wine bar dispensing Voskevaz winery products. Dargett. (72 Aram St.) Brewpub and restaurant for Armenia’s largest craft brewery. Dors craft beer & kitchen. (4,6 Amiryan St.) Brewpub and restaurant with onsite microbrewery. Wine Republic. (2 Tamanyan St.) Thai restaurant with a major wine selection and outdoor seating.

Hotel quality is good and some recommendations include the Republica (7/1 Aramyan St.) and Tufenkian Historic (48 Hanrapetutyan St.).

Transport. Taxis are very reasonable in Armenia so tip generously. There are various ride-hailing apps that make life easy and mitigate the language barrier – I used YandexGo, which I downloaded in advance of visiting. Note that most of the ride-hailing apps used in Armenia just quote the fare and don’t accept western credit cards, so carry cash. Yerevan also has a late Soviet-era metro, opened in 1981, however it’s focus was to move people out of the fairly small city center area. The Republic Square stop is the most central.

Shopping. Armenia has a unique culture and it’s worth taking a look. A few places worth a check are the Vernissage Market, which leans to a lot of tourist tat but is a useful starting point. Armenia has an important traditional carpet culture and the carpet store in the Tufenkian Heritage Hotel (48 Hanrapetutyan St.), run by this non-profit foundation, is worth a look.

While probably not the lowest prices, the quality is high and you know that the revenues go to a worthwhile cause. The Armenian-Ceramics store in the basement of the Villa Delenda B&B (10 Yeznik Koghbatsi St.) run by another non-profit, have interesting ceramics. The Yerevan City supermarket (5 Mesrop Mashtots Ave.), opposite the Blue Mosque, is one of the largest central markets and worth a visit.

Armenian brandy is high quality and was sold around the Russian empire and beyond since the late 19th century. Between the various producers the largest firm, Yerevan Brandy Company (2 Admiral Isakov Ave.), is probably the best bet and offers a distillery tour followed by a tasting. They offer a standard and premium tour with a better tasting selection, and the premium is well worth it. You can purchase at the factory store, and another good place, for wine as well, is Noyan Tun (https://noyantunonline.am/en/ 12 Amiryan St.).