It is better to start your acquaintance with the city with a tour of the Erebuni Fortress – the place where the history of Yerevan begins. This most important attraction is 2800 years old – it is considered a symbol of Armenian statehood. Returning from the southeastern outskirts to the center, you find yourself in the heart of the capital – on Republic Square. The decoration of this place is the singing fountains in front of the Museum of History (off. site). In addition to sound accompaniment in the dark, they change their color. Impressive building – complex “Cascade”— a system of stepped passages decorated with flower beds, fountains and original sculptures. From here, from a 100-meter height, an extraordinary view of the city opens. Another grandiose building is the 54-meter Mother Armenia monumentlocated in Victory Park. He is visible from everywhere.
An impressive view of Ararat opens from the Geghard Monastery, which is literally carved into the rock near Yerevan. The ancient building, founded in the 4th century, is shrouded in legends and secrets. There is a belief that you can attract good luck by hitting a pebble in one of the niches on its wall.
According to wholevehicles, the world’s largest collection of written monuments is located in the Yerevan repository of ancient manuscripts Matenadaran of. site. Here, on Mashtots Avenue, not far from the Blue Mosque, there is another iconic place, without which it is impossible to form a correct idea of the city – the Central Covered Market.
Graceful Belle Epoque buildings line Abovyan Street, where you can see Art Nouveau, Art Nouveau and graceful neo-Moorish style.
A unique feature of Yerevan is the gorge within the city. This picturesque corner is named Radzyansky in honor of the river flowing through it. In addition to natural beauties, it is famous for its restaurants and cafes, which are full of life in the evenings. Above the gorge stands the Yerevan Brandy Factory, where you can get acquainted with the history of the creation of a soul-warming drink – the Armenian “Ararat”.
At the Moscow cinema, tourists take pictures with their favorite actor Frunzik Mkrtchyan, sitting next to him on a bench.
Yerevan can boast of the first Museum of Modern Art (off. site), opened in the USSR back in 1972. The house-museum of the brilliant director Sergei Parajanov in the Dzoragyugh Ethnographic Center is not inferior in originality to the Salvador Dali Theater-Museum in Figueres. At the Museum of the History of Armenia, you can see what Yerevan was like many centuries ago – there are exhibited three-dimensional panoramas recreated from old drawings and maps, as well as artifacts of the past. The Tsitsernakaberd memorial complex tells about the sad pages of Armenian history – on its territory there is the Museum of the Armenian Genocide (off. site).
5 things to do in Yerevan
- Step into the holy of holies of Yerevan – the citadel of the Erebuni fortress.
- Take a picture against the backdrop of the magnificent five buildings on Republic Square.
- Visit the Matenadaran Museum of Manuscripts – one of the world’s largest collections of ancient texts.
- Try the shish kebab “khorovats” and wash down the meal with homemade wine.
- Buy an excellent carpet with meaning in the legendary Tufenkian Carpets.
Yerevan for children
Little tourists will love the Yerevan Zoo. It contains about 3,000 animals, and the territory is divided into two parts – a recreation area and enclosures for the inhabitants. A lot of water activities await the children in the open-air water park Water World. The Children’s Railway of the Natural Park, in the gorge of the Hrazdan River, is very popular with children. A locomotive with two trailers passes through a tunnel, travels 2 km, making a stop at two stations.
Neither kids nor adults will be left indifferent to the attractions of the Victory Park and Lunapark. “Captain Kid’s Treasure Island” awaits beginner pirates at the Yerevan Mall (off. site), and lovers of outdoor activities will find entertainment to their taste in the Playcity game center (off. site).
Weather
Winter in Yerevan is moderately cold and with little snow, and the arrival of spring coincides with the calendar date – since March, nature begins to change. At this time, the weather is unstable, but it is quickly replaced by summer heat. In July-August, from lunch to evening, it is impossible to be on the streets – there is 40-degree heat. May is considered the rainiest month. Summer lasts more than 4 months – this is the season of dry and hot weather. Autumn is usually warm and sunny. The best time to visit the capital of Armenia is from April to November.
