8-day South Caucasus in One Week8 days | Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia

Arrival in Baku. On arrival, our driver will meet you and transfer you to the hotel for check-in. Meet the tour guide to start a sightseeing tour in Baku. Visit Martyrs Lane, known as ‘Shehidler Khiyabany’ among locals. When you walk through the Alley of the Martyrs, you will find a beautiful view overlooking Baku’s coastline. Move to Icheri Sheher, the old part of the city. Visit Shirvan Shahs’ Palace, Caravanserai, Maiden Tower, and the main market square, which has numerous art studios and souvenir stalls. Continue touring new Baku by exploring Nizami Street and Fountain Square. An excellent round-up to the city tour will be a visit to the iconic Heydar Aliyev center. In the evening enjoy a welcome dinner in a local restaurant. Overnight at the hotel.

Today you will visit the area of the Greater Baku and Absheron peninsula.
The first stop is at Yanardag Mountain, where natural gas has been burning for hundreds of years. Continue to Ateshgah, a temple for fire worshippers located in the village of Surakhany. Zoroastrians from India travel thousands of kilometers to Ateshgah to worship the fire coming out of the earth.
After lunch, drive to Gobustan National Park. Pay a visit to the Petroglyphs Museum and explore petroglyphs dating back to 10,000 BC. Weather permitting, drive to mud volcanoes in Gobustan Reserve (possible change of vehicle). Gobustan is home to almost half of the world’s mud volcanoes.
Transfer to the airport. Take an evening flight to Tbilisi. On arrival, transfer to hotel for overnight.

In the morning start a sightseeing tour in Tbilisi. Visit the monument to Vakhtang Gorgasali, the legendary founder of Tbilisi. Take the cable car to Narikala Fortress to enjoy the breathtaking panoramic view of the city. Walk down to the district of Sulphur bath houses passing by the only mosque in Tbilisi. Stroll through the Sharden area full of narrow streets with cozy cafés, wine-tasting bars, souvenir shops, and breath in the living past. Visit Sioni Cathedral, Anchiskhati Basilica, and the clock tower of the famous Rezo Gabriadze Theatre and cross the Bridge of Peace to Rike Park. In the evening, visit a local restaurant to taste dishes of traditional Georgian cuisine and enjoy a folklore show. Overnight in Tbilisi.

After breakfast depart towards the Kakheti region of Georgia, the cradle of Georgian wine. A beautiful road lies through Gombori pass. Our first stop will be in Telavi, the administrative and historic center of the region. Have a short walk through the charming streets of old Telavi and have a photo stop at the monument to Erekli II. Drive to Tsinandali, the residence of the dukes of Georgia with a beautiful English garden, a museum, and the wine cellar which belonged to prince Chavchavadze, 19th century public figure and poet. Continue to Sighnaghi, the city of love, and the Royal Town, one of the crossroads of the Great Silk Road surrounded by defensive walls with 23 towers. Depart to Tbilisi. If time permits, stop en-route at Bodbe convent, which according to the legend is a burial place of St. Nino, who converted Georgia to Christianity in the 4th century. According to Tsar Alexander III of Russia decree, since 1889 Bodbe complex functions as a nunnery. Return to Tbilisi for overnight.

Our day trip to Kazbegi starts at 09:00. The route will take over the Georgian Military Highway up North towards the border with Russia. Your first stop will be at Ananuri complex, a former residence of Argveti Dukes. The complex features churches and towers dating back to the 16-17th centuries, beautifully overlooking the Jinvali reservoir. Continue our drive to see the conjunction of two small mountain rivers famous for the fact that being different in color they keep their own colors even after merging. We will then drive over the Cross Pass and make a short stop at the Soviet-era “People’s Friendship” mountain viewpoint overlooking a deep gorge of Caucasus mountain range. Arrive in Kazbegi and drive up to Gergeti Holy Trinity Church located at an altitude of 2170 m. Enjoy breathtaking views of Mt Kazbegi. Drive back to Tbilisi.

At 09:00, our driver will meet you at your hotel in Tbilisi and transfer to “Sadakhlo-Bagratashen” Georgian-Armenian border point. Cross the border, meet your Armenian guide and driver, and start the journey to the land of ancient traditions and the oldest temples.
Drive to Lori region and visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site Haghpat monastery. A stunning example of Armenian traditional architecture was erected in the 10-13th centuries. Standing on a hillside, Haghpat beautifully overlooks Debed River. The location of the monastery was chosen to protect the peace and seclusion of its monks. Drive through Dilijan and to Lake Sevan, “The Jewel of Armenia” and one of the largest high-mountainous freshwater lakes in the world. The coastline of Lake Sevan is rich with thick woods, white bare steep rocks, mountain steppes and Alpine meadows. Stop at Sevanavank to visit the remnants of the monastery that include two temples – Surb Arakelots and Surb Karapet standing among numerous khachkars. The buildings were constructed from black tuff which probably gave the monastery its name Sevanavank – “the Black Monastery”. The view from there is simply magnificent: the mountains surround the lake from all sides and snow tops are seen almost on the entire perimeter and disappear behind the horizon. Continue to Yerevan for overnight.

Depart Yerevan and drive to Garni, one of the major villages in Armenia famous for its fortress. The fortress is the only pagan sacred place from the 1st century that survived the aggressive introduction of Christianity in the 4th century. The next stop is at the monastery complex Geghard (“spear”). The beautiful landscape of Geghard is framed by towering cliffs. Decorative art cut into rocks reflects and explains Medieval Ages development throughout the region. The complex was introduced to history in the 4th century as a sacred spring inside a cave. Return to Yerevan for a sightseeing tour.
One of the oldest cities of the world, Yerevan is famous as a pink city and calls visitors with its humble and at the same time splendid landscapes. Start the city tour by visiting the Cascade Monument, one of the main symbols of the city. The mega-scale staircase is 118 meters high and has 572 steps. A panoramic view from the monument opens a breathtaking city view with Opera House, Mount Ararat, Swan Lake, Republic Square, and Abovyan Avenue, which you will also walk by during the tour. If it is a weekend, visit Vernisage, the biggest souvenir market in Yerevan. In the evening, enjoy dinner and a traditional folklore show. Overnight in the hotel.

Check-out from the hotel till noon. Free time till transfer to Yerevan International Airport. Departure. End of South Caucasus Tour.

Economy:
Stay Boutique / Kopala / Tiflis / Ginger / Monday / Ramada By Wyndham Tbilisi Old City
Comfort:
River Side / Museum / Ibis Styles / New Tiflis
Lux:
Ambassadori / Tiflis Palace / Rooms / Swissôtel Tbilisi / Wyndham Grand

Economy:
Hayasa / Ani Central Inn / Silk Road Boutique / Cascade / President by Hrazdan Hotel CJSC
Comfort:
Opera Suite / Yerevan Place
Lux:
Tufenkian Historic / DoubleTree by Hilton Yerevan / Republica Hotel / Courtyard by Marriott