Group Tour | Tsaghkadzor (Kecharis, Ropeway), Lake Sevan (Sevanavank)

Tsaghkadzor – a finding for those who like to rest all year round Thirty kilometers from Yerevan is a true ecological paradise that has the name of Tsaghkadzor. "Blooming Gorge" is a literal translation and the most literal description of this place. It has everything to surprise even the most captious guest at any time of the year. In the summertime, this is an incredible forest, blooming flora, clear air and infinite tranquility. In winters, on the contrary, the city comes to life and transforms itself into a ski resort with crisp snow, ropeway and slopes for skis and snowboards. The ancient name of the city is Kecharis, which is literally translated as “birch grove”. There is a monastery in the city that bears the same name and is still in effect.

Lake Sevan is one of the first associations that comes to mind after mentioning Armenia. It is the largest source of fresh water for the country and the also the biggest in the whole Caucasus. Surrounded by mountain ranges at an altitude of about 1900 meters above sea level, Sevan is striking in its beauty and azure-blue water surface. The lake has a small peninsula, at the top of which is located the monastery of Sevanavank. In a complex with several buildings, the monastery has been preserved since the 18th century and is still in effect. From a height, it seems that the mountains and the water merge together and there is not a single border between them. Watching the endless play of the waves shimmering under the sun makes one mistake it for a sea. This association is truthful indeed. In the ancient Armenian sources, Sevan was called “the Geghama Sea”, or was simply referred to as “the sea”. Amazing nature combines rocky landscape and pine mini forests located alongside the coast. Once here for the first time, you begin to feel the infinite harmony and inner peace. We invite you to immerse yourself in this feeling and relax both mentally and physically.

Sevanavank is a monastic complex located on a peninsula at the northwestern shore of Lake Sevan in the Gegharkunik Province of Armenia, not far from the town of Sevan. Initially the monastery was built at the southern shore of a small island. After the artificial draining of Lake Sevan, which started in the era of Joseph Stalin, the water level fell about 20 metres, and the island transformed into a peninsula. At the southern shore of this newly created peninsula, a guesthouse of the Armenian Writers' Union was built.