Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, is one of the most amazing cities in Armenia. Once you decide to travel to Armenia, do not miss your chance to enjoy one of the most ancient and unique cities in the world, Yerevan, and its attractions!
Yerevan city is the capital of the Republic of Armenia. It is an amazing city where history meets the future, and, perhaps, that is why Yerevan is so popular with tourists and foreigners from all over the world.
About Yerevan, Armenia (Capital of Armenia)
Yerevan City Basic Information
Yerevan, the capital, is the largest and most populated city of Armenia. It is in fact the 13th capital city of Armenia.
Before Yerevan, there were the following capital cities of the historical Armenia: Tushpa-Van, Armavir, Yervandashat, Artaxata (Artashat), Tigranocerta (Tigranakert), Vagharshapat (Ejmiatsin), Dvin, Bagaran, Shirakavan, Kars, Ani, Sis (located in Cilicia).
Location of the Yerevan City
Yerevan is located in the Ararat valley, along the River Hrazdan.
How old is Yerevan in Armenia?
Yerevan is now 2798 years old!
Yerevan (Erebuni) was founded in 782 B.C. by Armenian king Argishti I. But it has been Armenia’s administrative, industrial and cultural center only since 1918.
Yerevan Area and Population
Total area of today’s Yerevan is 223 km2 (86 sq mi), and the population number is more than 1 million people.
Districts of Yerevan
Yerevan main tourist attractions are typically concentrated in the central, mostly walk-able part of the city. It is Kentron (Center) administrative district that will provide you with lots of entertainment options, various shopping and dining spots.
But if you suddenly feel like leaving the center and traveling around, you should definitely know there are other districts in the city as well, namely:
| Ajapnyak
Arabkir Avan Davtashen Erebuni Kanaker-Zeytun |
Kentron
Malatia-Sebastia Nork-Marash Nor Nork Nubarashen Shengavit |
Yerevan Climate
Yerevan is known for its hot and dry summers and snowy, cold winters, as well as small precipitation. This can be explained by the location of the city.
Yerevan is distant from oceans and seas and is surrounded by mountains.
During summertime, the temperature in the capital of Armenia can reach up to +40 °C (104 °F). In winter the lowest freezing temperature can be -15 °C (5 °F).
How to Get to Yerevan? (Important for tourism!)
You can travel to Yerevan by the Zvartnots International Airport, which is the main gait to the country and the primary airport of Armenia.
Located 12 km west of Yerevan center, the airport is totally adapted to international norms and has free Wi-Fi access in the departure of terminal. It is also very easy to get to the city from the airport (buses, taxi cars).
Currently, there are no national airlines operating in Armenia.
There are various carriers flying to Yerevan and connecting it to all major Western and Asian cities: Aeroflot AirFrance, Austrian Airlines, Czech Airlines, Air Arabia, Iran Air, Lufthansa, and others.
You can also consider getting to Yerevan by using travel options on land via neighboring countries of Armenia, Georgia and Iran. That means there are actively operating buses, trains, cars routes or taxi services from that countries to Yerevan, Armenia.
You should expect, though, it will take you some 5-10 hours to get to Yerevan, including border formalities, and depending which part of Georgia or Iran you travel from.
Getting around in Yerevan (if you travel to Yerevan)
Yerevan center is very easy and compact in terms of getting around by foot. It is important to note, that recently there have been penalties imposed for crossing the roads in non-designated areas. So, if the police notices you jaywalking, you will have to pay a fine.
If you have to go some long distances, of course, it is much better and also cheaper to take a bus, trolleybus or minibus (marshrutka) routes of which actively operate through the city (buses, minibuses cost 100 AMD- around 25 cents, trolleybuses – 50 AMD). There are many taxi services in all parts of the city, and they are comparatively cheap -600 AMD (around 1.5 USD) for the first 4 km and then 100 AMD for each coming km.
Another quick and cheap way to travel around the city center is the underground (Metro), which also costs 100 AMD.
What to do and what to see in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia?
Things to see in Yerevan #1: Republic Square Yerevan
Any tourist, who visits Armenia, should, by all means, see the Republic Square in Yerevan. It is considered to be one of the main symbols of the capital city and the most popular “must see” place for foreigners.
The Republic Square has very unique architecture: it is a wonderful combination of Armenian traditional architecture elements with modern ones. The Square is oval shaped and resembles an Armenian carpet, if you look at it from above.
The Square is surrounded by governmental and non-governmental various significant buildings that are also worth to be seen and highly appreciated. Dancing and singing fountains, the National Gallery and the History Museum, nearby parks, amazing cafes is what makes the Republic square a significantly special place to visit.
Things to see in Yerevan #2: Matenadaran
If you are a lover or just interested in ancient illuminated manuscripts, then Matenadaran is the very place for you to visit in Yerevan!
Matenadaran is a repository of ancient manuscripts, as well as a research institute and museum in Armenia.
There are 17 000 manuscripts and 30 000 historical documents under the possession of Matenadaran, covering a wide range of subjects, such as history, geography, literature, grammar, philosophy, art, medicine, and even cosmography both in Armenian and in many other languages.
Matenadaran is a house to the largest collection of Armenian manuscripts and we can even say, that it is one of the largest collections of such kind in the world. So, this makes Matenadaran a wonderful tourism attraction what should be visited.
Things to see in Yerevan #3: The Opera House
Do you like classical music, ballet or opera? The Opera House is definitely a place for you!
This is an impressively beautiful building right in the heart of Yerevan city, which consists of two concert halls. The entrance to the first concert hall is from the Freedom square: it houses Alexander Spendiaryan Opera and Ballet National Theatre. The second one, Khachaturian Concert Hall, can be entered from the street.
The Opera has a quite rich repertoire. Since the day of its foundation the Armenian National Opera and Ballet Theatre has performed hundreds of operas and ballets by Armenian, Western and Russian classics in more than twenty countries of the world.
Nowadays, the Opera quite often hosts some foreign celebrities and classical music modern activists who are on guest tours.
Things to see in Yerevan #4: St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral
The Cathedral of St. Grigor Lusavorich or Gregory the Illuminator is comparatively a newly founded one. Its construction was completed in 2001. The church was built to commemorate the 1700th anniversary of Armenia as officially the first Christian nation.
What makes this cathedral special is that the holy relics of St. Grigor were returned to the Armenian Apostolic Church by the Vatican in 2001, which were placed in this cathedral.
The building of the cathedral is immensely huge and compared to all the traditional churches, both in Yerevan and Armenia. St. Lusavorich Cathedral is full of lights. The main building does not include candle stands, as the candle-house is presented separately in the nearby part of the main complex.
There is an amusement park, Luna Park, next to the cathedral, where you can enjoy your time as well.
Things to see in Yerevan #5: The City Museum of Yerevan
Anyone, who is interested in the ancient and modern history of the capital city of Armenia, must visit and see the City Museum of Yerevan!
The building of the Museum is of a special interest: it represents a unique architectural complex with the building of Yerevan Municipality.
There are almost 87000 exhibits presented in the Yerevan City History Museum that vividly tell the city’s story of the past.
With help of ancient maps and city pictures, you will have the chance to get informed about everything related to Yerevan in this museum: starting from the Paleolithic settlements of 50 000 years ago up to the present days.
Today the museum is a place of interest for all the visitors, regardless of their age and occupation.
You can also follow the mass media highlights in order to be informed about the museum’s everyday life, as well as events, dedicated to Yerevan city.
Below are provided individual articles related to Yerevan, Armenia.
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