Geghard Monastery: entry, hours and how to get there from Yerevan

What it is and where it stands

Geghard is a monastic complex, part of it cut into the rock and part built of stone at its foot, with a wall around the whole. The monastery is active and belongs to the Armenian Apostolic Church.

© BarevTrip

History by date

The age of the community and the age of the buildings are different things. Tradition dates the founding of the monastery to the 4th century (more on it below), and the oldest surviving part is the chapel of 1177. The first monastery was devastated by the Arabs and then restored. All the churches and burial chambers belong to the 12th–13th centuries, and the main ensemble was completed within one century: from 1215 to 1288; the service buildings in the courtyard date from the 17th century.

© BarevTrip

In the 13th century Geghard was also a centre of book culture: it had a school, a scriptorium and a library, and the historians Mkhitar Ayrivanetsi and Simeon Ayrivanetsi wrote here.

What to see on site and nearby

The main entrance is the gate in the west wall; the small entrance is on the east. Below are the objects inside the wall.

Inside the rock-cut churches it is dark, with light falling through openings in the vaults, so midday is the best time for photographs.

© BarevTrip

Hours and tickets

The monastery works without a strict schedule: come in daylight.

If you are on a tour with several stops: entrance tickets are not included in the price of the trip — they are bought on site, separately; it is safer to have cash in drams. There is no ticket for Geghard itself, but there is one for Garni Temple and for the Symphony of Stones gorge.

How to get there from Yerevan and how long it takes

At rush hour on the way out of Yerevan, allow extra time for traffic.

On BarevTrip tours the visit to Geghard is planned as follows: in the trip Garni Temple & Geghard Monastery 60 minutes are allowed for the monastery, in Garni, Geghard & Lake Sevan and Charents Arch, Azat Reservoir, Garni Temple, Symphony of Stones, and Geghard Monastery 45 each. Pickup at your hotel or address at the time you choose, 09:00 by default; with that start you reach Geghard in the middle of the day. If you do not want to hurry in the rock-cut halls and want to walk to the cells behind the wall, the visit takes up to two hours. Waiting beyond what is included is paid at the rate known before booking, so tell the dispatcher before the trip if you want to stay longer.

The terms for changing the order of stops are on the tour page (Garni Temple & Geghard Monastery, frequently asked questions). The “Geghard first” option makes sense in summer: before 11:00 the monastery is noticeably quieter than when the tour coaches arrive. Garni Temple opens at 10:00, so you will make it there after the monastery.

Telling the history on site is the job of a guide: on tours there is the option of a qualified guide for a fixed surcharge shown on the trip page; the driver does not give a tour. The order of booking and payment is on the how it works page; the comparison with a group tour and with renting a car is in the answers “Is a private driver worth it in Armenia compared with a group tour or renting a car?” and “Garni and Geghard half-day trip from Yerevan: how long does it take and how to get there without a tour?”.

When to go

Tours with Geghard are open in the catalog all year round. What changes with the seasons:

In winter, with a 09:00 pickup you are still at Geghard in the middle of the day, while a late departure leaves little light: on 21 December it gets dark at 17:38. The Ministry of Emergency Situations publishes road conditions across the country daily. After heavy snow the descent into the Symphony of Stones gorge may be closed — that is the stop at Garni, not Geghard. On winter trips see the answer “Where can you go from Yerevan on a winter day trip by car?”.

What to combine in one day

The BarevTrip catalog has ten tours with the stop “Geghard Monastery”. The main three, price for the whole car:

Garni Temple is 10 km from Geghard and opens at 10:00; the ticket is bought on site. More in the article Garni Temple: hours, tickets and how to get there from Yerevan. What the other stops include and how the day fits together is in the answer “Garni and Geghard half-day trip from Yerevan: how long does it take and how to get there without a tour?”. For a long day there is Khor Virap, Azat, Garni & Geghard (8 hours: Khor Virap in the morning, then Garni and Geghard), Garni, Geghard & Lavash Baking with a lavash-baking masterclass (paid on site) and Garni, Geghard & Tsaghkadzor Ropeway with the ropeway, whose ticket is bought on site. Prices of these tours are on the trip pages. All the combinations are in the tour catalog and in the answer “Garni, Geghard and Khor Virap in one day from Yerevan: how to organise it and what does a private car cost?”; the choice between Garni and Khor Virap is in the article Garni or Khor Virap: what to choose with one day in Yerevan; the UNESCO sites across the country are in the article UNESCO sites in Armenia.

A sedan takes up to 3 passengers with 3 suitcases or 4 with 2; a minivan takes up to 7 passengers. A child seat is free on request and required for children under 7. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before pickup, and up to the same deadline you get one free reschedule. There are no prepayments. You pay by card via a link after confirmation (Visa, Mastercard) or in cash to the driver after the trip, in drams, dollars, euros or roubles. With children: “Day trips from Yerevan with kids: where to go and how to get there?”.

By tradition

The monastery is surrounded by legends; these are the ones told on site.

• According to tradition, the monastery was founded in the 4th century by Gregory the Illuminator, after Christianity became the state religion of Armenia. The oldest surviving part of the monastery is the chapel with inscriptions of 1177.
• The name Geghardavank is linked with the spear — by tradition, the one that pierced Christ; it was brought to Armenia by the Apostle Thaddeus. The spear was kept in the monastery for about 500 years, and in the second half of the 18th century it was moved to Etchmiadzin, where it remains. There is no spear at Geghard itself.
• The spring in the cave was venerated even before Christianity; the spring in the first rock-cut church flows today.
• Pilgrims tie ribbons to trees and place “wish” stones in hollows of the rock.

What to check on site

• Hours and services. There is no schedule, so come in daylight; during a liturgy or a wedding keep quiet and put the camera away.
• Parking and toilet. The toilet by the car park is paid and the parking may be paid: bring small cash in drams. The drinking-water tap is free.
• Photography. For a tripod or a drone, look at the signs in the chapels and ask on site.
• Where the driver waits. Usually in the car park at the monastery, 47–72 m from the gate; confirm the meeting point and time after the visit with the dispatcher before the trip.