Lake Sevan & Tsaghkadzor

1. 1
   Hotel in YerevanPick-up at your address at the chosen time09:00

   ≈ 65 min by car · 68 km

2. 2
   Sevanavank Monastery and lake viewpointSevanavank is an active monastery on a peninsula off the northwestern shore of Lake Sevan. Two small 9th-century churches of dark basalt stand on the hilltop, their drums topped with conical roofs; their construction is linked to Princess Mariam of the Bagratuni family. Until the 1950s this was an island: the peninsula appeared when the lake level was artificially lowered. A long staircase leads from the car park up to the churches, and the top offers a wide view of the lake and mountains.10:05–11:05

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   © BarevTrip

   Sevanavank is an active monastery on a peninsula off the northwestern shore of Lake Sevan. Two small 9th-century churches of dark basalt stand on the hilltop, their drums topped with conical roofs; their construction is linked to Princess Mariam of the Bagratuni family. Until the 1950s this was an island: the peninsula appeared when the lake level was artificially lowered. A long staircase leads from the car park up to the churches, and the top offers a wide view of the lake and mountains.

   Free entry

   on foot — the car stays in the same car park

3. 3
   Lakeside walk and fish lunch on requestSevan, the largest freshwater lake in the Caucasus, lies at about 1900 metres in Gegharkunik Province. An underwater sill divides it into Small Sevan and Big Sevan, and only one river, the Hrazdan, flows out of it. From 1933 its water was drained for irrigation and hydropower: the level fell by almost 20 metres, and by the 1950s the island with Sevanavank Monastery had joined the shore. At the foot of the peninsula there are pebble beaches and fish restaurants, and the lake with its shores forms Sevan National Park.11:05–11:50

   ≈ 30 min by car · 30 km

4. 4
   Tsaghkadzor, Kecharis MonasteryKecharis is a working monastery of the 11th to 13th centuries on the north-western edge of Tsaghkadzor. Three churches stand close together on one site, with a gavit, or narthex, adjoining the main one, and around them lies a cemetery with khachkars from the 11th to 17th centuries. The main church of Saint Gregory dates from the early 11th century, and Katoghike was built in 1203–1214. Some 120 metres to the west stands the small church of Surb Harutyun from 1220 with its own gavit.12:20–13:05

   ≈ 5 min by car · 2 km

5. 5
   Tsaghkadzor ropeway (ticket not included)The Tsaghkadzor Ropeway has been running since 1967. It is a chairlift on the eastern slope of Mount Teghenis: open chairs pass over forest and mountain meadows, and three lifts in a row climb from the lower station at about 1,970 metres to the upper one at 2,819 metres. From the top you look down on the Tsaghkadzor valley and, on a clear day, see Mount Ararat. In winter it serves a ski resort; in the warmer months people ride it for the view.13:10–14:10

   ≈ 60 min by car · 59 km

6. 6
   Hotel in YerevanReturn to the same or another address in the city≈ 15:30

Driving times assume no traffic and are based on OpenStreetMap as of November 11, 2026; the schedule includes another 20 min for parking, walking and breaks en route.