City guides
Yerevan
Yerevan is a compact, friendly capital built of pink stone, with wide avenues, open-air cafes and Mount Ararat on the skyline on clear days. It is close to Iran by road, cheap, safe and easy for families, and most sights are a short walk or taxi ride apart.
Good for
- Families
- Older travellers
- Road trips from Iran
- History and museums
- Short breaks
A good length: 4 days
Spend two relaxed days in the centre, then take one or two day trips to Garni and Geghard, Lake Sevan or Khor Virap, returning to the city each evening.
Best months
April, May, June, September, October
Per person per day
- Budget
- US$40
- Mid-range
- US$85
- Comfort
- US$200
Per person per day: a bed (guesthouse, mid-range hotel or top hotel), three meals, app taxis and one museum or day trip share. Nowruz and summer weekends cost more.
Where to stay and spend time
Republic Square and Kentron
Stay or visitThe main square, the history museum, the singing fountains and both airport buses are here, with flat streets and plenty of hotels.
For: First-timers, families, older travellers
Watch out: Rooms facing the main avenues can be noisy until late.
Open in mapNorthern Avenue and the Opera
Stay or visitA car-free avenue of shops and cafes runs to the Opera House, surrounded by parks and Swan Lake, which turns into an ice rink in winter.
For: Couples, shoppers, people who like evening walks
Watch out: Cafes around the Opera charge more than places one street away.
Open in mapCascade and Kond
Stay or visitThe giant Cascade staircase with its sculptures and city view sits next to Kond, one of the oldest neighbourhoods, with narrow lanes and old houses.
For: Couples, culture lovers, photographers
Watch out: Kond is hilly and uneven, and some streets around the Cascade climb steeply.
Open in mapArabkir
Good baseA calm, green residential district just north of the Cascade with supermarkets, parks and lower apartment prices.
For: Families wanting apartments, longer stays
Watch out: Getting to the centre on foot means a climb back up; most people use short taxi rides.
Open in mapKomitas Avenue
Good baseA busy local avenue with shops, bakeries and good-value hotels; the Iranian embassy is at the corner of Budaghyan Street.
For: Budget travellers, people visiting the Iranian embassy
Watch out: It is a few kilometres from the sights, so plan on taxis.
Open in map
Places worth your time
- SightsFree
Republic Square and singing fountains
Republic Square and Kentron · 1 hour
An oval square of pink and yellow stone buildings. In the warm months the fountains dance to music in the evening, a favourite with families.
- Museums
History Museum of Armenia
Republic Square and Kentron · 1 to 2 hours
From Bronze Age finds to the medieval kingdoms, including the world's oldest known leather shoe. A good start to understand the country.
- ViewsFree
Cascade Complex
Cascade and Kond · 1 to 2 hours
A huge white stairway with gardens, modern sculptures and a wide view of the city and Ararat. Older visitors can ride the indoor escalators to the top.
- Museums
Matenadaran
Top of Mashtots Avenue · 1 to 2 hours
A museum of ancient manuscripts, including Persian and Arabic works, in a grand building at the end of Mashtots Avenue. Open Tuesday to Saturday.
- SightsFree
Blue Mosque
Mashtots Avenue, Kentron · 30 minutes to 1 hour
An 18th century mosque with a tiled dome and a quiet garden courtyard, the only working mosque in the city. It also hosts an Iranian cultural centre.
- MarketsFree
GUM Market
Mashtots Avenue, Kentron · 1 hour
A covered market for dried fruit, nuts, sujukh (fruit and walnut sweets), spices and cheese. Taste before you buy and compare a few stalls.
- ShoppingFree
Vernissage market
Republic Square and Kentron · 1 to 2 hours
An open-air market of carpets, woodwork, jewellery, paintings and souvenirs. Fullest at weekends; prices are open to bargaining.
- SightsFree
Tsitsernakaberd Memorial
West of the centre · 1 to 2 hours
The national memorial to the victims of 1915, with an eternal flame and a museum on a hill above the city. A quiet, serious place; go by taxi.
- With childrenFree
Victory Park and Mother Armenia
Above the Cascade · 2 hours
A large hilltop park under the huge Mother Armenia statue, with an old-style amusement park, a small lake and city views.
- Museums
Erebuni Fortress
South-east Yerevan · 1 to 2 hours
The 2,800 year old Urartian citadel where the city began, with a museum below and wall paintings on the hilltop.
- Day trips
Garni Temple and Geghard
Kotayk, about 30 km east · Half a day
A Greek-style temple on a gorge edge, the basalt columns of the Symphony of Stones below, and Geghard monastery carved into the rock nearby. Easiest as a half-day tour or taxi.
- Day tripsFree
Lake Sevan
About 65 km north-east · Half a day to a full day
A big blue mountain lake with the Sevanavank churches on a peninsula and fried lake fish in roadside restaurants. It is cool even in summer, so bring a jacket.
- ViewsFree
Khor Virap
Ararat plain, about 45 km south · Half a day
A hilltop monastery with the closest view of Mount Ararat. Go early on a clear morning, before haze covers the mountain.
Getting around
From the airport
Bus N201 (Elitebus)about 30 min
Express bus to the city centre every 30 minutes from 7:00 to 22:00. Pay the driver in cash in Armenian dram, so change a little money at the airport first.
about 300 dram per person (2026)
Bus N100about 30 min
Bus to the city centre every 30 minutes by day and hourly at night. Tap a Visa or Mastercard on board, or buy a QR ticket at the TelCell machines in the arrivals or departures hall.
about 500 dram per person (2026)
Taxi app (Yandex Go or GG)about 20 min
Order in the app outside the terminal and pay the driver in cash. Ignore drivers who offer rides inside the hall; they ask several times the app price.
about 3,000 to 4,500 dram (2026)
In the city
Transport card for buses and metro
Since 2025 buses, trolleybuses and the metro take no cash. Tap a contactless Visa or Mastercard at the reader, or get a plastic transport card from the machines at metro stations and top it up with cash. A single ride is about 150 dram (2025).
Metro
A single line with about ten stations. Useful stops are Republic Square, Yeritasardakan and Marshal Baghramyan; for most other trips buses or taxis are quicker.
Taxi apps
Taxis are cheap and the easiest way around for families. Install both Yandex Go and GG, compare prices, and choose cash as payment.
Taxis and ride apps
Yandex Go and GG are the main apps. Most rides in the centre cost little, and you can pay the driver in cash. Street taxis at the airport and tourist spots often overcharge, so agree a price first or use an app.
On foot
The centre is small and mostly flat, with wide pavements and many parks, so walking is easy for families and older people. The streets rise towards the Cascade, Victory Park and Kond; take a taxi up and walk down.
Food
Halal food: Armenian food uses a lot of pork, especially in khorovats (barbecue), so ask for lamb, beef or chicken. Halal food is easiest at Persian, Lebanese and Syrian restaurants in the centre.
Persian food and community: Yerevan has an old Iranian-Armenian community and many Iranian visitors, so Persian restaurants and Persian-speaking staff are found in the centre, around Tumanyan Street and Mashtots Avenue. The Blue Mosque's Iranian cultural centre is a familiar meeting point.
- Try lavash baked in a tonir oven, dolma, ghapama (stuffed pumpkin) in autumn and fresh apricots in summer.
- Vegetarian choices are good: herbs, cheese, eggplant salads and lentil soups are on most menus.
- Cafes on Northern Avenue and around the Opera are pricier than those a street or two away.
- A 10 percent service charge is often added to the bill in restaurants.
- Buy dried fruit, sujukh and gata (sweet bread) at the GUM Market as gifts to take home.
Money and phone
Cash: The currency is the Armenian dram (AMD). Bring clean US dollars or euros; exchange offices are on almost every street and in supermarkets, with rates posted and no commission. Change only a little at the airport.
Cards: Iranian bank cards do not work in Armenia. Pay for everything in cash and keep a reserve. A Visa or Mastercard issued outside Iran, for example by a relative abroad, works almost everywhere, including buses and the metro.
SIM and internet: Viva, Team and Ucom all have counters in the arrivals area at Zvartnots and shops in town. Bring your passport; tourist packages start at about 2,500 dram for 15 days (2026).
What travellers say
Advice that travellers from many countries repeat, chosen for Iranian visitors.
- Use Yandex Go or GG instead of street taxis; install both in case one app is not working.
- Mornings are best for seeing Ararat; by afternoon haze often hides it.
- July and August are hot and dry in the city; plan day trips to cooler Sevan in the heat.
- The Vernissage is liveliest at weekends.
- The Matenadaran is closed on Sundays and Mondays, and many other museums close on Mondays.
- Carry change for small shops; large notes can be hard to break in the morning.
- Tap water in Yerevan comes from mountain springs and the city's drinking fountains are widely used by locals.
- Book a day tour that combines Garni, Geghard and Lake Sevan if you travel with older people.
For Iranian travellers
- For entry rules for Iranian passports, see the Armenia visa page on this site.
- Many Iranians come by road through the Nordooz and Agarak border. Meghri is the nearest town, about 10 km away, and Yerevan is about 370 km of mountain road, usually 7 to 8 hours with stops.
- Buses also run from Tehran and Tabriz to Yerevan; with the border crossing it is a long trip, often through the night. If you cross on your own, shared and private taxis wait on the Armenian side; agree the full price to Yerevan before you set off.
- In winter, snow can close or slow the mountain passes between Meghri and Yerevan; leave early and avoid driving at night.
- Nowruz is the peak season for Iranian visitors; rent and hotel prices rise, so book weeks ahead.
- The Iranian embassy is at 1 Budaghyan Street, at Komitas Avenue.
- Iranian cards do not work; bring enough dollars or euros for the whole trip.
Stay safe
- Emergency number: 112 (911 also works).
- Yerevan is one of the safer capitals in the region; ordinary care with bags in crowds is enough.
- Airport and street taxi drivers may overcharge visitors; use an app or agree the fare first.
- Traffic is fast and drivers do not always stop at crossings; cross at lights with children.
- Mountain roads to and from the Iran border are narrow with sharp bends; avoid them after dark.
Checked 7 November 2026