Armenia Tour Package from Abu Dhabi and Dubai

Group tours mean you share a minibus and guide with other travellers on a set route and start time. A private car means your own driver, so you leave when you are ready and stay longer where you like. For families with young children and groups of four or more, the private car often costs only a little more per person, because one vehicle is shared across everyone.

Prices follow the calendar. National Day, the December school break, New Year and Eid are the busiest weeks for flights to Yerevan, and fares rise early. Late spring and early autumn are usually quieter and better value. If your dates are flexible, look at the cheapest tour packages this month before you choose.

A package usually costs less than booking the same flight and hotel separately, and the transfers and day tours are already arranged when you land.

• Flight times: an afternoon arrival gives you an evening walk in Yerevan; a very early return flight saves a hotel night but makes the last day short
• Hotel location: a hotel near Republic Square or the Cascade means you walk to most restaurants
• Children's prices depend on age, the airline's child fare and the hotel's policy

1. 01

   Day 1: Arrive in Yerevan

   Pickup at Zvartnots airport and transfer to your hotel. Hotel check-in is usually from 14:00 or 15:00. In the evening, walk to Republic Square, where the fountains in front of the National Gallery are lit up after dark, then up to the Cascade, the giant stairway of terraces and sculptures with a view over the city.

2. 02

   Day 2: Yerevan city tour, Garni and Geghard

   A morning tour of Yerevan: Republic Square, the Cascade, the Mother Armenia statue and the Vernissage open-air market. After lunch, drive east to the Charents Arch, a viewpoint for Mount Ararat on a clear day, then to Garni, a Greco-Roman temple on a cliff above a gorge. Continue to Geghard, a 13th-century monastery partly carved into the rock and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Back in Yerevan for dinner.

3. 03

   Day 3: Lake Sevan and Dilijan

   Head north-east to Lake Sevan. Few lakes on earth sit this high and spread this wide. Climb the steps to Sevanavank Monastery on the peninsula for the view over the water. Continue through the forests to Dilijan, often called the Switzerland of Armenia, for Sharambeyan Street, the old craftsmen's quarter, and a walk by Lake Parz if time allows. Return to Yerevan.

4. 04

   Day 4: Khor Virap and a free afternoon

   A morning trip south to Khor Virap Monastery, which sits close to the Turkish border with Mount Ararat rising behind it. This is the classic Ararat view, clearest in the early morning. Back in Yerevan by lunchtime for shopping, a museum or a slow last dinner.

5. 05

   Day 5: Fly home

   After breakfast, leave your room (most hotels want it back by 11:00 or 12:00). Your driver then runs you out to the airport, and you fly home to Abu Dhabi or Dubai.

For three nights, we combine the city tour with Garni and Geghard on day 2, do Lake Sevan on day 3 and fly home on day 4. For five nights, we add Tsaghkadzor or a day at Mount Aragats and the Armenian Alphabet Monument. Older travellers and families with small children often prefer to split day 2 in two, with the city tour on one day and Garni and Geghard on the next.

Free time in Yerevan? Good ways to fill it: the History Museum of Armenia on Republic Square, the Matenadaran manuscript museum, the Armenian Genocide Memorial at Tsitsernakaberd, the Opera House area for cafes, and the Dalma Garden and Yerevan malls for shopping. Most are a short taxi ride from the centre.

Getting around Yerevan on your own is easy.

Armenia's entry rules depend on your nationality. Many UAE residents can enter visa-free or get a visa on arrival at Zvartnots airport, and others apply for an Armenia e-visa before they fly. The rules change from time to time, so we check every passport in your group before we book flights.

Apply at least two weeks before travel, more before the December break.

Armenia is one of several easy short trips for many passports. For the full list, see our guide to visa-free countries for UAE residents.

Winter is the reason many UAE families go. Non-skiers can ride the ropeway, sledge and walk in the snow. Yerevan itself is cold and dry in winter, and the Christmas and New Year lights on Republic Square are a good evening out.

Spring and autumn are the easiest seasons for sightseeing. Days are mild, the roads to Garni, Geghard and Lake Sevan are easy, and Mount Ararat is often clear in the morning. Summer is hot in Yerevan, often above 35 degrees, but Lake Sevan and Dilijan stay cooler, so plan the outdoor days around them.

Pack for the month. In winter: a warm waterproof jacket, gloves, a hat and boots with grip. In spring and autumn: layers and a light jacket for the evenings. In summer: light clothes, sun cream, and a fleece for Sevan. All year: comfortable walking shoes for monastery steps and a European two-pin power adapter.