The Caucasus packs in a tremendous miscellany
of scenery, history, and culture.
Our trip to this superb, continent-spanning
region takes us to its core, the three nations
of Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan, from
Europe into Asia and beyond.
We begin in Baku, Azerbaijan, whose medieval heart bears witness to its rich Middle Eastern heritage. We’ll roam its caravanserais, narrow, high-walled alleys, and tiny mosques and catch evidence of its trading links to the Silk Road. We wend our way toward Georgia, stopping at the lovely architectural preserve of Sheki, famed for its arts and crafts. Passing over the border and into Telavi, center of Kakheti Province and famous for its wines, we continue to Tbilisi for a day of meandering through its streets of mosques, synagogues, and churches, sampling the local cuisine to the accompaniment of lively Georgian folk music and entertained by its dancers, artists, and craftspeople. (“There is only one rank in Georgia,” John Foster Fraser wrote, “and that is prince.”) Driving north along the famed Georgian Military Highway (in the foot-, or wheel-tracks, of Pushkin, Chekhov, and Tolstoy), visiting looming fortresses along the way, we reach Gudauri and enjoy a picnic lunch in the shade of snowy Mount Mkinvari, a 17,000-foot, inactive volcano. Onward to Gori (infamous as Stalin’s birthplace) and its nearby cave towns, and then back to Tbilisi. Now on to Yerevan, Armenia’s park-rich capital, with a stop at the great alpine lake of Sevan. And before flying home, we’ll make a final excursion to the old Khor Virap Monastery, from which we can gaze across the border at looming Mount Ararat in Turkey.
We begin in Baku, Azerbaijan, whose medieval heart bears witness to its rich Middle Eastern heritage. We’ll roam its caravanserais, narrow, high-walled alleys, and tiny mosques and catch evidence of its trading links to the Silk Road. We wend our way toward Georgia, stopping at the lovely architectural preserve of Sheki, famed for its arts and crafts. Passing over the border and into Telavi, center of Kakheti Province and famous for its wines, we continue to Tbilisi for a day of meandering through its streets of mosques, synagogues, and churches, sampling the local cuisine to the accompaniment of lively Georgian folk music and entertained by its dancers, artists, and craftspeople. (“There is only one rank in Georgia,” John Foster Fraser wrote, “and that is prince.”) Driving north along the famed Georgian Military Highway (in the foot-, or wheel-tracks, of Pushkin, Chekhov, and Tolstoy), visiting looming fortresses along the way, we reach Gudauri and enjoy a picnic lunch in the shade of snowy Mount Mkinvari, a 17,000-foot, inactive volcano. Onward to Gori (infamous as Stalin’s birthplace) and its nearby cave towns, and then back to Tbilisi. Now on to Yerevan, Armenia’s park-rich capital, with a stop at the great alpine lake of Sevan. And before flying home, we’ll make a final excursion to the old Khor Virap Monastery, from which we can gaze across the border at looming Mount Ararat in Turkey.
Days 1 & 2: USA to Baku, Azerbaijan •
Day 3: Baku •
Day 4: drive to Sheki via Shemakha •
Day 5: Sheki to Tbilisi •
Day 6: Tbilisi •
Day 7: Tbilisi to Gudauri •
Day 8: excursion to Kazbegi via Jvari Pass •
Day 9: Gudauri to Bakuriani via Gori •
Day 10: excursion to Vardzia •
Day 11: Bakuriani to Tbilisi •
Day 12: Tbilisi to Yerevan •
Day 13: Yerevan •
Day 14: excursion to Khor Virap and Echmiadzin •
Day 15: Yerevan to USA.
Trans-Caucasia: Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia
Trip Details
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15 DaysActivity Type:
Touring
Trip Price:
From $8495
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