Ara

Guide: Ara was very personable. His standard of English was excellent. He was well-informed, being an archeologist and historian by training, and obviously knew the country well and was evidently an experienced guide. He was able to answer all our questions about history, culture and everyday life in Armenia.

Driver: Ara was our driver too. It sometimes made it a bit difficult to ask him about things while he was concentrating on negotiating windy mountain roads or driving in think fog! We realise this keeps the cost down but it does mean he was having to work doubly hard which must have been tiring.

Car: The car wasn’t really quite big or comfortable enough for such a road trip. We, fortunately, only had a small amount of luggage, but had anyone had more, it would have been impossible to store it all out of sight. Also being a right-hand drive it meant Ara constantly had difficulties seeing what was coming when overtaking.

Hotels: Cascade, Yerevan: Lovely, friendly staff, especially the receptionists. Excellent location, comfortable rooms. Good laundry service. Breakfast good but terrible coffee!

Khachik B&B, Goris: Friendly reception from the owner. Rooms basic but very clean and comfortable. Good breakfast (but again lacking decent coffee). We didn’t see much of the surroundings.

Heghnar Hotel, Stepanakert: Rather ordinary, trying to be grander than it really was. But clean and comfortable enough. Breakfast average (can’t really remember it). Restaurant wasn’t open in evening. Without a car it would have been difficult.

Noyland, Sevan Lake: Clean and comfortable enough but lacking in character and felt a bit desolate out of season (it was only mid September). Breakfast average.

What did you like best in your trip? Beautiful scenery, visits to markets, trying local food. Wine tasting in Ijevan.

What didn’t you like in the trip? Too much time on the road. Not enough time in places such as Dilijan. Too many monasteries: before the last day we had already seen the most spectacular ones and would have preferred to have seen more of Dilijan (where we wanted to stay). we only had time for a quick lunch an a walk down one road.

In view of the fact that we were being driven to Tbilisi the next day, it would have been better for our tour to end in Dilijan, stay there the night, then we could have taken a car from there to Tbilisi. We ended up driving all the way back to Yerevan for one night at the end of tour, only to retrace our steps as far as Ijevan the next morning.

What would you add to your trip? Would have liked to have some more local crafts and artisans.

Would you recommend our company to your friends? Definitely. The pre-trip service by Lusine was excellent.

Dear Lusine,

I was sorry that we did not meet you in Yerevan last week. We wanted to feed back on our trip to Armenia. We have no complaints and all comments are positive;

1. Accommodation at all locations was acceptable and the home cooked meals at the three guest houses were delicious and to a high standard.

2. The itinerary was well set out and achievable for moderate ability hikers like us.

3. Ara Petrosyan, our guide spoke very good English, gave us excellent information about the history of Armenia and the monasteries we visited. He was always thoughtful about our needs and polite and pleasant at all times. He used his own vehicle to drive us during our 7-day trip and was at all times, a safe and competent driver. He played an important role in making our first trip to Armenia enjoyable and interesting.

Dear Lusine,

Gary Bengier has asked me to say a few words about our tour. I will gladly post some praise and observations on the platforms you suggest. As I write this I am listening to your compatriot, Lusine Zakaryan as she sings "Aravot Luso." Her music sustained me during my last few days in Armenia. Her voice seems to capture the archaic poignancy that we experienced everywhere. Our guide, Ara, thoroughly informed us about the spiritual and historical traditions that support and have sustained Armenian culture. Zakaryan transfers that light, the "luso" in her song from the window behind the altar to her audience, in this case to me and my friends, Gary, Ed, Don and Paul. In the same spirit I express our gratitude to you and your group, most especially to Ara, that most excellent guide.

Jack Darrow