Travelling south from Yerevan, the road leads through the plains of the Ararat valley to the magnificent monastery of Khor Virab, set against the backdrop of towering Mount Ararat. The monastery is a place of pilgrimage and is the site of the prison where St. Gregory the Illuminator (who brought Christianity to Armenia in 301 AD) was imprisoned. The town of Artashat nearby was the capital of Armenia from the 2nd to the 4th centuries AD and a major city on the Silk Road.

After a further hour's drive you enter a world of flowing rivers, caves, waterfalls and the snowy mountain peaks of Vayots Dzor province. Noravank monastery is situated on the hill of a twisting gorge among rose-coloured cliffs in an area of outstanding natural beauty. You can visit Khor Virab and Noravank on an easy day trip from Yerevan.