Odzun Monastery, Armenia

Armenia is so stuffed with beautiful churches and monasteries, there’s a high risk of suffering from fresco ennui after just a few days here. So rather than spending your time here dashing from church to church, we suggest you choose a handful to visit. Sadly, some of the most iconic of Armenia’s monasteries, such as Sevanavank, Geghard and Haghpats, have become overly-thronged in recent years, and - as beautiful as they are - you’re likely to be sharing them with a dozen coachloads of selfie-taking, drone-flying visitors. Having said that, Geghard, if you time your visit right and avoid the crowds, is spectacular, and wandering through its black volcanic halls an experience like no other.

Rather than visiting Hagpats or nearby Sanahin, two heavily-touristed sites on the road between Tbilisi and Yerevan, we prefer to drive a few miles off the beaten track to the lonely remains of Odzun, a 6th century church perched high above the Debed gorge.

Legend has it that Christ’s swaddling clothes were brought to this site by Thomas the Apostle in the 1st century and buried under the altar of the original church, later destroyed by an earthquake. The current church, a classic Armenian basilica, is typically plain inside, with just a simple fresco of the Virgin and child remaining. But its isolation and location make it well worth a visit.

From Odzun it’s a lovely, and usually deserted, 8 km walk to Kobayr, a 12th century church, the path winding high above the Debed gorge. This is a particularly lovely walk to do in April or May, when everything is at its greenest, the hills and gorge thick with wild flowers.

To visit Odzun, or any of Armenia’s other churches and monasteries, on a tailor-made tour, contact us here.