Geghard Monastery Sights and Dates

Travel advice, as of October 2026: the UK FCDO advises against all travel within 5 km of Armenia’s eastern border with Azerbaijan and along the M16/H26 road between Ijevan and Noyemberyan. Geghard, in Kotayk Province, is outside both. Current wording is on gov.uk .

The monastery at a glance

Geghard Monastery is listed by UNESCO as the Monastery of Geghard and the Upper Azat Valley, inscribed in 2000 under reference 960 and given enhanced protection in 2018. It stands in Kotayk Province at the head of a narrow valley, about 37 to 40 km east of Yerevan. Entry is free, parking is about 200 AMD, and hours differ between guides, so plan on daylight and confirm on the day. It is an active monastery: cover shoulders and knees, keep your voice low and stay out of services.

Names and the Holy Lance

The name Geghardavank means Monastery of the Spear, and the older name Ayrivank means Monastery of the Cave. Tradition says the Holy Lance was brought here by the Apostle Thaddeus, though sources differ on which apostle, and that it was kept at the monastery for about 500 years. It was moved to Holy Etchmiadzin in the 18th century and is now shown in the Manoogian Treasury-House Museum at the Mother See in Vagharshapat. It returned to Geghard for a single liturgy in June 2011, for the first time in about 200 years, and went back to Etchmiadzin that evening. You cannot see the spear at Geghard.

Buildings in order of date

  1. Katoghike, the main church, 1215, built under the Zakarian brothers Zakare and Ivane.
  2. The gavit, the entrance hall, built between 1215 and 1225.
  3. The first rock-cut church, the Avazan, from the 1240s, with the spring.
  4. A second rock-cut church and the main zhamatun, 1283, with the Proshyan family chapel.
  5. The upper zhamatun, 1288, reached by an external stair. It is a rock-cut tomb chamber of Papak Proshyan and Ruzukana, known for its acoustics.

More than half of the monastery lies inside the cliff, and some churches are cut entirely from the rock. An inscription names Galdzak at the main complex.

Carvings to look for

In the Tomb of Prince Prosh, the Proshyan family coat of arms shows lions and an eagle holding a lamb. Outside, khachkars stand on and near the rock face, and a passage lined with them leads to a 13th-century burial vault cut from the rock.

Garni and the gorge

Garni is about 10 km down the valley, a 15 to 20 minute drive. Its 1st-century Hellenistic-style colonnaded temple is attributed to King Tiridates I and was rebuilt between 1969 and 1975 after the earthquake of 1679. Beside it stands a Roman-style bathhouse with a mosaic floor. A ticket for foreign visitors is about 1,500 AMD. Below the temple, the Symphony of the Stones is a wall of basalt columns, about 2 km away, with a ticket at about 300 AMD. Signs mark spots where columns fall, so follow them. The 11th-century Azat bridge in the gorge is free to walk.

Two roadside stops

Charents Arch, built in 1957 on the Yerevan to Garni road, is a viewpoint for Mount Ararat on clear days. Havuts Tar, a ruined walled monastery across the gorge from Garni, lies within the Khosrov State Reserve and is reached on foot.

Read more: walking tours in Geghard covers the routes on foot, and activities in Geghard covers the spring and the upper chamber.

Sources: Wikipedia on Geghard , Armenia Discovery and PanArmenian on the 2011 liturgy . Tours can be compared on GetYourGuide .