Saga Holidays heads for Georgia and Armenia

Saga Holidays has added an escorted tour of Georgia and Armenia to its Central Asia programme following the success of tours to Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Its new tour to the former Soviet republics is aimed at adventure seeking customers and packs in 26 excursions in 13 nights.

Caucasus Calling, which has eight departures, takes in the Silk Road ancient trading route and includes a visit to Karahunge, where a 7,500-year-old stone circle is believed to be an ancient astronomical observatory.

Guests are also taken by 4×4 to Garni Pagan Temple and the Garni Gorge, where basalt columns carved by the river are known as ‘the Symphony of the Stones’, as well as a trip to Mount Ararat, where Noah’s Ark is said to have beached after the great flood.

The tour includes Georgia’s capital Tbilisi and Unesco-listed Haghpat Monastery in Armenia.

There is also a stop at Ararat Brandy Factory, which was visited by Winston Churchill, and the chance to listen to an acapella holy music concert in the Geghard Monastery, partly built in caves.

Guests will also stop at family homes for lunch, visit Armenia’s capital, Yerevan, and its Dilijan spa and resort, in the Tavoush region, known as ‘Armenian Switzerland’.

Saga’s Stuart Douglas-Lee said: “The Caucasus has a superb mix of all of the ingredients that make for a cultural touring holiday that is perfect for Saga guests, including vibrant capitals , rich and mixed history , fabulous monuments and architecture , a varied and great cuisine and the origins of wine… and as shown in the Channel 4 series from Russia to Iran, it also has stupendous mountains, rivers and lakes.

“Increasingly our guests are looking for new and exciting destinations that give them a new or different experience. Something beyond the ‘norm’, and as ever at Saga we are ahead of the curve in endeavouring to help them keep finding that hidden gem that others may not have seen.”

The 13-night tour including meals and flights from Gatwick on April 8, 2018, costs £1,999.