Things to do in Dilijan
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Dilijan
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best joint window: full green forest, waterfalls running and ideal walking temperatures.
Peak season: everything open and Sevan swimmable, with top prices and weekend crowds.
Early September brings the Arts and Crafts Festival and the start of autumn colour.
Mid October is the foliage sweet spot in Dilijan National Park, with mushroom season in kitchens.
Quiet season: cold, short days, some venues closed and no skiing in Dilijan itself.
Worst for trails: thaw, mud and unstable weather before the May green up.
What's on
- Arts and Crafts Festival Dilijan Usually early September
Open air festival of Armenian crafts with makers demonstrating and selling in the old town.
- Vardavar summer, usually July, date varies by year
Armenia's water festival, celebrated with good humoured water throwing in towns including Dilijan.
- Armenian Christmas 6 January
Marked in Dilijan's churches in the quietest week of the town's year.
Best things to do in Dilijan
Haghartsin Monastery
Medieval monastery in deep forest, the essential first monastery visit in Dilijan.
Goshavank Monastery
Medieval university monastery in Gosh village, famous for its needle carved khachkar.
Old Dilijan Complex
Restored 19th century street with working craft workshops, bakery and period interiors.
Dilijan Local Lore Museum and Art Gallery
Small museum with a surprisingly strong art collection including Aivazovsky originals.
Lake Parz
Small clear forest lake with a loop walk, boats, a zipline and shore cafes.
Matosavank Monastery
Ivy grown 13th century forest monastery reached by a quiet walk from town.
Jukhtak Vank
Pair of small forest churches in a clearing, the heart of the best short hike in town.
Monument to the Heroes of the Film Mimino
Beloved Mimino film fountain where visitors rub a nose for luck and fill a bottle.
Where to stay in Dilijan
Old Town and Sharambeyan Street
first trip, best all round base
Walk to workshops, top restaurants and the Jukhtakvank trail from your door.
Central Dilijan
transport, value and short stays
Flatter streets, bus arrivals, ATMs and several top rated mid range hotels.
Forest outskirts, Kamo Street and Hovk road
resorts, families and drivers
Pools, grounds, parking and quiet, at the cost of a taxi for every town dinner.
Think twice about
- Highway listings south of the Dilijan tunnel toward Lake Sevan
Marketed as Dilijan but often 8 to 20 km out on a fast road with no pavement and nothing to walk to.
- Far eastern sprawl past UWC Dilijan toward Teghut
Pleasant villages sold at Dilijan prices, an inconvenient drive from every restaurant and trailhead.
Best restaurants in Dilijan
Kchuch Restaurant
Dilijan's most ambitious kitchen, modern Armenian cooking served in clay pots.
Haykanoush
Heritage dining room serving traditional dishes, with a strong vegetarian range.
Papanino House
Garden house restaurant with large portions, good wine guidance and consistent scores.
Ker U Sus Dilijan
Big local family restaurant for Armenian and Georgian standards, khinkali and barbecue.
Cafe #2
Bright social enterprise cafe by the lake for coffee, pancakes and cakes.
Toon Armeni Restaurant
Family kitchen at the guesthouse, serving home style Armenian food on an orchard terrace.
DiliJazz Restaurant
Hotel restaurant with the town's highest small sample score and warm service.
CEMI Cafe by Apicius Armenia
Italian cafe restaurant linked to a culinary school, the credible non Armenian dinner.
Outdoor things to do in Dilijan
Transcaucasian Trail
Waymarked forest trail linking Parz Lake, Gosh village and Goshavank in one walk.
Hidden Waterfall Trail
Short trail from Haghartsin Monastery to a gorge waterfall where people swim in summer.
Mount Dimats
The big Tavush viewpoint, reached by jeep track and a summit hike with a local guide.
Yell Extreme Park
Five canyon ziplines plus rope park, via ferrata, climbing and riding near Yenokavan.
Lastiver Waterfall
Steep gorge hike to waterfall pools and refuge caves below Yenokavan, with summer swimming.
Sevanavank Monastery
Dark stone churches on a peninsula above Lake Sevan, the classic day trip from Dilijan.
Apaga Resort
Canyon country base for horse riding and off road tours above the Yenokavan gorge.
Dilijan National Park
Forest roads and singletrack for rented or guided mountain bike rides in the park.
Best hotels in Dilijan
Best Western Plus Paradise Hotel Dilijan
Large renovated resort with pools and spa, the full facility luxury stay in Dilijan.
Dili Town Resort and Spa
Five star badged spa resort close to the centre, popular with affluent domestic guests.
Tufenkian Old Dilijan Complex
Heritage hotel inside the restored old street, the character luxury stay in town.
Casanova Inn - Boutique Hotel
Top scoring boutique inn with a plunge pool and rooms rated above their price.
Ecokayan Dilijan Resort Hotel
Wooden cottages and rooms in forest above a stream, with trails from the door.
DiliJazz Hotel & Restaurant
Small riverside hotel with a destination restaurant and notably personal service.
Hover Boutique Hotel and Restaurant
Newer boutique hotel with restaurant and garden space on the Andranik side of town.
Toon Armeni Guest House
Restored traditional house with orchard terrace and home cooking above the old town.
Is Dilijan expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | AMD 20,000 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | AMD 50,000 a person |
| Splurge | AMD 120,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Mount Dimats: a few days ahead
- Yell Extreme Park: a few days ahead
- Apaga Resort: a few days ahead
- Dilijan National Park: a few days ahead
- Best Western Plus Paradise Hotel Dilijan: weeks ahead
- Dili Town Resort and Spa: weeks ahead
- Tufenkian Old Dilijan Complex: weeks ahead
- Casanova Inn - Boutique Hotel: weeks ahead
- Small quality hotels fill on summer weekends, at the September crafts festival and in golden October.
- Book Kchuch and Haykanoush for weekend dinners in season, and Yell Extreme Park on summer weekends.
Is Dilijan safe?
- Steep streets and winter ice are the main injury risk in town.
- Drive mountain roads in daylight where possible and download offline maps for the park.
- Bears are present in small numbers in the national park and shepherd dogs guard villages.
- Emergency number 112.
Dilijan travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Sevan plus Dilijan coach day trips that leave no time for any trail.
- Parz Lake at summer weekend afternoons, crowded and commercial.
- Sharambeyan Street sold as a whole old town when it is one restored street.
- Peak August prices that break expectations set by cheaper Armenian towns.
Getting around Dilijan: public transport and more
- Walk the centre and use GG or Yandex Go taxis for monasteries, Parz Lake and Yenokavan.
- Minibuses and bookable Hayreniq minivans link Yerevan Northern Bus Station with Dilijan in about 1.5 hours.
- A hire car converts Dilijan from a negotiated base into a region you can roam.
Who Dilijan suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Dilijan your trip
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