Alaverdi () is an industrial and mining town at the bottom of the Debed gorge in the northern part of the northern province of Lorri, quite close to the border with Georgia.  At the site of the present day Alaverdi a bridge was built in the 12th century and the settlement only arose in...

Alaverdi () is an industrial and mining town at the bottom of the Debed gorge in the northern part of the northern province of Lorri, quite close to the border with Georgia.  At the site of the present day Alaverdi a bridge was built in the 12th century and the settlement only arose in 18th century when copper ore was found.

The town with its typical Soviet style appearance is not very interesting to visitors but it's a convinient place to visit nearby monuments, e.g. Haghpat, Sanahin, Odzun etc.

There are a few 'marshrutka' connections with Yerevan each day, a ride costs approx. 3$ per person. The three hour journey starts at the Yeritasardakan subway station, goes via Ashtarak, Yezidi populated Aparan, breathtaking Spitak Pass, Vanadzor where it enters the Debed gorge and about an hour later arrives in Alaverdi.
There are some additional connections to Vanadzor and if you take an overnight Yerevan - Tbilisi train it'll stop in Alaverdi as well.

The only hotel in the area is the rundown (no maintance for decades) Debed in Sanahin. To get there take a cable car (50AMD per ride, irregular schedule) or the marshrutka driver might take you up the hill. Tufenkian is building something quite far from the town (direction Vanadzor) and when it's finished, it will be quite expensive.

Apart from some street stands the only restaurant seems to be Flora with huge 3$ meals. From the downtwn cross the river at a pedestrian hanging bridge, pass a small swiming pool (locals might invite you to drink a beer with them) turn left and enter the first house on your right. The staff seems to speak Armenian only (with very limited Russian or other languages) and according to my guidebook it could also arrange homestays. You can also ask the Debed hotel manager (actually she will offer it to you) to prepare some dinner at the similar cost and quality as at Flora.

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