Echmiadzin — officially Vagharshapat, the country's fourth-largest city — is the spiritual capital of Armenia. The seat of the Supreme Catholicos sits here, and the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin has been the headquarters of the Armenian Apostolic Church for more than seventeen centuries.
The main draw is the trio of seventh-century churches included on the UNESCO World Heritage list: the Etchmiadzin Cathedral itself, claimed as the oldest cathedral in the world; the Saint Hripsime Church, an architectural masterpiece on the eastern edge of town; and the Saint Gayane Church, quieter and equally elegant. The cathedral treasury contains an extraordinary collection of relics — including a fragment said to be from Noah's Ark and the Holy Lance.
Echmiadzin is just 30 kilometres from Yerevan and easy to see on a day trip, combined with the Zvartnots Cathedral ruins nearby. Minibuses leave throughout the day; a taxi from Yerevan is cheap. Allow at least half a day to do the churches justice.