The Wings of Tatev holds a Guinness World Record as the world's longest non-stop double-track reversible cable car, stretching 5.7 kilometres from the village of Old Halidzor down in the gorge to Tatev village on the plateau above the monastery. The ride takes about twelve minutes and crosses country that would take the better part of an hour on the winding road — deep ravines, forest, and the broad Vorotan gorge spread out below the gondola windows. On a clear day you can see far into the ranges on the Iranian border.
The cable car opened in 2010 and transformed access to Tatev, which had been a long detour on a rough road. It runs daily, though it closes in winter during severe weather conditions and periodically for maintenance — check locally before making it the centrepiece of your day. Tickets are purchased at the lower station in Old Halidzor. The upper station drops you a short walk from the monastery gates, with a small cafe and a viewpoint over the gorge that is worth a few minutes even if you have just spent twelve of them in the air above it.
For those who prefer to arrive overland, the road from Goris to Tatev village is paved and passable in a regular car. This gives a very different experience of the gorge — slower, closer, and with opportunities to stop along the way. The cable car, though, is one of the more thrilling ways to arrive at a monastery anywhere in the world, and the bird's-eye view of the gorge is something the road cannot replicate.