The most attractive of central Yerevan's older streets, running north from Republic Square to the Opera. Most of the surviving 19th-century buildings in the centre stand along it — pink and yellow tufa townhouses with carved wooden balconies, originally the houses of Russian-era merchants. Many were demolished in the Soviet period; what remains has been progressively gentrified into restaurants, hotels, and small museums.
Walk the length, then cut west along Tumanyan towards the Cascade. Side streets like Pushkin and Mkrtchyan are full of independent shops and cafes.