Shopping
Yerevan has every type of retail outlet imaginable, from expensive shops on Northern Avenue selling internationally known designer brands, to that part of Vernissage specialising in secondhand nuts and bolts. There is even a subterranean department store. For cheap clothes try the Ararat covered clothing market (sometimes marked on maps as 'Rosia'), opposite the foot of the steps to the cathedral. The street market to the south of Rosia sells most things from budgerigars to coffee beans and is useful for any small item you may have forgotten to pack. For fresh food shopping (and dried fruits) it is worth visiting the covered markets on Mesrop Mashtots Avenue and the Haikakan market on Khorenatsi Street off Tigran Mets Avenue about 500m south of the cathedral. Those with a sweet tooth may wish to patronise the Grand Candy store and pastry shops near the Matenadaran. There are also plenty of vendors of ice cream on Yerevan's streets.
Craft items are best bought at Vernissage if in Yerevan at the weekend. Similar items, although a much smaller range, can be found on the first floor of Disc Planet (1/3 Abovian St).
Made in Armenia Direct (www.madeinarrneniadirect.com) has outlets in Marriott Armenia and Congress hotels. Another good souvenir shop is Salt Sack (3/1 Abovian St). One of Yerevan's biggest bookshops is Noah's Ark at Republic Square. It has a good selection of books in English but note that some titles available at, for example, the cathedral bookshop at Ejmiatsin, are unavailable here. Artbridge bookshop/cafe (20 Abovian St; www.artbridge.am; 08.30-midnight) specialises in foreign-language publications and has a wide selection of English-language books on Armenia. It also sells handmade crafts and the cafe does a very good cafe glace. Bookworld (20 Mesrop Mashtots Av) is a large bookshop mostly stocking books in Armenian and Russian but there is an English section. Secondhand books are to be found displayed in the pedestrian underpass at the junction of Abovian and Moscovian streets, in a shop at the top of Mesrop Mashtots Avenue and at Vernissage.
Brandy can be bought from numerous outlets in markets and supermarkets but specialist dealers are to be found at 14 Abovian St, 45 Mesrop Mashtots Avenue, 12 Amirian Street and at Yerevan brandy distillery.
Small supermarket chains have arisen in recent years and many branches are open 24 hours. They are well stocked and in addition have 24-hour currency exchange kiosks.
If you have any questions about travel to Armenia (visa, hotels, guide services, transportation), please feel free to contact us at any time and we will gladly answer your questions.
