Cultural Tours

We travelled through Armenia and Georgia for 19 days and used Cascade Travel for car service only. We enjoyed very much visiting these two beautiful countries with great history... read more backgrounds, excellent food and wine! Nune (the owner) was very diligent in switching drivers in Georgia and all went well and smoothly.
Drivers spoke English, Russian and were very nice and helpful.
We truly recommend Cascade Travel for these countries and you can also have other travel arrangements with them.

19 Day tour of Georgia and Armenia provided by Cascade Travel
Pre-tour and organization.
We arranged our tour with Nune who is the owner of Cascade Travel. Nune who could... read more not have been more helpful with our tour arrangements. We were supposed to be on a small group tour however we were the only ones so it became a private tour. Nune allowed us to choose our 4-star hotels and rooms which was very helpful. We were impressed with the organization of our tour. There were no issues at all with the organization. We also met up with Nune in Yerevan for a coffee which was great.
The included meals for both countries were very good. The Shumi Winery had the best wines and the meal the Merabishvili winery was delicious. The Chef house was excellent and a nice way to finish the tour.
Guides
Georgia
George was our guide in Georgia. He was very experienced, personable, helpful and considerate. Always on time. His vehicle (Ford Fusion) was kept very clean. Very knowledgeable about all facets of Georgian culture and history. We enjoyed his company.
Armenia
Gev was our guide in Armenia. Again, he was very experienced, personable, helpful and considerate. Always on time. His vehicle a Range Rover was comfortable. Again, Gev was very knowledgeable about all facets of Armenian culture and history. We also enjoyed his company and discussed many aspects of life in Armenia during our travels.
Hotels
We were happy with the majority of hotels. Two standouts were Tiflis Palace in Tbilisi and Tufenkian Heritage Hotel, Yerevan. Both very central. One we were less happy about was the Berlin Art Hotel on Gyumri. The first room was unacceptable. Bed was very hard. They gave us a newly renovated room with a new bed which was much better.
Tour Content
Georgia
Tour content was great and most interesting There were however a lot of monasteries and a lot of driving. Enjoyed Sighnaghi and the Martvili Canyon. However, there is a much wider diversity of scenery in Georgia including the mountains and glaciers around Mestia and Ushguli. Tbilisi is a great city and well worth a few days to explore. Wine tastings were excellent.
Armenia
Again, the tour content was great and most interesting. Probably more diversity than Georgia with a mixture of churches and historical sites. Yerevan is a great city and our favourite city of the tour. Wonderful history and other museums. Could easily spend several days in Yerevan.
In both countries we felt very safe and found the locals to be very friendly and hospitable. Prices for food at restaurants are very reasonable. Only criticism is that both guides smoked a lot (very typical for both countries) although they did not smoke in the vehicles. No issue with smoking in any of the hotels we stayed at.

A well-planned trip to Armenia and Georgia - Our October trip from America to Armenia and Georgia, organized by Cascade Travel and its founder, Nune Tatunts, was one of the best and most memorable trips we've taken... read more in over 40 years of travel! Nune paid special attention to our interests (photography, churches, local culture, cuisine and wine) and tailored the trip accordingly. Guides were knowledgeable, and accommodations never disappointed. We are happy to recommend Nune and her company to anyone interested in a memorable trip to the South Caucasus.

Would have been excellent with a few small improvements - Did a 17 day tour of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia. I chose Cascade as I thought using a local company with local knowledge rather than one of the 'International' companies... read more would be a good idea (plus the initial communication by email with Ani was excellent) It wasn't until visiting the region that I understood the difficult relationships that exist between the 3 countries, which negatively affected communication between the Armenian head office and their contracted guides in Azerbaijan & Georgia during the tour. Our tour ended up being a private one, just 2 of us in a car with a driver only in both Armenia & Georgia. While this gave us some flexibility with the itinerary, it was not as comfortable and the great scenery not as easy to view as it would have been in a minivan or small bus. I suspect that because we were only a couple travelling as opposed to a small group, Cascade used contacted driver/guides in the 3 countries rather than their own employees. This means the quality and standard of these contractors is not as assured or guaranteed. Not all of the driving was professional, we feared for our safety at times, and we know previous travelers have expressed similar concerns. Something else to consider if your tour ends up being a private one, the hotels used especially in the larger cities where you will be spending most nights tend to cater for larger tour groups. We paid extra for the '4 star' accommodation but on several occasions the hotel restaurants were unable to cope with the numbers for breakfast and we were unable to find seating or manage to grab a coffee and missed out on the included breakfast. The smaller family run hotels were our favorites and we would have preferred more of them. If you have already travelled widely in Europe you may find the focus on cathedrals and fortresses a bit much. We were able to limit these visits during the tour and spend more time getting to know the fascinating villages, towns and vibrant cities. Overall an excellent experience in beautiful and interesting countries. Definitely no regrets and highly recommend to others looking for something different with less tourists.

Couscous adventures - Two weeks ago, we returned from an unforgettable trip to the Caucasus, including Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia. We were two families of four. Nune, the owner of Cascade Travel, offered... read more us a private tour. What happened next is difficult to describe, but I'll try. We are seasoned travelers with countless experiences. It's easier to say where we haven't been than to list where we have been. We haven't traveled so well in a long time, and all thanks to the professional approach of Nune, the owner of the agency.
All accommodations were clean, very comfortable, and centrally located in the city center. The minivan in each country was very clean and comfortable.
All three countries amazed us with how centuries-old monuments were preserved alongside modern architecture. Special thanks to our guides: Forhad in Azerbaijan, Nino in Georgia, and Nina in Armenia. They are top-notch professionals. Only those who truly love their country can know its history so deeply and convey it to visitors. It's worth noting that the driving culture here isn't particularly high, but our drivers demonstrated excellent skills. My wife and I were planning to celebrate our 55th wedding anniversary in Yerevan. Nune booked us a table at a jazz club, picked us up from the hotel, and gave us a gift. We all went off to celebrate our wedding anniversary together. We had a wonderful time.
What we saw exceeded our expectations, these small countries are worth seeing. We fell in love with these countries and highly recommend the tour with Cascade Travel. You will be not sorry for your decisions.
February 8–23, 2025. Jacob and Saida/Leonid and Valentina – USA

Wonderful trip to Armenia - We were really interested in exploring the Caucus region and found Cascade Travel through Horizon Guides. The itinerary looked interesting and I contacted Cascade Travel. I was immediately impressed... read more with my contact with Nune at Cascade Travel. She answered all my questions and reassured me re the safety of the destinations. My partner is a reluctant walker but again she assured me that the walking would not be too challenging. We booked the 10 day Culltural Exploration in Armenia tour. The itinerary was amazing and provided a great balance between exploring Armenia's rich history as the birthplace of Christianity as a state religion and an insight into the communities that make up modern Armenia. Our guide Ani proved to be an excellent communicator who managed to take us through the complicated path taken towards present day Armenia and our driver Vahan negotiated the narrow roads and hairpin bends of the Armenian Highlands with great skill. Together they made a great pair and nothing was too much trouble for them. One of our party had mobility issues and Ani was always there to provide extra support.
The accommodation exceeded all expectations. We are used to this type of holiday and usually expect something a little more basic! However a couple of hotels, while modern and comfortable where a distance away from the town centre which made evening explorations a little more difficult. Lunches were included throughout the trip and these were another highlight. Usually hosted by small businesses and in one instance by a family they were exceptional. The menus had been planned to give us a taste of the full range of Armenian food and were delicious.
Some of the days we're long and involved long distances but there was nothing we would have wanted to miss.
Overall we were blown away by beauty and incredible history of this tiny county.

Highly recommend hiking and cultural you of Armenia - We slightly modified the hiking tour or Armenia to suit a group of 12 experienced adults from Australia. The itinerary was a good balance of hiking and culturally significant locations.... read more />
Our guide was an experienced hiker and very knowledgeable about Armenian culture and history. However, it was not always possible for everyone to hear what he was saying. It would have been better if he made more use of the microphone in the bus. Using a microphone connected to personal earphones would have been good for the tour of Yerevan. These could also have been used during our hikes.

The Azhdahak Mountin climb, the day after our tour of Yerevan, was great. However people were still adjusting from the long international flights and found the hike more difficult than it should be. It would have been better if we had all arrived in Yerevan several days before the tour, or if this major hike happened later during the tour.

The bus was comfortable with plenty storage.

The accommodation was comfortable and the food was delicious. However it would have been better if the breakfasts were available earlier, so that the hikes could be completed before the hottest past of the day.

The lunch boxes were generous except for the 2 days when they were collected on the way to our hike.

Email communication was generally good except for our questions about having to enter an intermediary bank when making the final payment. Your instructions said we must enter the intermediary bank. However there was no possibility to do this. People were unclear about what to do.

Thanks for having the possibility of booking a video appointment with you. This was helpful.

Thanks also for arranging taxi transfers between the airport and the hotel.

I would certainly recommend Cascade Travel to anyone travelling to Armenia.

We did both an Armenian and Georgian Tour.
Communication re the tours and arrangements thereof were very good.
The Wine Tour experience was varied and exceptional.
In... read more both tours the history, landscape and culture were well covered.
All accommodation was of a high standard and much appreciated.
We highly recommend Tigran our Armenian guide for his expertise, enthusiasm and excellent English.
George our Georgian guide was passionate about history and religion making our trip both informative and interesting.
We would highly recommend Cascade Travel as their tours were well planned.

Fabulous tour of beautiful Armenia - We did a 6-day tour through Armenia, our guide was Arthur. The trip was simply amazing from start to finish. Armenia is a beautiful country with stunning scenery... read more and friendly locals. We did hiking, touring and food and wine tasting. We were very well looked after by our tour guide - he was very knowledgeable and proud of Armenia. Our accommodation was really good, especially our country home stay - food was all home cooked and produced. Cascade Travel were excellent - very caring, flexible and experienced. We were so happy with the whole experience - what a great time we had!

The tour had a great balance of all three countries visited (Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia). Travelling with a small group made it an excellent travelling experience. The landscapes were spectacular,... read more the history and culture of each region was well covered, and the home visits showcased the local food cuisine and hospitality of the people. Cascade Travel and Nune were excellent and extremely responsive to any of our queries or concerns. We would recommend Cascade Travel for visits to this region.