The Best of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia

As described this tour is full on and includes lots of travelling but it is well worth it to see these gems of countries. All three offer something different even though they are neighbours and have interlinking history. If you get the opportunity, arrive in Baku a few days before the tour as there is more to see than the tour offers. There is chance to explore in your own time in all three countries though some days entail lots of travelling, which is needed to see so much of the area as possible. Loved, loved, loved all three countries

A fantastic trip to three amazing and diverse countries, led by two friendly and extremely knowledgable tour leaders, this was a trip I can thoroughly reccomend.

Azerbaijan: visit Qobustan, which isn't included in the itinerary. Also the Heydar Aliyev Center, and the flame towers at night. Georgia: visit Batumi if possible, which is being dropped from the itinerary. Read Rustaveli's opus: the Knight in the Panther's Skin. Enjoy Georgian wine. Armenia: take the escalator in the Cafesjian Center for the Arts to view contemporary sculptures. Listen to liturgical music by Komitas. Note that there is a different overall guide for each country.

too much time spent on history which we as travlers can not connect to. We want to know more about the countries "Now" or at least not back more than this century. The visit to Stalin museum should not be on the program . We do not need to support such horrid men and their deeds.

It’s a good trip but very physically demanding. I think they should make the cut off age 70 years of age. There could be a small percentage of 70+ people who could handle this Tour. But not the vast majority in that age group. At 75, I found it very difficult. We just don’t have the dexterity and balance that we had when we were younger. And falls can be deadly at our age. I have to admit I did not come away with the type of knowledge that I had hoped to find on this tour. No knock on the tour guides, it’s just a more complicated issue in delivering relatable. Information to English speaking people. I’m satisfied that I completed the trip. I did contemplate leaving on the fifth day. But I stuck with it. One should really consider what they’re taking on when they make a trip to countries like this. The hotels were hidden miss. I didn’t particularly care for the prepaid meals because they were always local cuisine. I’m not a traveler that’s looking for the food to make it a hit. I’m more a student of history and culture.

Fabulous full on trip - could usefully be extended - useful to add at least one day at either end.

It was very good and I wouldn't have left any of it out...but really needed two or three more days to explore the big cities better and get a break from sitting on the bus.

I have traveled with Explore about 10 times- and it saddens me to write that this will be my last trip with them. I like that Explore does not put the groups into chains / western hotels. The quality of the hotels on this trip ranged from lovely to not acceptable. We stayed in eight different hotels and each time that we had to change hotels I had to wonder, would the next hotel be acceptable? And for the places we stayed where they were not acceptable - there were other options of places to stay. Explore was clearly cutting corners to save money. Additionally, sometimes the hotels were in great locations and other times they were not. (I have attached photos of a couple places that were not acceptable.) The itinerary was filled with too many churches and monasteries and not enough time in the cities. We spent way too much time on the bus and not enough time actually seeing things. We typically left the hotels around 8:30 and wouldn't get back until 5:30 and we would only spend about 3 hours actually walking around. This meant we spent on average 6 hours many days on the bus. We ate 2 lunches at a local truck stop / gas station and a few times we did not the chance to eat until 2:30 pm. The tour leader in Georgia was the best I have ever had - on any trip. He is incredibly well educated and gave us clear instructions and taught us about the history, culture, and politics of his country. He spoke perfect English and with almost no accent. He is warm, friendly, easy to travel with and gave the perfect amount of information. The other 2 tour leaders were nothing special. I had trouble understanding them and they often did not give clear information.

A really interesting tour to a little known (to me, at least) part of the world. Amazing countries with a long history, good food, wonderful wine, superb scenery, lots of flowers and a great tour leader, Alex.