The Best Hotel in Armenia: A Review of the Silk Road Hotel, Yerevan
Last Updated on: 29th April 2023, 11:48 am
The Silk Road Hotel Yerevan – The Best Hotel in Armenia
When I began to plan my trip to Armenia this summer I knew I didn’t want to stay at a generic hotel. As I looked for Yerevan accommodation, I first saw the Silk Road Hotel on Booking.com. It had a great rating and from what I could tell seemed to be locally owned with a true sense of Armenian culture. I wasn’t ready to commit though.
So I asked some of the partners I was working with to plan my trip, the My Armenia program through the Smithsonian in the USA, and Arites Travel, if they could recommend a locally owned hotel with authentic Armenian decoration.
Both of them recommended the Silk Road Hotel Yerevan.
The Silk Road Hotel has 13 rooms, including single, double, and triple rooms – some with an amazing view of Mount Ararat. Each room is decorated with traditional Armenian rugs and offers modern amenities such as a minifridge and free wifi.
I stayed at the Silk Road for 11 nights in May and it was one of the best hotel experiences of my travels! The Silk Road hotel is more than a boutique hotel in Yerevan: it’s a community, a fundraiser for a truly deserving foundation, a beautiful gift shop of local products, and a fabulous restaurant all in one! (Not to mention: the beds were seriously comfortable!)
If you are looking where to stay in Yerevan, Armenia – here is my comprehensive review of the Silk Road hotel and why I think it is the best hotel in Yerevan.
History & Mission of The Silk Road Hotel
My favourite part about the Silk Road Hotel is that it is more than a hotel: it is part of the Folk Arts Hub Foundation in Armenia.
The Folk Arts Hub is a foundation dedicated to reviving the traditional folk arts in Armenia, particularly textiles. They do this through education for children in area villages on weaving, as well as emphasizing eco-friendly methods and products, and teaching other arts such as filmmaking.
How does the hotel play a role in this? In many ways the hotel in a fundraiser. As you’ll see – the home of the hotel itself is also a place where much weaving, teaching, and meetings related to the foundation are taking place daily (significantly enriching the guest experience). By hosting guests in the hotel, it allows the foundation to pay for and use the house and provides funds for other foundation activities.
Levan Der-Bedrossian (not to be confused with the first president of Armenia, Levon Ter-Petrosyan) was born in Beirut to an Armenian family and came to Armenia in 1988 after the earthquake in Gyumri – the second largest city after Yerevan. He ultimately founded the Folk Arts Hub Foundation and bought the house that is now home to the Silk Road Hotel. He called it “Silk Road” because the Silk Road itself represents the centre of how cultures, religions, and languages met in world history. He wanted the house and eventually the hotel to be a place where people, arts, and culture meet.
Currently, the hotel is home to a number of looms where artists work on reviving traditional rug patterns daily. This is fabulous to watch and really gave me a deeper insight into what goes into making a hand-woven rug. Many traditional ways of and patterns for Armenian rug-making were lost in the genocide and diaspora and currently, Silk Road is reviving some of these patterns from old photographs. The hotel also houses a rug woven in 1915 – the year of the Armenian Genocide.
True to its name, The Silk Road hotel is also reviving the old art of silk rugs – they are deeply intricate and shimmery and unlike anything I’ve ever seen! One was being woven while I was there and it was a sight to behold!
Encountering Armenian Culture at the Silk Road Hotel, Yerevan
Without a doubt, my favorite part of the Silk Road Hotel Yerevan was the deep sense of Armenian culture through all the details large and small.
Due to its cultural activities, the hotel is home to art and artists (like the women weaving rugs every day in the breakfast area) and full of Bedrossian’s collections of beautiful, real Armenian artifacts.
Staying at the Silk Road Hotel is almost like staying in an Armenian history museum!
Aside from many beautiful rugs – both recently woven and historical – the hotel is filled with beautiful paintings, artifacts, and historical photographs.
The first day I was there I spend part of the day simply wandering the hotel and it was magical!
One of my favorite parts of the hotel is the garden. A large garden, with multiple levels of balconies, is filled with traditional Armenian fruit trees, sculpture (including an Armenian Khachkar, or cross-stone), fountains, and a traditional bakery for baking Armenian bread – Lavash.
The hotel also serves traditional Armenian espresso which you can take in the garden, or glasses of homemade Armenian white or red wine (which is delicious!) for around $1.75 USD!
I ate many of my breakfasts in the garden which was wonderful! I loved watching the Pomegranate flowers bloom while I was there, and the cherries on the tree grow and ripen. The hotel was such a visual treat – which I a huge part of why I believe it is one of the top hotels in Yerevan.
Rooms at The Silk Road Hotel
Rooms at the Silk Road Hotel are traditional and very comfortable -, especially for the price. I wouldn’t exactly call Silk Road a “cheap hotel” in Yerevan, but the prices are extremely reasonable for such a beautiful room. Decorated with Armenian rugs (including an adorable hand-woven “do not disturb” sign) – each room has a desk, a television, a bedside table, a large closet with a minifridge, and a bathroom with a shower.
The best part of my room at the Silk Road Hotel Yerevan was the view of the city & Mount Ararat. They say in Armenia that if Mount Ararat is clear and fully visible in the morning it is going to be a lucky day! It was so fun to look out of my window in the morning and check the fortune! I think they have one of the best views of hotels in Yerevan without being a high-rise or generic hotel!
While the bedlinen was simple, I found it very comfortable. I wouldn’t say there’s anything particularly luxury about the rooms at Silk Road – but I was completely comfortable and at home during my stay.
Like most European hotel rooms, the rooms are not expansive in the way many Americans are used to. The room I was in would certainly be suitable for a couple but without a ton of elbow room. I was completely comfortable during my stay and had plenty of room to unpack my things.
There wasn’t a traditional chest of drawers in the room, nor a closet door (a curtain), but the closet served as a fine place to keep my suitcase and hang up items that needed airing.
I used and enjoyed the minifridge. It was very close to my bed, however, and at times I found the sound of the fridge running to be a bit loud!
The hotel was very quiet at night. It is home to a restaurant that sometimes has parties come in, and only one night was a family celebrating that kept me up just a little bit! Overall I slept extremely well there – even though my room was right off that main lobby, it really was peaceful and quiet!
The wifi was quick enough for all of my needs. I was finishing a big piece of writing while at the hotel that involved a lot of emails and research, AND wanted to stream a new show my friends were watching back home – all of which the Wifi worked 100% smoothly for.
The Best Hotel Breakfast in Yerevan!
Silk Road Hotel Yerevan had a truly outstanding breakfast! Aside from a lovely buffet of yogurt, fruit, cheeses, salad, juice, coffee, tea, a hot item like lentil rolls and a sweet item like Pancakes, the staff will make you eggs to your liking each day. I really enjoyed breakfast, and tended to linger over it!
The breakfast room is one of the most richly decorated parts of the hotel – and it is possible to take your breakfast outside in the garden which I thoroughly enjoyed.
One day in the middle of the week I happened to be the only guest taking breakfast and found a lovely table laid out with everything I could possibly want and attentive service. That was a real treat!
I often found that my breakfast at Silk Road kept me full for a large part of the day – which was not only helpful in terms of saving money – but gave me a lot of energy for the many day trips and tours I took while in Armenia!
I also enjoyed the restaurant at Silk Road in the Evenings.
I can highly recommend having a glass of wine with Lavash chips, homemade hummus, and Armenian Cheese in the evenings on the patio. This was one of my favorite things to do when I got back at the hotel and usually came to around only $5-6 USD.
Staff at the Silk Road Hotel
They say that it is the staff that makes a good hotel either poor or great – and the staff at Silk Road were truly outstanding. Each person, from Tatev the manager who greeted me warmly and gave me a wonderful tour, to those who served breakfast, and those who managed the front desk, were helpful and kind.
I felt comfortable asking any questions I had and received much practical help. The staff were able to book a 3 am Airport transfer for me, advise me on shopping and tours, and answer any other questions I had.
I really liked that you leave your key with the front desk when you exit the hotel for the day. I wasn’t worried about losing the key (which I always worry about!) and it was a great moment of smiling interaction as I got to share about my plans and get tips from the staff!
The Silk Road Hotel is a 3 star hotel in Yerevan, Armenia – but without a doubt, the service was always 5-star or beyond!
Location of Silk Road Hotel, Yerevan
If you are looking for a hotel in Yerevan near republic square, Silk Road Hotel Yerevan isn’t exactly nearby but still incredibly convenient. The first day I was there I walked to Republic Square in about 30 minutes – and very much enjoyed the sites along the way! There is a metro stop nearby that gets you downtown very quickly.
I mostly used Yandex Taxi App, however. For under $1 USD (even when there was surge pricing!) I could be in the city center in about 10 minutes from calling the taxi to getting there! It was so easy to be picked up at the front door. The staff will also help you call a taxi if you prefer not to use the app, but I found it very safe. The one time I had a minor problem I reported it to the app and customer service followed up with me immediately.
There are a number of convenience stores right around the hotel – which I adored since I fell in love with Armenian novelty ice creams while I was there and I could get my fix whenever I wanted! They are also useful for incidentals like toothpaste, shampoo, etc.
The hotel was also very convenient for my guides with Arites and Arahet tour companies to pick me up every day. I spent a lot of my time in Armenia traveling to see all of the Armenian monasteries, and it was easy to be picked up and travel out of the city from the Silk Road Hotel Yerevan.
Are you ready to Book your Stay at the Silk Road Hotel Yerevan?
Armenia may not be on your radar as a country to visit – but I’m here to tell you it was the best travel experience I’ve had in the last few years and there are so many reasons Armenia needs to be at the top of your travel bucket list! One of the great things about Armenia is that you can essentially stay in Yerevan the entire time and get to sites throughout the country on day trips because it’s really quite small and driveable.
Staying at a hotel like the Silk Road Hotel Yerevan will make your entire experience wonderful – you have an authentic Armenian experience in your very hotel & when you step outside! If you aren’t convinced yet – there are lots of accomodation options in Yerevan. Have a look, but I really believe Silk Road is one of the best, if not the best.
I have stayed in a lot of hotels and I can say without a doubt say the Silk Road Hotel Yerevan is one I will absolutely be coming back to – and bringing my family and friends. I so hope you will, too!
[I was a guest of the Silk Road Hotel for part of my stay. There is a high likelihood this post contains affiliate links. When you purchase a product or service through these links Sacred Wanderings earns a commission at no increased cost to you. As always, all opinions remain my own.]
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