Armenia prides itself as being the first in the world to formally adopt Christianity as its national religion, and the signs of this are plain for all to see with countless religious monuments of all shapes and sizes covering the land. Whilst tourist-wise the country isn’t as developed as some would expect, the fact that – amongst other things – Armenia is home to one of the oldest cities in the world should mean that a visit is definitely worthwhile, and a forward-looking culture welcomes all who enter with an ever growing caf&eactute; culture to enjoy. Recent instabilities have put people off visiting, but tensions have come off the boil and travelling through major regions is likely to be as simple as it is enjoyable.

The history of Armenia stretches so very far back into the annals of time, and this incredibly historic country is home to a number of relics that hearken back to ancient days. Ill-treatment, wars, deportation and extermination have combined through history to give the Armenian people a rough time, leaving their plight often compared to that of the Jews – even so, the people today are friendly, open and proud. Whilst the country has enjoyed more than a few eras of independence, a number of empires used the land as their own plaything, tossing rule from the Romans to the Turks, the Mamluks to the Ottoman Turks – this period under Turkish rule was to prove the darkest in the history of Armenia, and is still a sticking point for many, many people today. In 1915, during the First World War, the Turk government decided that Armenians in Eastern Turkey were a dangerous foreign influence that were to be removed – this ‘removal’ saw the “first modern genocide” of around one and a quarter million Armenian people over a period of eight years, along with the displacement of hundreds of thousands more. This mass murder is still denied by the Turkish government to this day, and remains a strong reason as to why relations between Turkey and Armenia are so bad.

With the end of the First World War came four years of independence, before the country was incorporated into the Soviet Union – the period of Communist rule saw nearly seventy years of peace and relative stability. During the Soviet days, Stalin left one of his biggest imprints on the region when he imposed his own, new borders on countries in the area – Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan were given more and less land as was seen fit, and a mainly Armenian populated region was left in Azerbaijani control – the seeds for future discontent were sown. A massive earthquake rocked the capital in 1988, killing thousands and leaving even more homeless – this confusion that was caused was apt for the times, as the Soviet Union stood on its last legs and displeasure was the feeling most commonly held. All too inevitably, war broke out in the disputed Azerbaijani regions, lasting through Armenian independence in 1991 and up until 1994 when Moscow brokered a ceasefire between the countries, which still stands to this day. Diplomatic relations had been cut with Turkey in 1992 (this cut also still holds today), economic blockades were introduced by Iran and the war had left the new republic drained and confused. A slow recovery has been in motion ever since and Armenian-Azerbaijani relations are improving, even if only at a snail’s pace. The government is setting the country back on the right track, and numerous industries are getting their feet back on the ground – this relative stability is making Armenia a better country.

Armenia is not a country at the top of most people’s visiting lists, but the country should not be written off entirely. Tourism is on the increase and the capital city is renowned for the easy, laid back lifestyle it offers. Property investors are starting to look to the country, prices are low and the Armenian property market is young. It isn’t perfect, but there are worse places.