Sanahin Travel Guide

Sanahin (Սանահին, meaning "older than the other one", probably related to Haghpat) is a village high above Alaverdi (at the dissected plateau above the Debed gorge), now officially a suburb of Alaverdi but reachable only by a cable car (quite irregular hours of circulation, check before) or a steep winding long roundabout road.

Its main attraction is a walled 10th century monastery with some majestic roads and a a once important library.

In 1996 the Sanahin monastery together with its "counterpart" in Haghpat was inscribed into the UNESCO World Heritage list
Most visitors only visit the monastery and only a few check the museum of Mikoyan brothers, located at the former school building. Artem was a well known airplane constructor (he is the 'M' of MiG) and his older brother Anastas was a well known politician during Stalin and Khrushchev era. Both of them were born in Sanahin. The  enthusiastic guide (a brothers' relative) speaks Russian (alongsie with Armenian) only, entry fee is up to you, give at least 100AMD per person.

A well known medieval Armenian musician Sayat-Nova was probably born in Sanahin (birthplace of his mother), too.

Probably the only hotel in the whole Alaverdi area, the totally runduwn but cheap Debed (no telephone, just show up, it very likely always has vacancies, the manager's daughter speaks some English), is located among some high rise buildings at the "village's" main square.

See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanahin