Guide to driving car in Armenia
Welcome to Armenia, to one of the ancient countries in the world. Though small in size, it has so many places to offer you. For visiting major sightseeing places in Yerevan you do not need any transportation, since the capital is not huge and all the museums, monuments are based in the center. But as soon as you go beyond Yerevan this is when you really need to rent a car. Public transport and the taxi services in Yerevan are likely the most cheapest ones in Europe but it is not comfortable and really safe. Especially when you travel to the north or south of the country it is always better to avoid using public transport. As an alternative good solution Car Hire in Armenia is rather affordable and popular nowadays.
Means of transportation you can use, when travelling in Armenia.
Option 1. Underground. During you stay in Yerevan you can use Underground, which is fast, clean and affordable. Also not all the parts of the city have metro stations, thus you need to organize your itinerary in a right way.
Option 2. Public transport. Although you can see numerous of buses and vans in the city, but consider, it is not the best means of transportation, as in the mornings and evenings it is always crowded and slow. Each city in Armenia offers local transportation to its surrounding villages as well as connections to Yerevan. Most inter-city travel is by 14-seat minibuses or buses. Note that unlike many countries in Eastern Europe, Armenian minibuses do not sell tickets, you make pay by the time you arrive to your destination point.
Read also: Car Rental In Armenia
Option 3. Taxi. Taking a taxi is always a good idea, if you plan to drive only within Yerevan. It is cheap and much faster than bus or van. Most taxis do not have meters, though, so you should negotiate a price before you leave. Let’s confess this is not very pleasant thing to do. Alternatively you should ask somebody from your hotel to call a right taxi for you.
Option 4. Car rent. This is the most comfortable, fastest and even affordable option. From the first view this may seem to be not popular service in Armenia. The reality is vice versa. There are many good qualified car rental offices in Yerevan with a wide choice of vehicles.
International driving license is required for the US citizens and Arabic countries.
Advantages of a car rent
1. It is never crowded
2. You always choose your road companion
Read also: Why you should travel to Armenia in 2016?
3. No extra fees for long ways
4. Unlimited mileage
5. You are the driver, and you are the boss!
6. Air condition (in case you choose car with this option)
7. You can stop wherever and whenever you want
8. Renting a big car, will give you chance to travel with your whole family or friends, thus making it more affordable.
9. Car rental companies in Yerevan in most cases offer new, well equipped and comfortable cars, by a very reasonable price.
10. You always choose which car to drive.
Roads of Armenia
The overall length of the Armenian roads is 7637 km., 96,7% of which is asphalted.
Read also: Armenia has been recognized as one of the safest countries in 2015!!!
Basically roads in Yerevan and main roads outside its borders are in good conditions. Every year after the winter time the government starts some repairing stuff. But if you plan to drive to mountains, to visit ancient churches, temples or just go to the top of Aragats mountain, you will surely need not just a midi car, but SUV type., for your safety and comfort. It is better always to get some pieces of good advice from the car rental agency staff since they never want to recommend any car which will be damaged due to the roads conditions.
Important notice for those who are going to drive in Armenia for the fist time
There are the following standard speed limits in the Armenia: In settlements the speed limit is 40 km/h, out of cities it is 90 km/h, and on highways the speed limit is 110 km/h. In yards, like residential places it is prohibited to drive faster than 20 km/h.
Note that passengers on the back seat are not obliged to fasten seat belts, while those seating on the front must fasten seat belts. The fine for unfastened seatbelt is 5000 AMD, which is approximately 10 USD.
In case you use cell phone while driving, the fine will be 3000 AMD.
Read also: International driving permit for renting a car
Finally as an additional note, when traveling outside of Yerevan, you should always keep some cash since not everywhere you can use your credit cards.