Fancy a quick trip from London to Armenia?

One of the bonuses about visiting the UK is the easy availability of a range of cheap flights on budget airlines.

If you fancy a couple of days on the French Riviera, or maybe a weekend in Dubrovnik, then airlines like Ryanair, easyJet and Wizz Air offer a massive range of destinations.

Low-cost carrier Wizz Air recently added Yerevan in Armenia (above) to its destinations from Luton Airport. That's an exotic getaway.

Wizz Air is adding a 15th aircraft to its Luton base, alongside launching six new direct routes to popular and emerging destinations across Europe.

The newly announced services will also connect London Luton with Alicante in Spain, Lyon in France, Corfu in Greece, Faro in Portugal and Turin in Italy.

The new Yerevan route opens up a non-stop connection between the UK and the South Caucasus, making Armenia more accessible for tourists, business travellers and those visiting friends and family. A trip to Mount Ararat sounds enticing. 

The expansion follows Wizz Air’s acquisition of valuable take-off and landing slots previously held by TUI Airways at Luton, where it uses Airbus A321neo aircraft.

The new routes form part of Hungarian-owned Wizz Air’s fleet expansion. The Budapest-based airline now flies to over 200 destinations. 

So you really want to get off the beaten track?

Fancy exploring countries that are just names on the nightly news for most of us.

Georgia and Armenia are intriguing destinations appealing to adventurous travellers.

With 2025 marking 10 years since the Transcaucasian Trail began taking shape, World Expeditions has unveiled an intriguing sounding experience in the Caucasus mountains.

When completed the Transcaucasian Trail will extend over 3,000km connecting more than 20 National Parks and protected areas along what has been widely touted as "the next big thing in trekking".

World Expeditions was the first operator to offer the option to trek selected sections of the long-distance trail in both Armenia and Georgia.

“Armenia and Georgia are the only two countries on the trail that have been adequately mapped so far, and this occurred back in 2019," says Sue Badyari, CEO of World Expeditions.

"Since then the trail has captured the imagination of active travellers around the world, in spite of - or perhaps due to the fact that it ranks as one of the most inaccessible mountains in the world.

“The inaccessibility of the trail is due to a lack of reliable and detailed data. The best available topographic maps are thought to be decades-old Soviet military maps, while public domain aerial imagery is often of low quality and inconsistent.

"The fact that the region remains relatively unchartered and has subsequently received less media attention only heightens its allure for adventurous travellers.”

The region has preserved a distinct identity and cultural heritage: the earliest evidence of wine-making, more than 8,000 years ago, has been found in Georgia, while Armenia is considered as the first nation to adopt Christianity as its officially religion.

The trek route is home to a number of ethnic groups, with more than 40 indigenous languages spoken across the region it is one of the most linguistically diverse places in the world.

In addition, the Caucasus is a biodiversity hotspot: a quarter of the approximately 6,500 plant species that have been found in the mountains are estimated to exist nowhere else on earth, while the varied native fauna includes the rare Caucasian leopard.

Although the two sections of the Transcaucasian Trail are offered by World Expeditions as separate itineraries, the dates have been especially chosen so keen hikers wishing to tick off both countries in one trip can complete the Armenia segment first and then continue the trail in Georgia.

Transcaucasian Trail Hike features high-altitude grasslands, permanently snow-capped peaks, thick forests and shrubby plateaus.

Armenia - 8 days, departures from May 26; from $3190 per person, including all meals. Flights not included.

Georgia - 10 days, departures from June 19; from $3690 per person, including all meals. Flights not included.

Accommodation ranges from hotels to village guest houses. 

In addition, World Expeditions also offers a two-week Armenia to Georgia by Bike adventure (14 days, $6890 per person, departures from May 14 with an itinerary that starts in Yerevan and finishes in Tbilisi.

For more information and bookings visit worldexpeditions.com

Image: Hiking in Georgia’s Caucasus Mountains (Shutterstock)

Rioja: a great place for a wine tourism talkfest

Logrono looks like a great spot for a junket. 

It is in the Rioja wine region in Spain and this week hosted the UNWTO Global Conference on Wine Tourism.

The tourism organisation reports that the conference had “the focus placed firmly on inclusion and sustainability for local communities and territories”.

But what was done? 

A few platitudes are forthcoming as we were told the event decided “paving the way towards inclusive growth, especially in rural areas, requires clear policies and a commitment to embracing digital transformation and innovation. Recognizing this, the conference brought together key stakeholders and leaders from across the growing wine tourism sector to address priorities including education, skills development and the effective use of data.”

What they actually decided remains a mystery. 

We do know the event welcomed thought-leaders - such a great phrase - from both emerging and established wine destinations, including Argentina, Armenia, Chile, France, Germany, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, and the US. 

“As well as celebrating the growing interest in wine tourism, the event made clear the challenges for building more competitive destinations and transforming demand into economic growth and social inclusion. Over two days, workshops and masterclasses focused on:

• Skills development and a better understanding of the impacts and trends of wine tourism were identified as crucial elements to create value and promote wine regions, ultimately enhancing their competitiveness.

• With the impact of climate change affecting the sector, experts debated how to progress sustainability in wine tourism as well and progress digitalization for better processes. Participants discussed the need to harmonise data collection, the use of new data sources and innovative strategies for expanding new products, outreach on social media, utilizing cutting-edge digital tools, and leveraging new technologies, including Artificial Intelligence, to create knowledge and a seamless experience.”

OK.  

I’m not sure we are any the wiser. But I’m sure everyone had a great time. 

Australia was not officially represented, as far as I am aware.

Maybe next time, when the conference will be hosted in that global hotbed of wine tourism: Armenia.