On June 2, AGBU Armenian Virtual College (AVC), in collaboration with the Yerevan Municipality, organized a presentation of its interactive e-book, Exploring Yerevan: A Look Inside the City’s Past and Present, at City Hall in Yerevan. Specially organized for the tourism sector of Armenia, the event drew over 50 leading companies and organizations actively operating in this sphere, including the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, the Union of Tour Operators, the Tourist Guides Association of Armenia and the Tourism Institute of Armenia as well as hotel and tourism industry representatives.
Prepared in cooperation with the municipality, the e-book is the second addition to AVC’s pioneering multimedia e-book series and was presented to the audience with an emphasis on its historical, social and demographic information, designed for readers interested in visiting Yerevan or simply learning about the city. Of particular interest was its package of six one-day city tours and hikes designed to help visitors make the most of their time in Yerevan and its surroundings.
Speaking about the useful information that tour operators and tourists will find in the travel guide, AVC founding president Dr. Yervant Zorian thanked the Yerevan Municipality, the city’s Mayor Taron Margaryan and mayor’s assistant Maria Baraghamyan: “The Municipality of Yerevan always supports our initiatives, which is an inspiration for us, and we feel this e-book will be very important not only for tourists, but for the growth of Yerevan’s tourism industry and the presentation of the city in virtual format.”
During the presentation, the audience also learned about the diversity of programs, cultural and social events, videos, interactive maps, virtual tours, picture galleries, 3D and panoramic images included in the e-book, as well as its availability in an audio version. Dr. Zorian also told the audience that the electronic guide will have a wider reach not only due to its availability in multiple languages (Eastern and Western Armenian, English, Russian, French, Spanish and Turkish), but also due to its support of an extended range of devices: iOS and Android smart phones, tablets and computers.
Ms. Baraghamyan noted that the outcome of the effective cooperation between the municipality and AGBU Armenian Virtual College was the innovative user-friendly tourism product. “The Yerevan History Museum, along with the Tourism Department and Technologies Centre of the Municipality, all joined efforts to help AVC in the preparation of the e-book. As a result, the 2,797-year-old city can now be presented to the world as an attractive touristic destination in quite an innovative way.”
Exploring Yerevan is available for free download and online browsing on computers and mobile devices through the Apple iBooks Store, Joomag website and mobile app, the AVC website (www.avc-agbu.org) and AGBU online bookstore (www.agbubookstore.org), as well as the tourism section of the official website of the Yerevan Municipality (www.yerevan.am).
To learn more about Exploring Yerevan, please visit https://www.avc-agbu.org/en/virtual_experience/eBook_trailer/2.html.
