The history of the Yerevan International Training Center began in 2014 when at the Ministry of Economy of Armenia the WFTGA President Felicitas Wressnig and Lia Bakhshinyan, President of the Armenian Guides Guild (AGG), signed the document that stated the establishment of the center. However, our first acquaintance with the WFTGA had taken place even before, in 2005, when the AGG was founded and as its priority took care of enhancing the qualifications of its members and adapting them to international developments. It was the year when for the first time the AGG members took HOT and TtT courses with Felicitas Wressnig and Jenny Oulton. One can remember many great and pleasant moments from that first acquaintance with WFTGA requirements, but let’s leave it for another time.

So, until the opening of the WFTGA International Training Centre (ITC) in 2014, the AGG had undergone a preparation for 9 years. 2 AGG members – Naira Sukiasyan and Rita Navoyan, received the status of International Trainers at the ITC of Cyprus. Thanks to its enthusiasm, the AGG became the occasion for the establishment of tourist guides’ association in neighboring Georgia, which also joined the WFTGA later. Together with the Georgian colleagues, the AGG held 2 regional HOT and TtT courses, to which colleagues from Azerbaijan were also invited, but did not participate. These training courses were conducted by the Lead International Trainer Viola Lewis, and it was our first positive experience of cooperation with her. Hereby, we just would like to emphasize the fact that the AGG has been extremely lucky to learn from the most experienced WFTGA Trainers.

Thus the AGG members, both international and national trainers and other member-guides, undertook the promotional and organizational work of the center with great dedication. Both in the preparatory phase and during the activity of the center, they made every effort to foster the main idea of ​​the WFTGA – the improvement of the professional qualification of all the tourist guides in the world. Thanks to the full support of the WFTGA and the dedicated work of the AGG, the Yerevan International Training Centrehad its contribution in this important work.

Our first training course was held in 2014. The participants, who were already prominent tourist guides, were from Armenia.  They took part in the courses with great love and enthusiasm and received their qualifications. That year, the HOT+TtT courses were led by the Lead International Trainer Ivana Curuvija, whom her co-workers Naira Sukiasyan and Rita Navoyan got to know during the ITtT course in Cyprus. As a result of that pleasant cooperation, we had our first graduates.

In 2015, Mary Kemp-Clarke came to Yerevan. In her turn, she shared her great professionalism and experience. Moreover, she trained new guides from different countries according to the WFTGA standards.

In 2016, the WFTGA International Training Centre of Yerevan held one more international training under the leadership of Mary Kemp-Clarke. It was a great enrichment for the AGG members as the participants of the training course directly communicated with colleagues from countries with different cultures, such as Thailand, Bahrain, Kazakhstan, Iran. That variety of approaches to our common work was extremely interesting.

The 2017, in the WFTGA Training Centre of Yerevan the Lead International Trainer Gennadiy Chudnovets from Ukraine lovingly and professionally conducted a training course in the Russian language.

In 2018 and 2019 local training courses were conducted by WFTGA International Trainer Naira Sukiasyan. Armenian tourist guides from Armenia and Syria were able to participate in these HOT and TtT training courses and got qualified.

Since 2020, the global tourism and other crises caused by COVID, as well as the situation of Armenia unwillingly being in a war, have disrupted the further activities of the centre.

However, in February 2023, with great efforts of the Head of the WFTGA Training Division, the impossible became possible, and Yerevan again opened its doors to an international training course, this time conducted by Max Dubravko Fijacko of Interpret Europe within the framework of the “Continuous Professional Development Course on Heritage Interpretation” programme. The experience and knowledge which the AGG members gained both from the course and as a result of interaction with the participants from other countries are invaluable. Deep gratitude to all our friends of WFTGA.

Because of global dynamic changes and unfavorable regional developments, and in spite of all WFTGA and AGG efforts, the centre‘s activities cannot be fully continued at the moment, but we are hopeful that one day it will be possible again.

We express our deep gratitude to all the people who have been dedicated to the center during all these years:

To Felicitas Wressnig, the first trainer of the AGG and later WFTGA President, who recognized the importance of the Yerevan International Training Centre for Eastern and Southeastern Europe and realisedthe idea of its establishment.

To all WFTGA presidents and especially to Alushca Ritchie who supported the centre.

To all WFTGA Head of the Training Division and Training Committee Members since 2014. Special thanks to current Head of the Training Division Viola Lewis and her amazing team for their dedication and great contribution to making the 2023 course happen.

To WFTGA ExBo members James Saunders and Demetra Argyrou Viguier for their support.

To the colleagues of the first WFTGA ITC in Cyprus who have been ready to share their invaluable experience with us.

To the AGG presidents Lia Bakhshinyan and Naira Sukiasyan who greatly contributed to the activity of the centre with their dedicated work.

To the administrator of Yerevan ITC Anush Aramyan and the coordinator Arpine Avetisyan for organising the training courses and coordinating them with the WFTGA.

To the international and national trainers of Armenia who gladly cooperated and transferred their experience to the trainees in different places of Armenia.

To the Deputy Minister of Tourism of the Ministry of Economy of Armenia Ara Petrosyan, to the head of the department Mekhak Apresyan, to the head of the tourism committee Zara Zeytuntsyan and all the employees for providing moral and financial support to the WFTGA International Center.

To Seyran Suvaryan, the head of the Tourism Service Chair, and his teaching staff for hosting the trainingcourses and for providing professional lectures.

We are extremely grateful to our sponsors: the RA Ministry of Economy, USAID, GIZ, Yerevan State University and as well as the founder of Tufenkyan Heritage Hotels James Tufenkyan and the general director Hakob Hakobyan. Without their support the activities of the training centre might not have been possible.

54 tourist guides have taken HOT Courses and 34 tourist guides TtT Courses at the WFTGA ITC Yerevan during all those years.

The activities of the Yerevan training center have played a major role in educating tourist guides from Armenia and other countries according to WFTGA requirements.

And of course, our cooperation with WFTGA will continue, and we will gladly share our experience gained over the years and new ideas for the benefit of the main goal of all of us – enlarging the global family of tourist guides and spreading high professional qualities.