I'm gonna go right out and say it: Ani is better in winter. I'm Canadian so -17 degrees is like, "warm" still. The main attraction are the white layers of snow all over, covering the rather barren fields and the gorge. Hard to imagine what people did in winter before. I also wasn't the only "crazy" visitor. There were many tour groups from Ankara that flew into Kars just for this. In fact, that's the sensible thing to do. The road trips can be fun but it's quite far east with nothing much on the way. Getting to Van also takes quite a bit of time. It could have saved me 2 days and just miss some rather mediocre tentative sites.

So what else can I add to the info already well described before? The road to the site is officially limited to 50km/h but I don't see why. There are some driving instructions at the gas station but that's about it. Maybe there are cows in summer.

The audio guide isn't bad. The info panels have nearly all the same stuff written if still readable, but it also helps to guide you around the circular path. It had info on the city walls (which I didn't even expect because most people just photograph the church) that is not described anywhere though.

Shame about the vandalism inside the iconic church, with everyone seemingly wanting to leave their names carved into the stones.

Before I always wondered if I should wait for the borders to open up to visit this easier from Armenia but with domestic flights in Turkey that isn't necessary. Top site worth the extra mile.