Georgia: Tbilisi, the Caucasus Mountains, and Europe's Most Surprising Country

Ask anyone who has been to Georgia what surprised them most, and the answer is almost always the same: how extraordinary it was and how little they knew about it before they arrived. Georgia is one of the oldest wine-producing countries in the world (8,000 years of documented viticulture, with the qvevri clay vessel tradition listed by UNESCO in 2013), one of the most ruggedly beautiful mountain landscapes in Europe, a capital city with one of the most distinctive architectural characters on the continent, and an food culture built around convivial feasting that would embarrass most of the countries that consider themselves gastronomic powerhouses. It is also, for most Western visitors, very affordable. This is the destination that sophisticated travellers are consistently most excited about right now, and most of those travellers cannot believe they waited this long to go.

Tbilisi: The Capital

Old Town (Dzveli Tbilisi)

Tbilisi's Old Town is built across the slopes of the Mtkvari River gorge, its streets rising steeply from the riverbank to the ruined Narikala fortress that crowns the ridge above. The defining architectural feature of the Old Town is the wooden carved balcony (balakhani): a cantilevered structure projecting from upper floors that serves as the living room, drying rack, and social space of the Georgian urban house. Many of these balconied buildings are 150–200 years old and in various states of photogenic decay; the restoration process that has been ongoing since the 2000s has preserved many without eliminating the authentic shabbiness that gives the neighbourhood its character.

The Narikala fortress, originally built in the 4th century and expanded by the Arabs, Mongols, and Persians who successively occupied Tbilisi, offers the best panoramic view over the city. Entry is free. Beside it, a large aluminium statue of Kartlis Deda (Mother of Georgia), erected in 1958, holds a bowl of wine in one hand (for guests) and a sword in the other (for enemies). The symbolism is on the nose but accurate.

Abanotubani: The Sulphur Bath District

The Abanotubani neighbourhood, below the Narikala fortress on the right bank of the Mtkvari, is built above natural sulphur springs that have been the basis of Tbilisi's bathing culture for centuries. The dome-shaped rooftops of the bathhouses, made of brick and covered in small circular skylights, are immediately recognisable. The sulphur baths (bathhouses) operate as private rooms and public pools: public baths cost from GEL 3 per person (approximately €1); private rooms with a personal bathtub, changing area, and optional masseur start from GEL 40 per hour (approximately €14). The Chreli-Abano and Gulo's Thermal Spa are among the best-maintained establishments. The water is naturally heated, strongly sulphurous in smell, and reportedly excellent for skin and joints.

Modern Tbilisi Landmarks

The Bridge of Peace, opened in 2010, is a pedestrian footbridge across the Mtkvari in a tubular glass-and-steel design by Italian architect Michele De Lucchi. It has polarised locals (some consider it an imposition on the Old Town skyline) but provides excellent views. The Public Service Hall (2012), designed by Irakli Kiziria, is a mushroom-shaped government building made of glass and steel that looks like a film set for a utopian science fiction story; it exists primarily to provide bureaucratic services to Tbilisi residents but is architecturally extraordinary. Both are worth visiting for the contrast they provide with the Old Town's wooden balconies and crumbling Soviet-era apartment blocks.

Kazbegi (Stepantsminda): Mountain Drama

Kazbegi, officially renamed Stepantsminda but still universally known by its Soviet-era name, is a small town at 1,750m in the Greater Caucasus mountains, three hours by road from Tbilisi via the Georgian Military Highway. The road itself (the only land route between Georgia and Russia) is one of the most dramatic drives in Europe, passing through the Jvari Pass (2,379m) and the Dariali Gorge before descending into the Terek River valley. The town exists largely as a base for the hike to the Gergeti Trinity Church.

The Gergeti Trinity Church (Tsminda Sameba), built in the 14th century on a 2,170m hill above Stepantsminda, with the snow-capped 5,047m peak of Mount Kazbek rising behind it, is the most photographed view in Georgia and one of the most dramatic church settings in Europe. The hike from town takes 2–3 hours each way and gains 900m in altitude. In summer, 4x4 taxis make the drive for about GEL 40 each way. The trail is well-worn but steep; the view from the church terrace across the valley to the glaciated peak is worth every step. The church is still in active religious use; dress modestly and behave accordingly inside.

Marshrutkas (shared minivans) from Tbilisi's Didube terminal depart for Kazbegi throughout the morning from about 9am, cost approximately GEL 15 (€5), and take 3 hours. The last return to Tbilisi typically leaves at 4pm; confirm timing locally. Private car hire for the day costs GEL 150–200 (€50–65).

Kutaisi and Western Georgia

Kutaisi, Georgia's second city and current parliamentary capital, is the gateway to western Georgia's main attractions. The Gelati Monastery, 11km from Kutaisi, was founded by King David the Builder in 1106, at the height of the Georgian medieval kingdom's expansion. Its church mosaics are among the finest examples of Byzantine art in the southern Caucasus. Gelati is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and free to enter.

Vardzia, a 12th-century cave monastery carved into a volcanic cliff in southern Georgia near the Turkish border, is a 3-hour drive from Kutaisi. Its 13 levels contain over 400 rooms, a church with intact frescoes, and a throne room; approximately 15,000 monks once lived here. Entry costs GEL 7. The drive through the Mtkvari gorge to reach it passes some of the most austere mountain scenery in the country.

The Svaneti Region

Svaneti is the most remote and spectacular of Georgia's highland regions, a mountain valley in the Greater Caucasus accessible by road from Zugdidi or by a 30-minute flight from Tbilisi to Mestia. The region is famous for its medieval defensive towers (koshkebi), built by noble families from the 9th to the 13th centuries as protection during periods of war and invasion. Approximately 175 towers survive in Ushguli, the highest continuously inhabited village in Europe at 2,200m, which is itself a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Hiking between villages in Svaneti, with views of the 5,059m Shkhara glacier above, is among the best mountain walking in Europe. A local guide is strongly recommended: the trails are not always marked and the weather can change rapidly. The best hiking season is June through September.

Wine: The Kakheti Region

Kakheti, the wine-producing region east of Tbilisi in the Alazani River valley, is the heart of Georgian viticulture. Georgia produces wine in the traditional qvevri method, in which the grape juice, skins, seeds, and stems ferment together in large clay vessels buried in the earth. This extended skin contact (typically four to six months) produces the amber or orange wines that have become Georgia's most internationally celebrated contribution to wine culture. Rkatsiteli and Mtsvane are the main white grape varieties; Saperavi is the dominant red. The Chateau Mukhrani estate, 35km from Tbilisi, produces some of the country's most internationally recognised wines and offers estate tours and tastings (from GEL 20). The Alazani Valley around Telavi has dozens of smaller family wineries that welcome visitors with a degree of hospitality that can result in an unexpectedly long afternoon.

Food: What to Eat

Georgian food is one of the great discoveries of any visit. The cuisine is built around communal feasting (the supra) governed by a toastmaster (tamada) who leads a sequence of increasingly elaborate toasts, and the table is laden with dishes that combine walnut pastes, pomegranate, tarragon, coriander, and fenugreek in ways that belong to no other cuisine.

Khinkali are soup dumplings filled with spiced meat (most traditionally pork and beef), mushroom, or cheese. You hold them by the twisted dough knot at the top, bite a small hole in the side, drink the broth inside, and eat the dough, leaving the knot on the plate. A portion of five khinkali costs about GEL 8 (€3). Khachapuri is the bread boat filled with molten cheese and topped with a raw egg and butter: the Adjarian version (boat-shaped, from the Black Sea region) is the richest and most beloved. Churchkhela is a sausage-shaped confection made by dipping strings of walnuts in thickened grape juice and leaving them to set; it is sold everywhere and genuinely delicious.

Practical Information

Visa and Entry

Citizens of the EU, UK, USA, Canada, Australia, Japan, and most other Western countries can enter Georgia visa-free for stays of up to 365 days. This extraordinarily generous policy makes Georgia uniquely hospitable for long-term visitors and digital nomads as well as tourists. The Georgian lari (GEL) is the currency; as of 2025, £1 exchanges for approximately GEL 3.5.

Getting There

Direct flights to Tbilisi International Airport operate from London Gatwick (Wizz Air, from approximately £80 return), Frankfurt, Vienna, Warsaw, and most major European hub cities. The journey from London takes about 5 hours. Flying into Kutaisi (served by Wizz Air from several European cities, often at lower prices) and making your way to Tbilisi by marshrutka (GEL 15, 3 hours) is another option for budget-conscious travellers.

Budget

Georgia is very affordable for Western visitors. A comfortable mid-range daily budget runs to €30–60 per person, covering a good guesthouse or boutique hotel, two restaurant meals, local transport, and wine with dinner. Budget accommodation (guesthouses, homestays) costs GEL 40–80 per night (€14–28). A full dinner with wine at a good Tbilisi restaurant costs GEL 40–70 per person (€14–24). Restaurant meals in Kazbegi and Svaneti cost similar amounts despite their remoteness.

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