Georgia 🇬🇪 is the country of historic churches and monasteries, fast rivers and high waterfalls, tasty and unique cuisine. In this article, I am sharing my own route that I made in this country and giving some advice what to see in different regions.
I came at the International Tbilisi Airport. There is a bus number 337 going to the city center. It has 30 minutes intervals and operates from 7 am till 11 pm. Payment can be made by card inside the bus.
TBILISI
I would say that it is going to be enough if you spend in the capital city of Georgia 3–4 days. Tbilisi has a very interesting architecture: there are a lot of buildings of the Soviet era, some modern experiments, as well as buildings of 19 century. I walked a long time through streets, looking at the beautiful forms and shapes of local architecture. Tbilisi is definitely worth exploring it on foot. Here are the most famous attractions in the city:
The Holy Trinity Cathedral, known as Sameba, was completed in 2004. Despite being a new building, it represents a traditional Georgian architectural style. The Cathedral is located on a hill, so you can enjoy a nice view of the city.
Narikala is the name of an ancient fortress in Tbilisi. It is unknown when exactly it was built, but, according to some archeologists, it was already existing in the 4th century AD. It is not very well-preserved, but everyone can climb on top of it. If you are planning to go there, you need to be very careful and wear a comfortable pair of shoes, because there is nothing to hold while climbing there.
Mother of Georgian, or Kartlis Deda, is a 20 meters high monument built in the middle of 20 century. The statue holds a sword for the enemies in one hand and a bowl of wine for friends in another. There is a cable car going to the monument. The price is 3 lari ($1), can be paid by card. You can take a walk to the Narikala fortress, which is also located on the top of the hill.
A monument in the center of the Liberty Square is depicting St. George killing the dragon. There are some interesting streets starting at this point, e.g., Rustaveli Avenue and Kote Abkhazi Street.
An Old Tbilisi is an area at the end of Kote Abkhazi Street next to historical sulfuric baths. It has a lot of small, tiny streets. Also, there is a park that I wanted to visit, but it was closed.
The pedestrian Bridge of Peace is an example of modern Tbilisi architecture. You can also visit The Music Theatre Hall and the Public Service Hall.
I recommend to enter every church and monastery that you see in the city. There are not a lot of statues or paintings in Georgian churches, but this allows to overlook the shapes of this religious buildings. All the females should cover their heads when entering in local churches, usually there is a box with free head covers in the entrance.
I will make a big ultimate guide of Tbilisi soon, subscribe not to miss.
KUTAISI
A train from Tbilisi to Kutaisi takes almost 6 hours. The cost is 8 lari ($3). The faster train will take approximately 3 hours to reach Kutaisi airport. You can check the price on the official website of Georgian Railways.
The city is not really big, but there are a lot of wonderful destinations around it. Here is everything I’ve visited:
Kinchkha Waterfall. In the beginning, I had a plan to visit an Okatse Canyon. After a research, I found a minibus (marshrutka) going to Khoni town at the Kutaisi bus station. The driver said that the price is 5 lari (almost $2), but I saw all the locals paying 2 lari only. However, this driver gave me 2 big pastries, so I didn’t mind about the price.
The minibus left me in the middle of the countryside and I were said to wait for next marshrutka. When it arrived, I asked a driver to take me to Okatse canyon. But after 10 minutes, when I was already in the mountains, the driver said that the canyon is closed now due to bridge restoration. Then he offered me a private tour, but I wasn't really ready for that, because I wanted to save money. That’s why I have chosen to go there by myself, not with an organized tour from the city. However, in this situation I agreed to take the private tour because I was already in an unknown place without an internet connection and any clear infrastructure. The driver took me to the Kinchkha Waterfall and to not famous canyon named Boga. The entrance fee for a Kinchkha Waterfall is 17 lari ($6,5).
I really enjoyed the destinations he showed me. The views of Georgian nature are really breathtaking. Also, I visited his mother’s home, where tried some local foods and homemade wine. I paid 70 lari ($26) to the driver.
Gelati Monastery was founded by the king David the Builder in 12 century. It is a big ancient monastery with a large calm area around it. It located on the top of the hill so there is a wonderful view on the surroundings. There is no entrance fee, and you can get there by minibus from the city center. The price is 3 lari ($1).
Motsameta monastery was founded by the king Bagrat IV in the middle of 11 century. This magnificent place is absolutely must-see destination in Georgia. The monastery is located on the very top of the canyon, surrounded by the river with deep blue water. It is possible to go down to the river, where you can enjoy some silent and peaceful moments.
It is possible to walk to Motsameta monastery from Gelati, but locals took me there on their car for free. There are a lot of taxi drivers next to the Motsameta offering a very high price for 15 minutes ride, that’s why I decided to walk back to Kutaisi. However, after 5 minites one more local took me to the city center for free.
There is a famous Martvili canyon next to Kutaisi, but I didn’t have enough time to visit it. As far as I know, there is a direct minibus (marshrutka) going from Kutaisi bus station.
BATUMI
A train going from Kutaisi to Batumi has a 2 lari ($0,8) price. It takes a bit more than 4 hours. There is no opportunity to buy tickets in advance, they are starting to sell it around 1 hour before departure. You can take a bus from Batumi-Central railway station to the city center. It can be easily paid by card.
Batumi is my favorite city in Georgia. It is a really peaceful place next to a Black sea with wonderful people living there. Here are the main attractions of this city:
Ali and Nino is probably the most romantic statue that I saw. The man and the woman are slowly moving to each other, creating a single integral piece for a moment, and then going in opposite directions to meet each other agasin after 10 minutes. The statue is inspired by the novel which tells about relationships of a Georgian girl and an Azerbaijani man.
You can also visit an Armenian church in Batumi, which was built in the end of 19 century. It is located on Konstantine Gamsakhurdia Street.
You can see the letters of the unique Georgian alphabet on the Alphabetic Tower. The tower was completed in 2011.
An Europe Square is located in the city center next to the Black Sea coast. A lot of small and big streets are starting there.
Batumi has a long and beautiful seafront, from where you can see most of attractions. There is also a beautiful city center with cute streets and tasty food in restaurants.
You can make a day-trip to Makhuntseti Waterfall from Batumi. It is a breathtaking waterfall, and you even can swim in it during the summer! There is a bridge of the Queen Tamar the Great next to the waterfall, which was built over 900 years ago.
The minibus N 77 will take you there from the city center. The road runs through rivers and hills, so you can enjoy wonderful views on the way.
MTSKHETA
There is a 5 hours train back to Tbilisi. The price was 34 lari ($13).
I made a day-trip from Tbilisi to Mtskheta — an ancient Georgian capital. There are some historic monasteries surrounded by mountains and hills. The most famous is called Jvari. The 1500-years old monastery is located on the top of the hill overlooking the confluence of two rivers.
You can get to Mtskheta by bus or minibus from Didube bus station.
My next destination is Yerevan — the capital of Armenia. There is a night train going from Tbilisi. Of course, I will make a separate guide about it!
However, there are still many places that I want to visit in Georgia. For example, Svaneti — the most mountainous region of the country. But I have not figured out how to get there. If you were there, please tell me how did you travel to this region. And recommend more must-see destinations in Georgia, I will definitely go there!
More live content from my trips find in my Instagram @not_benjamin and my TikTok @qatys2211
