Georgia By Road, A Journey Of Discovery
Historically rich cities, sky scrapers on the shore of the Black sea and mountainous expanses await every visitor to Georgia. This seldom visited country will surprise you with its every detail. With a hire car, 2 backpacks and 10 days to explore we journey across Georgia on a quest to uncover its hidden Gems and examine it’s hidden past. We will take you along on our journey and share with you our highlights and most fascinating locations.
Georgia Essentials
Driving in Georgia - Like most places once you get out of the cities it’s very relaxed. The biggest hazard is the amount of animals on the road, be prepared to stop for dogs, cats and cows. Even on the motorways the occasional cow crosses the road - why? We never found out.
Car Rental - If you are wondering if its worth paying the extra for a 4x4 the answer is yes!! Although a standard 2 wheel drive car will get you to most locations there are numerous occasions when we would have for sure got stuck had we not had a 4x4.
Fuel stations - Petrol stations are everywhere so not something to worry about, most of the time the attendant will fill up the car for you -a small tip is always welcome.
Important - If you want to take your hire car outside of Georgia to the neighboring country of Armenia, be sure to select a car hire company that allows this and tell them in advance so that they can prepare the documents (you might have to pick these up the following day from the main office in Tbilisi City Centre)
Sim cards - You can purchase unlimited data for 3-4 weeks for about $20, we purchased ours from the airport on the recommendation of the guy at the car desk. The communication network in Georgia was very good and we always had signal - even in the rural areas. No need to buy 2 sim cards as you can just create a hot spot and share.
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Georgian
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GMT+4
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+995 followed by area code and telephone number
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Passport holders from an additional 65-plus countries are eligible for either a 30 or 90-day tourist e-visa, which you can get online before you arrive.
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Georgia has three international airports in Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Batumi.
Arriving In Tbilisi
Who booked a flight to arrive at 3AM!? Well I did … but it was a bargain! So there we were 3AM stood in a crowd of taxi drivers, backpacks full, cameras strapped around our neck looking for our hire car company. A 24 hour pick up was promised but after lingering around an empty desk and several unanswered calls later we decided to try again in the morning and get a taxi to the hotel. Immediately after checking in we get a apologetic call back from the car company so Sean set back off to the Airport to sort the car out. With just a few hours sleep the alarm awoke us to start day one of our trip, no amount of deprived sleep could hold back the excitement of the first day of our Georgian trip!
We stayed at the KMM Hotel in Tbilisi twice during our stay in Georgia. We booked to stay at the KMM hotel on our first night in Georgia and arrived a little after 3AM, the front desk was very welcoming. We booked the cheapest and most basic room costing 40 Euro, the room was great, clean and the hotel location was perfect for exploring Tbilisi. When we returned to Tbilisi after completing the road trip we booked the best room in the hotel for our last night and wow is was worth it! With a large terrace with views over Tbilisi and the fortress it made for one of the most spectacular backdrops for packing up our bags one last time.
For this trip we kept with our normal road trip routine and did not book any hotels, as we didn’t know the road conditions and we like the spontaneity of being able to stop or stay wherever we like along the way.
First stop though was an early morning walk through Tbilisi to get a feel for the city and some fresh juice from a local street vendor costing around 1.5 Euro. We headed to old town across the bridge of peace as we needed to pick up the documentation from the hire car company’s head office that would allow us to take the car out of the country, anyway more on that later. With just a quick glimpse of some of the sights we were already excited to return to the city later in our stay, but for now we had everything we needed and were ready to hit the road.
We wrote a full Tbilisi city guide including everything you must see in Tbilisi, hidden gems and a Google maps walking tour. Check it out here.
Driving The Georgian Military Highway
We wanted to hit the road straight away so after grabbing breakfast in Tbilisi and a quick look around the city we hit the road and headed north!
There is an impressive monument towards the end of the Military road that’s covered in colorful, vibrant mosaics that we wanted to see. As a bonus it’s also located on one of Georgia’s Epic roads so what better way to get familiar with the car and wake up with some fresh mountain air than heading to the snow capped peaks of Georgia.
As we arrived in spring the harsh winter had taken its toll on the high altitude roads which had not yet been prepared for the year so be expect a bumpy ride and look out for pot holes big enough to swallow a car! In addition this road is also one of the main routes into Russia and at the time of writing was used predominantly by large trucks which often got backed up for miles, fortunately there was plenty of room to scoot past so it didn’t cause too much of a delay - just be sure to check your mirrors and blind spots before overtaking as everyone seems to be having a go at seemingly impossible overtakes.
Sean wrote a detailed guide to driving the Georgian Military Highway that you can read here also we created a Vlog of our time on the Military Road that you can watch here.
The Real Georgia
Mtskheta, Uplistsikhe, Gori, Katskhi and Kutaisi
Mtskheta, one of the oldest cities of Georgia and the former capital. We chose to spend the night here staying at a small family run hotel called Hotel Magdalena and it turned out to be one of our favorite places to stay. The breakfast was incredible and an experience in itself, home made dishes of every variety made us truly feel like a welcomed guest so much so we actually felt sad to leave.
The heart of Mtskheta is closed off to traffic (with the exception to quests staying within the town) this makes for a very calm and pedestrian friendly town. There’s plenty to see in the beautiful town of Mtskheta including the cobbled streets lined with vendors selling local crafts and the 11th century cathedral in it’s glorified fortified grounds.
For dinner we took a short drive to the ‘House of beans’ called Salobie, super popular with the locals this restaurant serves its specialty of beans served in a clay pot. A great atmosphere with food to match, we would definitely go back here.
Perched on the hill top and standing proudly on the horizon is the Jvari Monastery - If you are around at dusk a fantastic photo opportunity comes when the Monastery glows red with the last of the sun and the moon rises over the hills. We headed up to Jvari Monastery the next day where we were rewarded with both beautiful architecture and panoramic views.
Uplistsikhe
Uplistsikhe the Cave Town-Fortress is situated on a rocky massif 15 km east of the town Gori on the left bank of the river Mtkvari. Identified by archaeologists as one of the oldest urban settlements in Georgia and strategically located in the heartland of the ancient kingdom of Kartli it emerged as a major political and religious centre of the country. The Mongol raids in the 14th century marked the ultimate eclipse of the town. It was virtually abandoned and only occasionally used as a temporary shelter in times of foreign intrusions. Today it is considered an open-air museum where visitors are free to roam about the labyrinth of caves and hidden staircases.
Entrance to Uplistsikhe costs 15 GEL and children under 6 years old visit without a charge.
Parking is for a small fee unless one of the road side vendors invites you to park next to their stall -then you are kind of obliged to purchase something although the products are very good and relatively inexpensive so don’t be intimidated by their enthusiasm. For a few Euros we purchased fresh juice, walnut fruit sweets, honey and had a lovely conversation with the guy who ran the store -he was very proud of the products that his family made. Even if you don’t want to eat or drink the produce why not consider gifting it to people you meet on your trip, supporting local people at almost no cost to yourself will go a long way in helping people make a living.
Legend - According to the legend, Uplistsikhe was built by slaves. The slaves were given a pickaxe, half of which was covered with iron, thus excavating the caves, and the other half with gold. The slaves had to work hard to outwore the ordinary metal, after which the slave received freedom and precious metal or gold as a gift. Therefore, two things are clear. One is how much effort has been put into carving the city and the other is that gold was indeed being mined in Georgia and the legend of the Golden Fleece is no longer dispelled.
Gori
When google maps tells you to turn left onto Stalin Avenue you know you’re not in a typical town. Of late Gori has become a pin on the Dark Tourism map, principally known as the birthplace of Joseph Stalin and one of few places that not only openly display Stalin monuments but also has a museum dedicated to him. The museum makes no effort to present a balanced account of Stalin’s career or deeds and remains very much unchanged since it’s opening in 1957. Along with halls of memorabilia and his private train there also stands his childhood home enshrined in its own protective building. We chose to visit the museum not really knowing if this was history being preserved or a 20th century dictator being idolized as the result of decades of propaganda, either way we visited strictly in an observational manor.
Other points of interest in Gori include it’s citadel built into the cliff ‘Gori Fortress’ and the 8th century St George’s church of Gorijvari.
Chiatura Mining Town
The Chiatura mine is a large mine complex located near the town of Chiatura in central-western Georgia . As one of the largest reserves of manganese in the world in 1989 it it had a population of about 30,000. The city is known for its system of cable cars connecting the city's center to the mining settlements on the surrounding hills. In 2017, the Georgian government began rebuilding the system using modern cable car technology. The revamped system opened in September 2021 and the original Soviet-era system was deemed unsafe and taken out of service, however the government plans to preserve its stations as heritage sites.
The Fairytale Of Katskhi
The fairytale Katskhi pillar is a natural limestone monolith located near the village of Katskhi. It stands at approximately 40 meters high and is currently home to a solitude monk called Maxime Qavtaradze who has lived there for the past 20 years. During his time he along with the help of the Georgian Heritage Preservation Agency have restored the 1200 year old chapel that sits at the top.
The rock was once accessible to male visitors through an iron ladder running from its base to the top, but has recently been deemed inaccessible to the public. Speaking of inaccessible, the road to the pillar could present challenges without a 4x4 as there are really steep gravel inclines which require a decent run up, having said that we did see a couple of standard cars there and we wondered how they made it.
Check out our visit to the Katskhi pillar here.
Kutaisi
According to historians Kutaisi is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and is the second most important city in Georgia. We arrived late into the city and went straight to the hotel (Hotel Green Town), after a quick shower we called a taxi to take us to the city centre which turned out to be a lot closer that we had thought. We went directly to the restaurant Baraqa as it was only open for another hour, whilst trying to order quickly we may have ordered too much food, although having said that not much was left in the end! We wondered the back alleys back to the hotel along with a 4 legged friend that decided to follow us.
The plan was to leave at midday so with an early start we headed back into town, first stop was the market. The entrance to the market displays an impressive soviet stone relief depicting the origins of the nation of Georgia, as you enter the market you enter a world of fresh produce of every type. Tables of herbs, wooden crates of potatoes and no plastic packaging in sight!
We exited the market and walked through Kutaisi Park towards the Colchis Fountain, located in the central square of Kutaisi it features magnified models of ancient jewelry that were discovered at a nearby archaeological site with a pair of golden horses as the centerpiece of the fountain.
After a wander around the streets we headed to old town where the White Bridge is located, built in 1852 legend has it that this place for lovers is where the boys would prove their love by jumping off the bridge into the river - thankfully Em was content with a coffee. From here we hopped onto the cable car which is an attraction in itself, built in 1961 it connects old town to the Besik Gabashvili Amusement Park situated on top of the hill.
The first thing I thought when I saw the Ferris wheel is that it bares a resemblance to the one we saw in Pripyat abandoned for many years. To Sean’s delight it became apparent that it was indeed still operational! Without much thought Sean got tickets and we were sitting in the wheel, the attendant hooked on a small chain and it creaked into action. At this point we realized safety was none existent and we were the only people on the wheel. However lost in the nostalgia of the wheel and the amazing views, this is a ride we would never forget. We smiled and laughed reflecting on how awesome this was!
After all the excitement of the wheel it was time to head back to the Hotel to check out and continue to the next destination. Kutaisi was a city that exceeded our expectations giving us a glimpse into authentic Georgian life and one that we would recommend to everyone.
Abandoned Georgia
Tskaltubo
This place was without a doubt one of our highlights, not only of our Georgian trip but of all time. What’s here that’s so special?
Mineral water and natural sulfur springs have been attracting bathers for centuries, when Georgia was part of USSR spa resorts were commissioned and Tskaltubo became the most popular leisure destination of the Soviet Union. So much so that Joseph Stalin had his very own favorite bath house here and would often frequent it. Subsequently after the collapse in 1991 the bathhouses were abandoned and fell into a state of neglect and disrepair. After 3 decades of lying desolate they have been looted and stripped of any precocious materials with only the main structure remaining. Despite being exposed to the elements and nature trying to take back the land, they remain in a relatively good state.
As we strolled through this labyrinth of concrete the wealth and luxury of this bygone era echoed down the hallways. The ornamental plaster ceilings held strong to the ceilings and the last of the wallpaper clings on. Our fascination with this ruined place made us ponder if things have to be lost for us to truly appreciate the value they once had.
Out of the 22 sanatoriums built only 2 are functional today. We visited three of the abandoned bath houses, not strictly open to the public they are however easily accessible - it’s best to be discrete. Also worth noting is that some of them have become semi permanent residences for refugees that have fled to this country, so please be respectful if you plan on visiting these as they have become peoples homes.
For a detailed account of the day exploring these places see our YouTube Vlog and share with us the excitement of exploring the many rooms.
The Coast Road To Batumi
Batumi is full of interesting and bizarre things to see. Over the past decade this port town has turned itself into a mini Georgian version of Dubai.
As we approached the city from the coastal rode what struck us was the amount of abandoned buildings. It seems like every street has at least one empty and half finished hotel. But not small hotels, 30-50 story buildings that could accommodate thousands of people lay empty or unfinished. The city of Batumi has attracted thousands of people to its bright lights and Casinos since 2008. Soaring tourism statistics in the popular casino town has brought with it a construction boom which today appears to have lost momentum. Its a shame as there’s a stark contract between dilapidated residential buildings and modern high rise buildings lying unutilized.
The city centre housed every sort of architecture and era that you can imagine. Modern glass fronted towers, lit up water fountains, old town plazas and deck chairs on the sea front kept our eyes busy as every corner presented something weird and wonderful. Home to the worlds first Ferris wheel built into the side of skyscraper you get the idea of the diversity of this city.
A must see attraction is the Man and Woman moving statue know to the locals as the Ali & Nino Statue which slowly brings two lovers together for a short embrace, only for them to part almost immediately. The lovers statue was inspired by the 1937 Austrian novel, Ali and Nino, we highly recommend reading this book to really feel the emotion that this statue represents.
We arrived late in Batumi so after a nighttime stroll along the seafront we got dinner and headed to sleep so that we could get up early and explore the city at first light. We stayed at MiraMar-Luxury Residences cost 70 Euro, it’s next to the Hilton (in the same building) and gives you the same view but for half the price. The next day we walked around the city heading towards European Square. Batumi left us bemused as it was nothing like what we had expected, nevertheless we loved its quirks, imposed grandeur and vast array of surprises.
We departed Batumi at midday …we had no idea what awaited us on the road ahead.
Heading Inland Mtirala National Park and Beyond
Goderdzi
We left Batumi at midday for what we thought was going to be a relaxing drive through the countryside of Georgia and then into Armenia, how wrong we were! As we left the city limits natures greenery replaced the concrete jungle, we wound down the window and started to relax on the Batumi-Akhaltsikhe road. Before long the tarmac was replaced with gravel and dust, as the roads were being upgraded in sections. The sections of tarmac became less frequent and it should have became apparent that the route wasn’t going to get any easier, but with optimism and the thinking that it cant get any worse we continued on.
It got worse ... as we drove deeper into the countryside we realized things were not getting better, yet we had come too far to turn around. With the onset of spring the snow that had built up on the hill sides had started to melt and flood sections of the road. Our little 4x4 Suzuki was faultless! Even with worn out tires it powered up the muddy steep inclines and ploughed through the pools of water. The only thing that stopped us in our tracks was a small landslide that had completely blocked the road, forcing us to wait for heavier equipment to clear the way.
With the road block cleared we moved onwards as the roads got narrower and a lot more bumpy, as we looked for an end in sight. It was evident that we were gaining altitude by the sudden drop in temperature and the fact that we were now driving on snow. After 5 hours hours of really rough terrain and slow progress we were starting to lose daylight, navigating this road was challenging enough whilst being able to see, driving at night was not going to be an option.
Looking at the map we were nearly at the top of the pass and things should have been down hill soon, perhaps there was still a chance we could make it to a town or village to stay the night and make up for lost time the next day. The snow got deeper and deeper, soon we were driving in a tunnel of snow that had been carved out by heavier machines, there were gondolas and chair lifts - we had driven to a ski resort. It was that season between winter and spring when the resort was closed to winter sports and not yet open to summer activities, what looked like a fun place to be in the winter looked bleak with shut up chalets and melting dirty snow. As we turned a corner we were met by a wall of snow and some workmen signaling that we could go no further! The dread set in that we had two options 1-Turn around and try to tackle that road in the dark or 2-Put all our clothes on and sleep in the car. Fortunately a 5 star third option presented itself.
To our relief the Hotel Ambassadori stays open all year and was right there in front of us! Never before has a solution to a problem presented itself so quickly. At the mercy of the front desk we were offered a beautiful room, use of the Spa facilities and the restaurant was open! What was looking like an unforgettable night for the wrong reasons was flipped on it’s head. We unloaded the car, headed to the Spa and after a swim and a sauna we headed off to dinner. Again the restaurant was more than we could ever have asked for with a fantastic menu and wonderful service by staff that were bewildered as to what we were doing here and more importantly how on earth we got here! After we had relaxed and had time to think, we planned the best course of action for the next day - we would get up early before the sun could melt any more of the snow and retrace our tracks back to Batumi. I don’t know if it was comforting or worrying knowing exactly what awaited us, one thing was for sure -we had no other choice.
As planned we got up early, packed the car and said goodbye to this beautiful savior of a hotel. It was at this point we noticed that the number plate had fallen off the front of the car, not usually an issue but there is no way we would have been able to cross the border into Armenia without it.
Follow the rest of our story on our YouTube Vlog and see if we made it back down and onto Armenia.
Back To The Capital
Georgia is a country of contradictions, with seemingly booming cities like Tbilisi and Batumi that are full of new high rise buildings next to abandoned half built apartment blocks. Brand new cars sit next to burnt out vehicles and mega motorways isolate villages from passing traffic.
After the unplanned backtracking on the Batumi-Akhaltsikhe road we once again found ourselves in Tbilisi. We stayed in a convenient basic hotel where we could re-attach the numberplate to the car, rest up for the night and re shuffle our plan for the next days as we were now a day behind schedule.
With an early start we ensured we had all the documents we needed to hand and set off south to the border of Armenia to begin the next part of our trip.
If you would like to read about what we got up to in Armenia check it out here!
We hope you enjoyed this blog and we will catch you on the road.
