Every year, I take a short trip with my mother and brother. It has become a ritual of sorts, and we eagerly anticipate our annual trip. We have explored Vietnam, UK and Kashmir in India over the last few years. As 2025 began, we started scouting places for our annual trip and landed on Georgia and Azerbaijan- the article reads.
Georgia is increasingly becoming a popular tourist destination. What makes Georgia so popular specially among Indians? Georgia offers everything that most European cities do, at a fraction of cost. And you don’t even have a lengthy visa process unlike most European countries. In Georgia, you will find history, charming cobblestone streets, beautiful mountain ranges, fun beach towns and delicious wine!
If you are planning a trip to Georgia, then you have come to the right place. The country may be small, but it has a LOT to offer. You can spend as little as 5 days or as many as 12-14 days to explore this country.
This guide covers all practical aspects like best time to visit, visa requirements, sample itinerary, where to exchange USD as well as things to do.
Depending on your Georgia itinerary, there are 3 airports in the country that you can choose from:
Tbilisi
Batumi
Kutaisi
Since my itinerary mainly revolved around Tbilisi, I flew in and out of Tbilisi. You can find direct flights to Tbilisi from some European cities and from Delhi, in India. If you are flying from other cities, then most likely, you will need to take a connecting flight.
We flew into Tbilisi via Azal Airways and for our return flight, we flew Qatar Airways.
Best Time to Visit
May/ early June and September are great months to visit. The weather is perfect for exploring the cities, lounging at the beaches and hiking.
Tbilisi looks really beautiful in autumn, so if you are an autumn lover, mid-November is a great time to visit.
If you are looking for winter activities, then visit Georgia in winter months. Gudauri is a great ski destination, where you can indulge in tons of winter activities from January to mid-April.
Visa Requirements
Citizens of most countries need to apply for an E-visa prior to visiting Georgia. This is a seamless and straightforward process. The E-visa costs USD 20 and the turn around time is around 3-4 working days. There may also be an additional service fee charged for processing. We paid around INR 3,100 in total.
However, if you have a valid visa or residence permit for USA / UK / Schengen / UAE / Australia etc., then you don’t need to apply for a visa. Click here to check the visa eligibility requirement.
Itinerary
If you are visiting Georgia for a very short time, then base yourself in Tbilisi and do day trips. However, if you are spending at least 5-6 days in Georgia, then consider staying a few nights in other places such as Kazbegi and/ or Sighnaghi rather than doing a daytrip.
We visited in mid-June and we spent 6 days in this beautiful country. This was our itinerary:
Tbilisi– 3N with a day trip to Sighnaghi wine region
Kazebgi – 1N
Tblisi– 1N
Most people do day trips to Kazbegi. Since I was traveling with my mother, we didn’t want to rush it and decided to stay overnight. If you are into hiking, you can easily spend 2 full days here. There are plenty of hiking trails suiting all fitness levels in both Kazbegi and nearby areas like Juta.
Whether you are planning to stay overnight or do a day trip to Kazbegi, don’t keep it for the last day. The drive is long and with multiple pitstops along the way, you don’t want to rush it to come back to Tbilisi for your return flight.
If you have more days on hand, you can visit the beach town of Batumi. More sample itineraries are given towards the end of this blog.
Where to Stay
In Tbilisi, I recommend staying in the city centre. Some of the popular neighborhoods to stay at are:
Old town
Sololaki
Liberty Square
Avlabari
Marjanishvili
Plekhanovi (around Fabrika)
As mentioned earlier, I spent the first three days in Tbilisi, drove to Kazbegi (and stayed there overnight) and came back to Tbilisi the next day. So, I split my stay in Tbilisi in two different hotels. For the first leg of my trip, I stayed at Hotel Monday near Marjanishvili and on the last night, I stayed at Communal Sololaki Hotel.
Both hotels were great in their own way. Our room in Hotel Monday was overlooking River Kura and quite spacious too. They had an excellent buffet breakfast specially for vegetarians! It wasn’t walkable to most places of interest, so we ended up taking taxis to get around. But even then, the ride was just a few minutes and most times, it cost GEL 5-7 one way.
Communal Sololaki was a boutique hotel with a handful of rooms and felt more like a homestay. They had a lovely seating area with hammocks so perfect place to rest and slow down after a long day of exploring the city. This area was more central and walkable.
If you want to stay right in the heart of old town, then check out these hotels:
In Kazbegi, we stayed at Memoir Hotel. The main USP was the view from our room! They even have a wonderful terrace overlooking the mountains and the town of Kazbegi. It was cloudy when we visited. Mt Kazbek was hiding behind the mountains but we could still see Gergeti Church right from our balcony.
If you are looking to splurge, check out Rooms Hotel. It is the BEST hotel in this town but it was turning out very expensive for our dates. So, we stayed at Hotel Memoir and went to Rooms Hotel for a meal – best of both worlds, right?
Best Way to Get Around
Taxis are readily available in Tbilisi. Download their local app, Yandex or Bolt, to get from one place to the other. All drivers we encountered, spoke English so getting around the town was fairly easy.
Tbilisi Old Town is fairly compact and walkable, but it is very hilly. Please wear comfortable shoes if you plan to walk around the old town.
For the longer drives (both Sighnaghi and Kazbgi), you can sign up for day tours. You will find plenty of tour operators in the old town. We wanted to explore these places at our own pace so hired a car + driver for these trips. Please send a message on Instagram @beantowntraveller if you need more details.
Where to Exchange USD
The official currency is Georgian Lari (“GEL”). You can carry Euros/ USD and get them exchanged at the airport or in the city. Most shops have similar rates (a few cents difference) so exchange at the shop where you are getting the best rate!
When we visited, USD-GEL exchange rate was around 2.68-2.72. If you are exchanging a considerable amount of USD, then the shops may need your passport for documentation purposes. But if you are exchanging just USD100-200 at a time, the shops may not bother.
If you are visiting Kazbegi/ Sighnaghi, exchange your USD at Tbilisi itself since these smaller towns do not provide a good exchange rate.
What to Eat/ Drink
Here are some of the things we tried (as vegetarians) and absolutely loved it.
Khinkali – traditional Georgian dumplings typically filled with meat. But for vegetarians, you can get them with mashed potato, cheese, beans or mushrooms. You can even find sweet khinkali at some places.
Khachapuri– Georgia’s famous cheese bread. It is like a pizza, but comes with a fried egg on the top. If you don’t eat eggs, you can always ask for one without egg.
L
obiani – A traditional Georgian dish of various kinds of beans (cooked or stewed) containing coriander, walnuts, garlic and onions.
Ajapsandali – An eggplant stew, typically eaten with bread.
Lobio – It is an stew with lots of herbs and spices.
Lobiani – Bread filled with beans and spices (similar to a quesadilla).
Local wines – Wine was invented in Georgia so your trip will be incomplete until you try the local wines
You can find several wine bars and cellars tucked away in the side streets, serving local wines. Some even offer free tastings.
Wine ice cream
Chacha – Also called wine vodka or grape vodka. It is STRONG so do not chug it in one sip
Churchkela – This Georgian candy is known for its unique sausage-like shape and rich nutritional value. It is made by repeatedly dipping a string of nuts (typically walnuts) into a thickened grape juice mixture and then allowing it to dry. This process creates a sweet, chewy treat with a distinctive fruity flavor and crunchy nuts inside.
Cherry and pomegranate juice – The streets of Tbilisi are packed with vendors selling freshly-squeezed juice.
Fresh Fruits – In the old town, you will see lot of street vendors selling fresh fruits. You can mix and match the fruits you want or simply grab one of the pre-made jars. A jar typically costs GEL 15-20. One of the days, we wanted to go light after a heavy lunch, so we ended up having fruits for dinner. Best decision !! Also, the mulberries here were just the sweetest!
Things to Do/ Places to Visit
Tbilisi
Tbilisi’s Old Town is a photographer’s delight ! Plenty of narrow winding streets, buildings covered with ivy and ornate balconies that you can spend hours admiring.
Kazbegi
There are couple ways to visit Kazbegi. You can either join a group tour or hire a private driver. You could also rent a car and self-drive. But note that there are several narrow and winding roads as soon as you start nearing the mountains. So, rent a car only if you are comfortable with hill driving.
We chose the second option and hired a car + driver for this drive. Since we wanted to enjoy the drive and the sights, we decided to stay overnight here. But if you are short on time, you can see most of the sites on a daytrip.
The drive from Tbilisi to Kazbegi takes around 3 hours but it is a very scenic one. A fun fact – the Russian border is quite close, and as you are nearing the border, you will see tons of trucks lined up. These trucks typically transport goods to and from Russia.
Now, while Kazbegi is a region, there are plenty of scenic spots where you can stop along the way. Since we visited in mid-June we spotted many beautiful spring blooms. It made the drive even more scenic. But even you are visiting in other months, I guarantee you will be glued to your window the entire time!
Jinvali / Zhinvali Water Reservoir
This will be the first stop enroute Kazbegi. Located about 70km from Tbilisi is this picturesque artificial lake, that was created primarily for hydroelectric power, as well as water supply for Tbilisi and flood control.
The color of the water is just unreal and photos don’t do justice!
There are a few gimmicky photo ops (picture swings or heart -shaped arches) as well and few food and coffee stalls. We picked up a sand coffee here which was strong and delicious. You will also find plenty of stalls selling souvenirs/ jewelry – be sure to bargain.
Ananuri Fortress
Next stop will be Ananuri Fortress, which overlooks the reservoir. The best view comes from top of the tower. But climbing up to the top is not for the faint-hearted. The staircase is small and very narrow and steep so be careful climbing up. Ladies, note that you need to cover your head while visiting the church.
Pasanauri
You can stop here for lunch as it is home to many restaurants. We were quite full so didn’t stop by.
Guduari
This ski resort town is perfect for visiting in winter months. It is quite dead in summer so I wouldn’t advise stopping by. We just stopped by to pick up some essentials from the supermarket.
Russian-Georgian Friendship Monument
A few minutes after you cross Guduari, you will spot the Friendship monument. This structure was built in 1983 to commemorate 200 years of Russian and Georgian friendship. The murals depict scenes highlighting significant events and figures from Georgian and Russian history.
What makes this spot worth visiting? Since it is situated on an elevated position, it provides incredible panoramic views of the surrounding landscape. Take a short walk around the monument and you will see amazing views everywhere. You can even go paragliding during summer months here. I bet it makes for a scenic ride.
Gergeti Trinity Church
Gergeti Trinity Church, built in the 14th century, is one of the most famous icons of Kazbegi. This church overlooks the town and provides incredible views! You can also see Mt. Kazbek from afar on a clear day. It is one of the highest mountains in the Caucasus region.
As we started driving towards it, we spotted a bunch of camels, cows and horses chilling in the meadows. They were just so cute!
Rooms Hotel
This is hands down, the prettiest hotel in this region. So even if you aren’t staying here, it is worth coming to admire the views.
The hotel has a beautiful terrace which is the perfect place to sit, relax and soak in the surrounding beauty.
Sno Village
Just a few minutes from Kazbegi you will find unique sculptures right in the middle of the road. They were created by a local artist, Merab Piranishvili, who is renowned for his unique ability to bring faces and emotions to life in natural stone. Each of these giant stone heads depict a famous Georgian writer, poet or leader. It is a work in progress and it is expected that the artist will add more sculptures in the future.
My trip to Kazbegi was definitely the highlight of my time in Georgia! The region is absolutely beautiful, and the scenic vistas we witnessed were truly breathtaking! If you only visit one place outside of Tbilisi, it should be this!
Kakheti Wine Region
You cannot come to Georgia and not add wine tasting to your Georgia itinerary
Kakheti is the country’s premier wine-producing region. It has a wine making tradition spanning more than 8,000 years using the unique qvevri method. This region is home to over 500 indigenous grape varieties, producing a wide variety of wines. Some of the popular wines to try here are Saperavi, Kindzmarauli, Khvanchkara, Alazani, Tvishi … phew the list is endless.
Kakheti is an easy day trip from Tbilisi. You can either book a group tour or a private tour. Since we were three of us, we hired a private car + driver for this daytrip for approximately USD 150.
Around an hour into the drive, we stopped at KT Wines, one of the leading wine producers in this country. As we waited for our turn, we indulged in freshly baked bread – it was so delicious!
Additional Places to Visit
Here are some additional places to visit from Tbilisi – they are all easy day trips.
Located just 45 minutes from Tbilisi, is Mtskheta, Georgia’s old capital and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is home to some of the oldest monasteries in the world and incredible views.
Also stop by Svetitskhoveli Cathedral.
It is said to house the robe of Christ, which was brought to Georgia in the 1st century.
Jvari Monastery – Built in the 6th century, this monastery stands on a hilltop and offers the best views of Mtskheta. This is considered to have been one of the first Christian sites in the region.
Gori and Uplistsikhe –Gori is the birthplace of Stalin. Uplistsikhe is a unique ancient cave town located just 20-minute drive from Gori.
If you are in Georgia for longer, here are some more beautiful places to add to your itinerary:
Batumi – You can either drive or take a train which takes 5 hours.
Svaneti – a must for all nature lovers. With its dramatic mountain landscapes,you can spend your days hiking in nature.
Mestia and Ushguli, a UNESCO World Heritage Site which is considered to be one of the highest inhabited villages in Europe.
