One of the quiet luxuries of Tbilisi is how much sits within a day’s reach of it. Ancient capitals, a mountain church under a glacier, walled towns full of wine, a city carved into rock. You can sleep in the same bed every night and still feel like you are seeing the whole country. Here are the trips worth making.
Mtskheta, the ancient capital
Barely half an hour from Tbilisi sits Mtskheta, the old capital and the spiritual heart of Georgia. This is where the country adopted Christianity in the fourth century, and the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral has anchored the town for a thousand years. Above it, the Jvari Monastery looks down from a hilltop over the meeting of two rivers. It is the easiest trip on this list and the one to do if you are short on time.
Kazbegi and the Gergeti church
If you make only one big trip, make it this one. The drive north on the Georgian Military Highway climbs past the Ananuri fortress and the ski town of Gudauri to Stepantsminda, usually just called Kazbegi. The reward is the Gergeti Trinity Church, perched alone on a green ridge with the snow-capped Mount Kazbek behind it. It is about three hours each way, so it is a full day, and worth every minute.
Sighnaghi and Kakheti wine country
East of the city lies Kakheti, the heartland of Georgian wine. The walled hill town of Sighnaghi looks out over the wide Alazani valley, and nearby the Bodbe convent holds the resting place of Saint Nino. Around them, family wineries pour the amber wines made the old way, in buried clay qvevri. Two hours out, a long lunch, a cellar visit, and you are home by evening.
Borjomi and Uplistsikhe
Two more are worth a day each. Borjomi, to the southwest, is a leafy spa town famous across the region for its mineral water, with a forested central park made for a slow afternoon. And closer in, Uplistsikhe is an entire town carved into the rock, a cave city that people lived in for thousands of years, with the wind moving through hewn halls and old wine presses cut into the stone.
Make the day warmer
A driver, a guide, or the person pouring your wine will almost always speak some English in these places. But a few words of Georgian turn a transaction into a conversation, and out in the regions that goes a long way. Even a hello and a thank you tend to be met with real warmth. If you would like a handful ready before your next trip out of the city, our first lesson is free.
