Georgia is one of those places people arrive at almost by accident and then talk about for years. It sits where Europe and Asia blur together, it has its own alphabet and its own wine tradition going back thousands of years, and it welcomes visitors with a warmth that catches most people off guard. Here is what is worth knowing before a first trip.
Getting in and staying
The pleasant surprise comes before you even land. Citizens of many countries can enter Georgia visa-free and stay for up to a full year. Not ninety days, a year. It is one of the most open border policies anywhere, and it is a big part of why so many short visits quietly turn into long ones. Check your own passport, but for most travelers entry is as simple as showing up.
Most people fly into Tbilisi, and Tbilisi is the right place to base yourself. It is central, walkable in the old town, and within a couple of hours of mountains, wine country, and ancient capitals.
Money and getting around
The currency is the Georgian lari. Cards are accepted across the cities, but cash still matters in markets, minibuses, and villages, so keep some on you. Prices are low by European standards, which makes the whole trip feel generous.
Getting around is easy and cheap. In Tbilisi, the Bolt app summons a taxi for a few lari, the metro is simple, and for trips between towns the marshrutka, a shared minibus, goes almost everywhere for very little. For day trips out of the city, a hired driver for the day is affordable and saves a lot of logistics.
Food, wine, and the table
You will eat well. Khachapuri, the cheese-filled bread, and khinkali, the soup dumplings, are the famous two, and both are worth the hype. Georgia is also one of the oldest wine cultures on earth, with a clay-vessel method, the qvevri, still in everyday use.
The thing no guidebook fully prepares you for is the hospitality. If you end up at a Georgian table, you will be fed and toasted far past the point of politeness, because here a guest is treated as something close to sacred. Lean into it.
A few words go a long way
English is common in tourist spots and patchy elsewhere, and Russian still gets you around with older Georgians. But the real unlock is a handful of Georgian. Almost no visitors try, so even hello and thank you land as a sign of respect and tend to be met with delight.
You do not need to be fluent to feel the difference. A few phrases, said badly, will earn you smiles a tourist never sees. If you want them ready before you go, our first lesson is free.
