Route through gorgeous Georgia – 11 days

Usually, I don’t plan my trips very far in advance, but I always have plenty of options in mind. September 2019, however, was different. I had no idea and at the same time too many ideas of places I still wanted to visit. I just couldn’t decide.

Since I had planned a trip to the Philippines in November, I was leaning towards an active trip in the mountains. That, in combination with the positive stories and a short flight from Dubai to Tbilisi is how Georgia became the chosen one. I also found out that one of my buddies from high school would be traveling there during the same period. After years of no contact, we decided to meet up for a few days. The unexpected always brings good experiences!

I did my research but still wasn’t sure what to expect from this country. The only thing I was certain about was that I was going to see stunning scenery and try a lot of food.

11 days itinerary for Georgia

• Day 1 Tbilisi
• Day 2 Sighnagi
• Day 3 Sighnagi -Tbilisi
• Day 4 Mt. Kazbek & Gergeti Trinity Church
• Day 5 Tbilisi – Mestia
• Day 6 Mestia – Zhabeshi Guesthouse Dodo
• Day 7 Zhabeshi – Adishi
• Day 8 Adishi – Ushguli
• Day 9 Ushguli – Mestia – Zugdidi
• Day 10 Zugdidi – Tbilisi
• Day 11 Tbilisi

I took a 3,5 hours flight with FlyDubai from Dubai directly to Tbilisi. Wifi is definitely not so top-notch everywhere so if you still have some research to do, I advise everyone to buy a SIM card at the airport. As I planned to go trekking by myself, the mum might otherwise be worried about whether I was still alive or eaten by bears. Download Maxim and/or Taxify on your phone and you’re good to go! These are local uber-alike apps.

Tbilisi, Narikala fort & botanical garden

After a wild taxi ride from the airport to the capital city I spend the afternoon wandering around the Narikala Fort and Botanical garden. It’s a nice walk to the top of the fort and gives a pretty epic view of the city. The garden is not spectacular but lovely for a sunny afternoon walk. That evening I met my friend Nick for dinner and drinks with some others and the next day we got a ride to Sighnaghi, a cute village in the famous wine region. On the way we stopped to buy some of the local delicacies.

Although we didn’t really visit a vineyard, we tasted plenty of wines at various spots. Even with a great view over the vineyards. I guess we were close enough. The real highlight of this village, was when we stumbled upon a local lady baking bread in her garden. We were desperately looking for a place to have breakfast and it looked very interesting. We went to have a look and ended up eating there. She showed us their bread-baking technique and let me try it! It was quite hard work, but I was so proud with my own bread

Tbilisi

Back in Tbilisi, there were still plenty of places to visit. We went to a nice art and antique market, known as the “Dry Bridge Market”. Loved it! After a drink at a cute cafe, we crossed the Vere river and headed towards an area with lots of street art. I felt a very different vibe on this side of the river compared to the old city. Definitely not in a negative way, just more local. Some snacks and a lot of walking later we went up to the Mtatsminda park. This park is located on a mountain and has various attractions, including a lighted Ferris wheel and art museum. We went up there by funicular, which is very steep but a nice experience. Besides attractions, there are several places to eat, and the view is really not too bad either! 🙂

Mount Kazbek

The following day we rented a car to drive to Stepantsminda (Kazbegi), a popular starting point for trekking near Mount Qazbegi/Kazbegi/ Kazbek in the North of Georgia. It started as a beautiful day but sadly thick fog and rain had to ruin it again. On the way, we stopped at the Ananuri Castle, a beautiful fortress overlooking the Zhinvari reservoir. Climb up the tower and enjoy the view! Later on, we visited a little bee farm where we tasted a wide variety of freshly made honey. We were the only ones there, as it’s not a major stop. Or maybe nobody felt like leaving their car in the rain. Either way, I recommend taking a break here and get yourself some honey.

Rent a car for to avoid a bus full of tourists

Once we reached the Gergeti Trinity Church, the peak of the mountain had disappeared completely. Once back down, we were having lunch, and all of a sudden it started to open up a tiny bit and the peak slowly and vaguely became visible. It wasn’t much, but still a nice little surprise!

After I nearly hit a parked car while reversing, I conquered the hectic traffic of Tbilisi like a boss. I’ve been to enough chaotic cities to say this city definitely makes the top 5. Back in Tbilisi we had a great dinner in the lively Erekle 2 street, where we tried one of the most famous local dishes: Khachapuri. A boat-shaped bread filled with different cheeses and an egg on top. So heavy, but so good!

Tbilisi – Zugdidi – Mestia

The following morning I caught the first train to Zugdidi, a 5,5 hour train ride if you take it during the day. The train layout was quite interesting to me as it was 2 seats on the left, some facing each other with a table in between, and rows of 3 seats on the right side. Lucky as I always am, they placed me in the middle of a 3 seats row. Surrounded by families with crying babies and yelling kids. It was a long ride, but when we reached I quickly found a Marshrutka that would bring me to Mestia. Mestia is a village in the Upper Svaneti region, located in the Caucasus mountain range. This village has become a popular starting point for several treks.

The ride was supposed to take 3 hours, but it somehow took double. Thankfully the views were incredible, so that made up for the delay. We reached Mestia right before sunset but by the time I found my accommodation the sun had disappeared and it quickly became freezing cold, especially compared to the 25C° in Tbilisi.

Mestia to Ushguli 3 days trek

The owner of the guesthouse made me a big breakfast the next morning to give me plenty of energy for my first out of 3 days of trekking. Final destination: Ushguli! The Mestia – Ushguli trek is one of the most popular multi-day treks in Georgia. The first day was about 17 kms long, pretty doable. I think I took a little detour since at some point it was just me and the birds, the cows and Mother Nature. I didn’t meet any other hikers for quite a while and started to doubt my route, but the scenery was epic so I just kept walking. Not that I had another option, but still. The trees had all kinds of colours as it was the middle of autumn, which was really cool to see. September/October is probably the best time to do this trek.

I reached Zabeshi around 3 pm as one of the first ones, so I walked around town and socialised with the sweet owner of the guesthouse, Dodo. Funny enough her English was better than anyone in the capital city(!) Slowly other trekkers arrived and eventually, it was nearly 20 of us. I shared the table with a group of Israelis and a German couple. Dinner is usually included in the price of an overnight stay, just like breakfast. Dinner was insane, I don’t think I’ve ever seen that many plates of food on a table.

The next morning we were served a heavy breakfast with lots of different dishes, again. There was plenty for all of us to prepare a lunch package for the trip we had ahead of us. I believe most guesthouses offer this, so you won’t starve of hunger in the mountains. After a big hug from Dodo I was ready to conquer some mountains. Or so I thought..

Shortly after departing from Zabeshi I met a Dutch couple and we continued the rest of the trek together. Still not sure if I ruined their romantic vacay together, but they offered and said it was fine for me to join them. It was a long day, as we went a bit off-route, but the views were incredible and we even made a furry friend who tagged along. Once we reached Adishi I arrived at a closed accommodation and it seemed like it had been for a while already. Luckily there was still a room available at the Dutchies place. Once we dropped our bags we were off to the local “bar” we spotted upon arrival. It was empty when we got there, but a couple of hours, beers and games later, it was full of hikers. Great atmosphere!

Everyone went to bed early again as breakfast was served around 6 or 7 am. That day we had to cross a river, either by horse or by foot. The majority went for the second option, and so did we. Shoes off, Socks off and off we went through the nearly frozen water, no biggie for Becks. I already saw myself tripping over a rock and going head-first into that river with all my stuff, but I managed. After the river, the real deal started. A steep climb, which told me my cardio game was not on point. It felt great to reach the top, especially knowing the rest of the trek would be downhill gave me a little energy boost. Oh and the views, those were pretty epic too.

As I was a little short on time I skipped the last part of the hike. This part of the route mainly goes over a regular road, so I didn’t miss much. I reached Ushguli by van, late afternoon, which gave me enough time to explore this extremely remote and authentic village. The Svan people live very traditional lives and are really living in harmony with nature. It’s impressive how they manage to sustain, considering the fact that they’re isolated from the rest of the world for about 6 months, due to the harsh winter. The following morning I woke up for sunrise to walk around a little more before heading back to Mestia. There are several day hikes to do from Ushguli, but eventually, you always need to make choices, right?

Back in Mestia after a bumpy ride, I had enough time to visit a museum before taking the bus back to Zugdidi. I made sure to take an earlier one as I couldn’t risk another delay of 3 hours after the never-ending bus ride to Mestia. Of course the way back was twice as fast and we even arrived before the expected arrival time.. A four-hour wait at a train station with nothing but a tiny kiosk, fantastic. Luckily there were many other travellers so I joined a group of Germans to have dinner in town. Dinner didn’t cover the full waiting period so we bought some beers and waited at the station. Exhausted from the long day I had never been happier to see a train arrive. It wasn’t a very pleasant night since I shared my cabin with a sick girl, but I was tired enough to get some sleep anyway. Compared to the day train this one was very fast and I arrived around 5 AM back in Mestia.

Sulfur baths in Tbilisi

One of the top things to do in Tbilisi is to experience one of the famous Sulfur Baths in the Abanotubani district. These baths are cleaning, and relaxing and are said to have some healing effects as well. I had a hard time deciding (surprise) which to go to, as there are quite a lot. I eventually went to Gulo’s Thermal Spa as the rooms looked pretty and the ratings were good. Prices differ as there are different room types, but I booked a private bath with a scrub. It was a nice and interesting experience, I just wasn’t blown away by the scrub treatment. The lady was very rough, but at the same time I barely felt something. Maybe she had a bad day, maybe she was still tired, I’m still hoping I was just unlucky, guess I need to go back and try another one to find out..

Tips:
– Take off all your jewelry before entering the sulfur bath if you don’t want them to turn black;
– Bring a big bottle of cold water to avoid dehydration;
– If you want to save money, bring your own towel, slippers, shampoo & soap (it’s not much, but still);
– For all the clumsy people among us, walk carefully as it can get slippery.

Don’t forget to read about the typical Georgian food you must try!

Prefer an organized trip?

If you prefer not to book and organise everything yourself, several organisations offer organised trips:

• Bookatrekking.com
• Koning Aap reizen
• Sawadee