Transport

Private and local transport

Accommodation

Five nights boutique hotel accommodation Three nights mountainside hotel accommodation Folk Boutique Hotel In the heart of Old Tbilisi, this modern four-star property stands on the site of a celebrated 18th-century battle. The museum-like displays in the lobby of traditional 18th-century garments are echoed in the room decor and lend a quirky folk atmosphere. Intourist Kazbegi In a rugged valley at the foot of Mount Kazbegi, the Intourist is a delightful boutique hotel with spectacular vistas across the Caucasus Mountains. Views of epic snow-capped peaks can be enjoyed from the outdoor terrace, stylish indoor lounge bar or from the comfort of your light and airy modern-design room. Royal Palace Hotel The Royal Palace stands just where the Georgian plains give way to the lushly forested Caucasian foothills of Lagodekhi National Park. Resembling a country villa, the property has extensive gardens and a large pool offering a restful stay.

Guide

Local Insider

Meals

Eight breakfasts, four lunches, two dinners

Others

Guided Tbilisi walking tour Museum of Georgia visit Guided farmer’s market tour and cooking lesson Guided Mtskheta tour Wine workshop Wine-tasting Bread baking and churchkhela lunch with traditional toastmaster Guided Lagodekhi National Park and Gergeti Church hikes Ananuri fortress visit 4WD Truso Gorge tour Juta village visit

Hygieneprotocol

An average size of our groups is 10 which means you have the security of the group, but can avoid large crowds. All our Local Insiders will be Health & Safety trained and ensure your safety and wellbeing is the number one priority. Our private vehicles will feature daily assigned seating and undergo daily deep cleaning of all surfaces. Where possible, we use small / boutique accommodation which means fewer guests and less contact with other travellers. We require all hotels to provide protocols around the extra health & hygiene measures taken. Most included activities will be exclusive to our group where possible to minimize contact with other travellers and locals.

Not included:

Flights

Flights are not included.

Others

- Other activities and services are not included. - Visas (Where applicable) - Travel Insurance - Flights to and from the destination - Resort/City taxes (where applicable)

Insurance

Insurance is not included.

Optional

Guided Chaukhi Massif mountain hike Tbilisi sulphur baths visit Kisa massage experience

Start planning your experience

Day 1 Arrive In Tbilisi
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Arrive In Tbilisi

Touch down at Tbilisi International Airport and make your way to your central hotel, where you’ll meet our Local Insider who will accompany the group throughout the trip. At 6pm, they will introduce you to your fellow travellers over an informal welcome drink. Get to know each other during dinner before turning in for an early night; tomorrow will be a jam-packed day.

Accommodation:

Folk Boutique Hotel

Activities included:

Welcome dinner
Day 2 Explore Tbilisi Old Quarter And Enjoy A Typical Georgian Lunch
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Explore Tbilisi Old Quarter And Enjoy A Typical Georgian Lunch

Old Tbilisi’s tangle of narrow streets and pretty houses huddle beneath a cliff, topped with the walls of a fourth-century fortress. After strolling the lanes, catch a cable car up to the fortress for panoramic views across the city before heading down to a cluster of medieval bathhouses. Adjourn for a well-deserved lunch of Kubdari, a beloved pie-like bread dish filled with either pork, lamb or goat and a hearty mixture of onions and Georgian spices. In the afternoon you’ll have the option to visit the Museum of Georgia, where you can look out for gold artifacts; many believe this is the mythical Land of the Golden Fleece – something to mull over with evening drinks in a local pub.

Accommodation:

Folk Boutique Hotel

Activities included:

Guided Tbilisi walking tour

Traditional Georgian lunch

Optional activities:

Museum of Georgia visit
Day 3 Visit A Farmer’S Market And The World Heritage Monuments In Mtskheta
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Visit A Farmer’S Market And The World Heritage Monuments In Mtskheta

Tbilisi hosts a range of incredible markets, each a colourful cornucopia of fresh produce, spices and pickles, usually selling home-brewed wine and spirits too. It’s at a local farmer’s market where you’ll meet your host, chef Teona, to buy ingredients, before decamping to her home for a convivial masterclass in hearty Georgian cooking. Enjoy your creations for lunch. In the afternoon, you’ll head to nearby Mtskheta, a former fortified capital, to tour an atmospheric clutch of Unesco World Heritage monuments, including the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral.

Accommodation:

Folk Boutique Hotel

Activities included:

Guided farmer’s market tour

Cooking lesson

Guided Mtskheta tour
Day 4 Experience The Wine And Baking Traditions Of Georgia
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Experience The Wine And Baking Traditions Of Georgia

Georgia is referred to as the cradle of wine, as it’s where the first-known wine was fermented in 6,000BCE. Today you’ll see these traditions in the Kakheti region, east of Tbilisi. Wine here is still made in qvevri, large clay egg-shaped vessels, usually buried in the ground, and you’ll watch a master craftsman showcase the process. Following a pause at the 16th-century citadel of Gremi, join a local family for home-baked bread and churchkhela, a sausage-shaped sweet made from nuts and thickened grape juice. Like most Georgian feasts, lunch is conducted by a traditional tamada, or toastmaster.

Accommodation:

Royal Palace Hotel

Activities included:

Qvevri wine workshop

Bread baking and churchkhela experience

Lunch with wine and a traditional toastmaster
Day 5 Hike In Lagodekhi National Park And Sample Georgian Wine
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Hike In Lagodekhi National Park And Sample Georgian Wine

Step outside your hotel and you’re at the gates of Lagodekhi National Park, a small protected reserve in the Caucasian foothills that border Russia and Azerbaijan. You’ll enjoy a five-hour hike in the tranquil forests, which are veined with rivers and twitching with birds – an ideal prelude to the higher Caucasus in the coming days. Returning to Tbilisi, you’ll stop by a local winery to sample some of the country’s incredible array of distinctive wines, many of which are made in limited quantities by small-scale producers.

Accommodation:

Folk Boutique Hotel

Activities included:

Lagodekhi National Park hike

Picnic lunch

Traditional Georgian wine tasting
Day 6 Head Into The Caucasus Mountains And Trek To Gergeti Church
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Head Into The Caucasus Mountains And Trek To Gergeti Church

Belt up for the drive north into the Caucasus Mountains on the Georgian Military Highway. This ancient trading route between Georgia and Russia wriggles across the Jvari Pass before joining the Terek River valley, all the way to the town of Stepantsminda. En route you’ll pause at Ananuri Castle and the Gudauri View Point before reaching the 2,438m (8,000ft) high pass and spectacular Caucasus landscapes beyond. Stepantsminda is hemmed in by rugged mountains, including the snow-clad Mount Kazbegi. You’ll need to boot up for the superb three-hour hike to the medieval Gergeti Trinity Church, which sits on top of a grassy ridge.

Accommodation:

Intourist Kazbegi

Activities included:

Ananuri fortress visit

Guided hike to Gergeti Church
Day 7 Drive Through Truso Gorge And Visit Remote Juta Village
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Drive Through Truso Gorge And Visit Remote Juta Village

It’s another day of exhilarating scenery. Backtracking down the Terek valley, you’ll follow the Terek River as it veers west into ever wilder country before arcing through the Truso Gorge to time-forgotten hamlets and their lonely chapels. Heading back towards Stepantsminda, take a detour to Juta, one of the highest villages in the region. A short optional walk up the valley brings you to meadows with awesome views of the Chaukhi Massif, a jagged mountain with more than a passing resemblance to the Dolomites in Italy. Head back to Stepantsminda for dinner and a well-deserved sleep.

Accommodation:

Intourist Kazbegi

Activities included:

4WD Truso Gorge tour

Juta village visit

Optional activities:

Guided Chaukhi Massif mountain hike
Day 8 Return To Tbilisi For A Sulphur Bath And Farewell Dinner
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Return To Tbilisi For A Sulphur Bath And Farewell Dinner

Returning along the Military Highway, you’ll have time to snap those photos you may have missed on the way in. Back in Tbilisi, you can opt for some optional pampering time in the celebrated sulphur baths which, together with hot springs, anchor the legend of the city’s foundation in the fifth century. If all that steam and soaking make you drowsy, a kisa massage with exfoliation is sure to revitalise the senses in time for a farewell dinner.

Accommodation:

Folk Boutique Hotel

Activities included:

Farewell dinner

Optional Activities:

Tbilisi sulphur baths visit

Kisa massage experience
Day 9 Depart From Tbilisi
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Depart From Tbilisi

After a leisurely breakfast in the pretty hotel garden, it’s time to say goodbye to your fellow travellers. At midday, head for the airport for the return trip home – or extend your stay in Georgia.

9 days tour

Georgia And The Caucasus

This tour includes:

Not included:

Start planning your experience

Itinerary of your trip Georgia And The Caucasus

Arrive In Tbilisi

Explore Tbilisi Old Quarter And Enjoy A Typical Georgian Lunch

Visit A Farmer’S Market And The World Heritage Monuments In Mtskheta

Experience The Wine And Baking Traditions Of Georgia

Hike In Lagodekhi National Park And Sample Georgian Wine

Head Into The Caucasus Mountains And Trek To Gergeti Church

Drive Through Truso Gorge And Visit Remote Juta Village

Return To Tbilisi For A Sulphur Bath And Farewell Dinner

Depart From Tbilisi

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